Accelerator for America (“AFA”) is a national nonprofit 501(c)(3) helping local, regional, and state leaders develop and deploy real-time solutions to increase economic mobility, attract and leverage public and private investment and strengthen infrastructure, and deliver a more inclusive recovery.

Founded in 2017 by former Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and the former Executive Vice Mayor and Deputy Chief of Staff for Los Angeles, AFA’s work is uniquely driven by our coalition of Mayors and other leaders from the public, private, philanthropic, labor, non-profit, and academic sectors, who are ideally positioned to help communities navigate this dynamic era of change in America. It is their mission to provide tools, organizing mechanisms, and technical assistance to help vulnerable communities chart a path toward the American dream.

They are the R&D arm of cities and mayors – a ‘do tank’, committed to urgent action and is a recognized center of excellence and trusted resource in our two founding focus areas: economic development and transit and infrastructure. They support leaders and their teams with additional resource capacity, best practices, a network for learning and sharing, and strategic guidance and technical assistance. They engage in the hands-on work of neighborhood revitalization—increasing housing supply and affordability, rebuilding commercial corridors, small business support, access to capital, advising project owners, and identifying funding partners— workforce development initiatives, and ballot campaigns.

To date, AFA’s economic development tools have been applied in more than 70 communities nationwide, and have helped communities generate more than $40 billion in infrastructure funding independent of federal investment. AFA founding in 2017 was during a time of federal retrenchment from cities. Today, during this time of federal abundance, AFA is helping communities best access and invest funding from the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act/Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Inflation Reduction Act, and the CHIPS and Science Act to build long-lasting community wealth and enhance economic competitiveness. Learn more here.