We did not respond with a program.
We responded with a model.
Project2053 is a nonprofit foundation built on a single, data-backed projection: that by 2053, the median net worth for Black Americans could reach zero. What we built in response was not charity. It was a business model.
The Foundation is the why. The Catalyst Fellowship is the how. Together they form a structure built to outlast the conversation.
The year median Black net worth is projected to reach zero without structural intervention.
Projected median Black net worth by 2053 if compounding inequities go unaddressed.
The planning horizon we built around because organizations that outlast the problem are the ones that solve it.
Governance, capital, and long-term mission infrastructure.
The Project2053 Foundation provides the nonprofit home for everything we build. It raises philanthropic capital, ensures mission integrity, and anchors the model to its purpose across administrations, economic cycles, and market conditions.
A nonprofit that owns a business. Intentionally.
Most foundations raise money and grant it out. Project2053 raises money and builds with it. The Catalyst Fellowship operates as a for-profit LLC, generating corporate cohort revenue and channeling returns back into the mission. The problem is too large to be solved by charity alone.
Your highest performers are leaving. We built the tool to keep them.
The Catalyst Fellowship is a career development and financial stability program for high-performing professionals, sponsored by the companies that cannot afford to lose them.
This is not a benefits package. It is a retention strategy with a development thesis.
The business case for the Fellowship
Lost annually by U.S. employers due to financial stress (BrightPlan, 2024)
Of business leaders say financial stress drove higher turnover last year (BrightPlan, 2024)
Financially stressed employees are more than twice as likely to be job hunting now (PwC, 2024)
For Companies
Sponsor fellowship seats for nominated high-performers. Track retention, engagement, and measurable ROI.
For Fellows
Receive financial coaching, wealth-building tools, and cohort-based career development.
One model. Two entities. One outcome.
Philanthropic capital flows into the Foundation. The Foundation owns and funds the Fellowship. Corporate sponsorships generate Fellowship revenue. Revenue flows back into the mission. The model compounds over time.
Project2053 Foundation
Philanthropic capital, governance, and long-term mission infrastructure.
Catalyst Fellowship
Corporate-sponsored cohorts, for-profit LLC, revenue-generating program owned by the Foundation.
Mission Impact
Revenue reinvested into closing the wealth gap for underrepresented communities.