Discover ioby Campaign Success 2015 has been a momentous year for ioby (in our back yard) here in Memphis. Earlier this year, Livable Memphis and ioby announced $50,000 in match funds to launch citizen-led, neighbor-funded campaigns through ioby. The Kresge Foundation graciously provided the initial $50,000. With the help from the Hyde Family Foundation and Livable Memphis, additional funding was provided to increase the match dollars so we could support more awesome projects. The ioby ideas ranged from neighborhood block parties to beekeeping: 11 involved art, 7 focused on education, 14 involved gardens, 13 promoted active living, among many others. On April 11th ioby project leaders attended MEMFix: Pinch to rally support from friends and neighbors and to kick off the public match period.

In total, Memphians raised over $160,000 supporting 67 ioby campaigns to make our neighborhoods more livable and fun.

Of these 67 ioby campaigns:

• 36 ioby leaders met their original fundraising goal before the match period deadline of April 15.
• 28 raised more than their original fundraising goal.
• More than 60% of the ioby leaders had never before raised money online.
• Campaigns raised an average of $2,440.92
• Nine projects were city-wide; the others focused on one or more particular neighborhoods.

Together, the projects cover 17 ZIP codes. Go to ioby.org/memphis to see all the campaigns.

In June, ioby’s board of directors came to Memphis for their annual board retreat. This was the first time the board ever met outside of New York City. They came from San Francisco, New Orleans, Cleveland, Washington D.C., and New York. One of the highlights of the trip was a 9 mile bike ride touring ioby projects beginning at Revolutions Bicycle Co-Op on Cooper. Along the route, the group stopped at ioby projects and talked with ioby leaders. It was a great way to see the city and the impact of citizen led change.

ioby and Livable Memphis began their partnership in the fall of 2013 with a $70,000 campaign for the design of the Hampline. Since then Memphians have started and supported 119 ioby campaigns with an average budget of less than $3,000. Each has led to big changes for the leader, their project, and our neighborhoods.

If you would like to start your own campaign or learn more about ioby, contact Ellen Roberds at: [email protected].