Youth United for Community Action (YUCA)

What Youth United for Community Action (YUCA) does

Youth United for Community Action (YUCA) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1994 in East Palo Alto, California, that operates a youth-led community organizing model focused on low-income youth of color ages 12-18. The organization delivers two core programs: the FIRE Fellowship, a paid internship placing young people with Bay Area environmental and social change organizations, and the Higher Learning Program, a political education and organizing training program for high school youth launched in 1997. YUCA runs active campaigns on education justice (Our Future Matters), climate resilience, tenant rights, and environmental justice, and has secured multiple local policy wins including the Bay Area's first Tenant Protection Ordinance (2014) and the regulatory shutdown of the Romic hazardous waste plant.

YUCA has no technology platform or software product; all programming is delivered in-person through workshops, toxic tours, school-based sessions, rallies, and coalition-based community organizing. The organization's go-to-market is grassroots and community-led, recruiting youth through schools (middle schools, continuation high schools, Menlo Atherton High School) and word-of-mouth referrals, then progressing participants through a structured volunteer-to-Senior Youth Organizer pipeline. Revenue is sourced from individual donations, corporate matching gifts, grants, and named beneficiary status in the 2016 Facebook ETB-FB Community Compact, which directed $18.5M in community benefits (primarily through intermediaries) to East Palo Alto.

The organization operates with approximately 10 staff and is governed by a board of directors composed largely of YUCA alumni, including Board Chair Dalila Adofo and Board Treasurer Heleine Grewe. In 2021, YUCA completed a $1.2M+ capital campaign to purchase its permanent office at 2135 Clarke Avenue through a partnership with PAHALI Community Land Trust, anchoring operations in East Palo Alto for the long term. The organization is geographically concentrated in East Palo Alto and the broader San Mateo County region, with no disclosed expansion beyond the Bay Area.

Name

Youth United for Community Action (YUCA)

Legal name

Youth United for Community Action

Website

https://youthunited.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Youth United for Community Action (YUCA) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1994 in East Palo Alto, CA that runs youth-led community organizing programs — including the FIRE Fellowship and Higher Learning Program — for low-income youth of color ages 12-18 on housing, environmental justice, and education campaigns.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Youth Community Organizing and Nonprofit Civic Engagement

NAICS

Child and Youth Services (62411), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Youth Leadership, Civic Education & Service-Learning Nonprofits (BPAGADAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Youth Justice, At-Risk Youth & Violence Prevention Nonprofits (BPAGADAM), K–12 Support & School Improvement Nonprofits (BPAGADAB)

Keywords

• Youth organizing
• Community organizing
• Environmental justice
• Leadership development
• Social justice advocacy

Headquarters

HQ city

East Palo Alto

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: YUCA accepts online donations via its website and by check. Donors can mail contributions to the East Palo Alto office. The organization encourages recurring or one-time gifts to keep its doors open and sustain community work.
2. Corporate Matching Gifts: YUCA encourages donors to check if their employer or corporation has a matching gifts program, which could double or triple the value of a gift to the organization.
3. Facebook Community Compact Funding: YUCA is a named beneficiary of Facebook's $18.5 million Catalyst Housing Fund and a $500,000 Tenant Assistance Fund as part of the 2016 ETB-FB Community Compact. Of the $14M TE Project Contribution, $10M is allocated specifically for East Palo Alto affordable housing development. YUCA also receives $250,000 through Rebuilding Together Peninsula from Facebook.
4. Grant Funding & Fundraising: YUCA has historically diversified funding sources including grants and a 2021 capital campaign that raised over $1.2 million to purchase its office space in partnership with East Palo Alto's PAHALI Community Land Trust.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Youth United for Community Action is a nonprofit youth-organizing organization that trains and mobilizes young people of color in East Palo Alto to lead campaigns on environmental and social justice issues. It delivers this through a FIRE Fellowship, a Higher Learning Program, and sustained issue campaigns such as Our Future Matters and Climate Resilience, supported by donations, grants, and corporate matching gifts.

Product overview

Youth United for Community Action (YUCA) is a grassroots nonprofit organization — not a technology product company. Its offering consists of youth development programs and community campaigns rather than a software product or platform. The core programs include the FIRE Fellowship (paid youth internships with Bay Area organizations) and the Higher Learning Program (political education and organizing training for high school youth). YUCA runs two primary campaigns: Our Future Matters (education justice/restorative practices) and Climate Resilience (sustainable living and environmental justice). The organization also provides community organizing workshops and toxic tours for external groups. There is no unified software platform or product architecture — these are community programs and advocacy campaigns.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• FIRE Fellowship A youth fellowship that provides political education, organizing training, and leadership development for East Palo Alto youth, designed to prepare young people of color to lead community campaigns.
• Higher Learning Program A college access and success program supporting YUCA alumni with higher-education preparation, retention support, and continued leadership development.
• Our Future Matters Campaign A sustained community organizing campaign led by YUCA youth members to advance local policy and equity priorities.
• Climate Resilience Campaign A youth-led environmental-justice campaign addressing climate resilience, pollution, and lead contamination concerns in East Palo Alto.

Quantifiable outcome

• Shutt down Romic hazardous waste plant after 11 years of organizing, forcing regulatory shutdown
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Casey Wong (Restorative Justice Expert)minorOthers · 9 March 2021YUCA entered into a partnership with Casey Wong, a restorative justice expert, to build a community where strong relationships and healthy dialogue create safe spaces for growth, accountability, and conflict resolution in the least punitive way possible. This supports YUCA's restorative and transformative justice campaign to interrupt the school-to-prison pipeline.
• Community Legal Services in East Palo AltocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity Legal Services in East Palo Alto (CLSEPA) is one of the four Community Groups in the Facebook Community Compact and a partner in YUCA's coalition work. CLSEPA provides legal resources for tenants threatened with displacement. YUCA's Program Director Kenia Najar Miranda has previously worked with CLSEPA on coalitions to stop ICE referrals.
• GreenAction for Health and Environmental JusticeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGreenAction for Health and Environmental Justice is listed on YUCA's Take Action page and is a key partner in YUCA's environmental justice and climate resilience campaigns. YUCA board member Dalila Adofo previously served on GreenAction's Board of Directors.
• Urban HabitatminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUrban Habitat is listed on YUCA's Take Action page and is referenced as a co-presenter with YUCA, Public Advocates, and NonProfit Housing Association on 'Protecting Communities, Securing Benefits' — a presentation on community benefits agreements and housing policy.
• Silicon Valley De-BugminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSilicon Valley De-Bug (SV De-Bug) is listed on YUCA's Take Action page as a community partner in the broader Bay Area social justice ecosystem. SV De-Bug is a community organizing group in San Jose working on similar issues of equity and justice.
• Nuestra Casa de East Palo AltominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNuestra Casa is an East Palo Alto nonprofit focused on building community leaders. YUCA board member Heleine Grewe joined Nuestra Casa as staff after her time as a youth organizer. YUCA is developing partnerships with Nuestra Casa for climate resilience and community building.
• Peninsula Interfaith ActionminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPeninsula Interfaith Action (PIA) is listed on YUCA's Take Action page as a coalition partner in East Palo Alto. PIA is a faith-based community organization focused on social justice issues in the Peninsula region.
• Urban Permaculture InstituteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerYUCA is developing a partnership with the Urban Permaculture Institute as part of its Climate Resilience campaign to build interracial solidarity and culturally competent approaches to sustainable living in East Palo Alto.
• Anamatangi Polynesian VoicesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerYUCA is developing a partnership with Anamatangi Polynesian Voices alongside the Urban Permaculture Institute as part of its Climate Resilience campaign to build interracial solidarity and culturally competent approaches to climate resilience in East Palo Alto.
• PAHALI Community Land TrustcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerYUCA partnered with PAHALI (People's Association for Housing and Livelihood Initiative) Community Land Trust to purchase its office space in 2021, permanently anchoring youth organizing in East Palo Alto. YUCA fundraised over $1.2 million for this purpose. Ofelia Bello, YUCA's ED Consultant, chairs the PAHALI board.
• Youth Organizing in Northern CaliforniaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerYUCA contributed to a design session with Youth Organizing in Northern California to help guide how grants are distributed to strengthen youth organizing movements statewide, influencing funding to youth-led organizations.
• Boys and Girls Club of the PeninsulaminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorListed on YUCA's Take Action page as a partner organization for community involvement. The Boys and Girls Club of the Peninsula serves youth in the same geographic area and shares a similar youth development focus.
• City of East Palo AltominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed on YUCA's Take Action page. YUCA has a long-standing relationship with the City of East Palo Alto, having won policy changes through city council lobbying, participated in advisory commissions (Rent Stabilization Board, Planning Commission), and engaged in city council candidate forums.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• GreenAction for Health and Environmental Justice: Bay Area environmental justice nonprofit tackling toxic exposures and health inequities. Listed on YUCA's Take Action page; YUCA's Board Chair Dalila Adofo previously served on GreenAction's board, and both organizations share environmental racism campaign DNA including the Romic-era work.
• Coleman Advocates for Children and Youth: San Francisco-based youth and family advocacy organization running youth leadership development and campaigns on school discipline, housing, and equity. Closely comparable youth-led organizing model on the school-to-prison pipeline issue YUCA's OFM campaign addresses.
• Urban Habitat: Bay Area equity, climate, and transportation justice organization co-presenting with YUCA on community benefits agreements. Operates a comparable policy/advocacy + coalition model in the same regional funding ecosystem.
• Asian Pacific Environmental Network (APEN): Bay Area environmental justice network organizing Asian and Pacific Islander communities around housing, climate, and immigrant rights. Comparable youth + adult organizing model focused on environmental racism and policy wins.
• Communities for a Better Environment (CBE): Los Angeles-based environmental justice organization running youth-led campaigns against toxic land uses and for climate resilience. Closely comparable mission (environmental racism, youth-led organizing, policy advocacy) in a peer California geography.
• Nuestra Casa de East Palo Alto: An East Palo Alto nonprofit that builds community leaders and is a coalition partner of YUCA. Shares YUCA's geographic base, focus on environmental justice and housing, and youth development approach; a former YUCA youth organizer (Heleine Grewe) now works there.
• Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice (CCAEJ): Inland Empire environmental justice organization with a youth leadership development pipeline for low-income youth of color. Directly comparable in its combination of youth organizing, environmental/climate campaigns, and community-based policy advocacy.
• Silicon Valley De-Bug: A community organizing group in San Jose, California, focused on equity, justice, and immigrant rights. It is a mutual coalition partner of YUCA listed on the Take Action page and operates an analogous grassroots organizing model in an adjacent Bay Area geography.

Regional players

• Boys and Girls Club of the Peninsula: Peninsula-based youth development organization listed on YUCA's Take Action page. Operates a comparable youth services model in the same geography but with a broader social-development (rather than organizing/advocacy) orientation.

Emerging players

• Youth Leadership Institute: California statewide organization building leadership pipelines for young people of color in policy and advocacy campaigns. Directly comparable in its youth-led civic engagement model, operating at a larger statewide scale than YUCA's local focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/youth-united-for-community-action-yuca-

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Youth United for Community Action (YUCA)