SAN DIEGO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Amity Foundation, one non-profit organization dedicated to criminal justice reform and recidivism reduction, launched an NFT fundraiser on December 7, 2022 to showcase and benefit staff and individual artists who have graduated from their programs. The participating Amity staff and alumni artists will receive the majority of the proceeds from their art sales. Amity partnered with The Impact Collective, which helps nonprofits raise money through selling NFTs. The NFT release is available on The Impact Collective’s user-friendly platform, which accepts credit cards and cryptocurrency.
“Amity’s core mission is to help rebuild lives, and each participant in one of our programs has a unique journey toward self-sufficiency,” said Amity Foundation Executive Director Doug Bond. “We wanted to open up the opportunity for our creative alumni to share their talents on a larger scale and support their efforts to build a career in a growing arts sector.”
In this NFT release, many of the associated NFTs will include the story of the individual who created the art to give the buyer a personal connection and deeper understanding about a specific cause while collecting art. For example, one participating artist, Edward Flores, spent forty years of his life in prison, seventeen of those years in solitary confinement at San Quentin State Prison. During this time, he began to express himself through symbols and images, an artistic practice he discovered as a child. In 2018, Edward was released on parole to the Amity Foundation’s former lifetime transitional housing campus at Amity on Beacon, a long-term, whole-person residential treatment model. Today, Edward is a multimedia artist, a faculty member at Amity, and is determined to continue giving the gift he never received as a child, mentoring and supporting the younger generation in breaking the cycles of crime, drug use, and trauma.
“I jumped at this opportunity that Amity gave its alumni. As an artist, I’m always looking for new ways to promote my work and am excited to participate in the growing NFT economy,” said Edward Flores. “Art and friendship have been life-changing forces in my life, and I am honored to be able to bring these passions together while promoting the need for social, emotional, housing and job training support for individuals recently released from prison.”
Art will also be provided by photographer Richard Ybarra and NFT artists Melda Hutabarat and Skrrtey, who will donate a portion of the proceeds to Amity.
“For years I taught entrepreneurship at Donovan State Prison, so I am acutely aware of the overwhelming talent and resilience of individuals involved in the justice system,” said The Impact Collective CEO Neil Senturia. “The concept of Impact Collective was born out of the need to help nonprofits that specialize in anti-recidivism, so we are honored to have such a prominent and amazing nonprofit in this space using our platform as a fundraising tool. We have has since expanded our vision to serve all nonprofits; but we feel deeply connected to this cause and to Amity’s mission.”
Amity, one of the largest recidivism reduction nonprofits, operates in nineteen California prisons and provides mental health and addictions counseling and housing to recently released individuals. Amity will be the second nonprofit to use The Impact Collective’s fundraising tool, which is the only one-stop-shop for nonprofits to produce, sell and impact art. The Impact Collective is also the only NFT marketplace exclusively for non-profits where art can be bought and sold directly without having to send donors to a larger digital platform.
Impact Collective’s proprietary platform is unique in that it enables art buyers to purchase NFTs with a regular credit card. They do not need to already own cryptocurrency, which is required on many NFT charity platforms. The NFT market is expected to generate $3 billion in revenue this year and grow over 30% over the next 5 years according to a recent economic forecast.
This fundraiser comes after The Impact Collective hosted an NFT drop for Second Chance to raise funds to support the program’s mental health, addictions and job training programs. The online exhibition featured works created by Second Chance graduates.
More about Amity: Founded in 1981 in Tucson, AZ, the Amity Foundation is a California 501(c)3 non-profit organization serving individuals, families and children. Amity began as a therapeutic community and has evolved into a teaching community. Our mission is to promote personal growth, emotional competence and social responsibility for our students, as well as improve their physical health through nutrition and well-being. These create fertile ground for students’ success in getting work, housing, further education and reuniting families.
More about The Impact Collective: An NFT purchased through The Impact Collective, a software company in San Diego, has an immediate and direct impact on both nonprofits and artists. By merging the popularity of NFTs with an accessible marketplace where payment can be made with a regular credit card, The Impact Collective helps nonprofits raise funds for projects that help participants, create art, and have an impact on society.
