Since 2012, we have mobilized over 700 young professionals to make a meaningful contribution in their communities.

  • We teach and train young professionals to be committed partners and advocates working towards community-based change. Our north star is to build a culture of solidarity in the Bay Area and beyond.

  • The default ways we practice social impact work and philanthropy don’t prioritize listening to community voices and investigating the systems that create and reinforce inequality. The threats that loom in our collective future — the climate crisis, widening economic gaps, and social polarization, to name a few — will require founders, funders, philanthropists, and decision-makers that understand how to share power, leverage diverse resources, and prioritize equity and solidarity.

    By working with a rising generation of leaders (early-career professionals aged 23-35), we have the opportunity to reinforce a social impact and philanthropy sector that is grounded in community and in values that supports systemic, equitable change.

  • We exist to build solidarity across socioeconomic boundaries for a more just, inclusive, and equitable future.

  • Projects form the foundation of YCore's program. We partner teams of 4-5 young professional fellows with local nonprofits to work on a 4-month strategic project. Our fellows apply their professional skills to a challenge their partner is facing, dedicating after-work hours to bring solutions to life.

    The goal of these projects is twofold:

    1) To provide nonprofits working with populations most affected by socioeconomic inequity with skills and resources they wouldn’t otherwise have access to. 

    2) To provide young professionals, who see inequity around them and want to make a positive difference, with experience practicing solidarity and using their skills to support important work.

Jess Blackshaw, Executive Director

“Participating in a culture of solidarity means keeping our attention on how we all stand to gain from each other’s successes. It means tending to our relationships with others in our community while working to change the systems and structures that prevent people from thriving.”

Our Values

  • We challenge traditional structures by questioning existing power dynamics and assumptions about our work and relationships.

  • We care about the whole person beyond their work outputs. We invest in community-building, rest, and joy.

  • We lean into discomfort and tension as opportunities for growth, and we hold ourselves accountable when we fall short.

  • We know there is always more to learn. We recognize that we are not experts and that it is our responsibility to keep learning. We also recognize that learning can come from a wide variety of situations, people, and sources.