As the 1st global new urbanism nonprofit, we're a student-led organization dedicated to pursuing initiatives that promote urban sustainability across the globe through our partners, which includes other 501(c)(3)s and Fortune 500 companies.
projects¹
policies²
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Our mission
Our values
We bring light to an underrepresented sustainability issue. Everyone, regardless of their background or income, should have access to healthy living conditions. We champion these values at the root of the issue — inequitable policies, racially-based zoning, infrastructural development, food security, and housing segregation.
Our values
Making sustainability a first thought is a no brainer. The future depends on it. Sustainability for main, not as an optional dessert. We look at how everything we do preserves, impacts, interacts with and inspires life. Commercially realistic. Future focused. Sustainable as standard.
Our values
Our mission is rooted in the principle of conservation. Every initiative we undertake is designed to protect natural resources, preserve character, and protect endangered cultures. Whether we're planting urban forests or creating green rooftops, we look at how everything we do interacts with and sustains life.
Our values
Innovation drives us to think beyond the conventional. We approach every urban challenge with creativity and forward-thinking solutions. By constantly pushing the boundaries, we ensure our efforts not only address today's issues but drive practical, impactful changes that stand the test of time.
Creating new stories
01
Residents
Helping those in marginalized + vulnerable communities
02
Communities
Enacting public policy changes through small acts felt by thousands.
03
Students
From school buses to bike lanes, we're youth-led, youth-impacted.
We aim to craft compact, inclusive, and culturally vibrant urban environments.
Visionary is a global nonprofit organization founded by a passionate high school student who envisioned a future where cities could be both vibrant and sustainable — inspired by the urgent need to address urban challenges and the potential for young people to change this paradigm.
chapters
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Visionary is composed of 3 programs and 4 committees (one for each SDG) across 12 chapters with student researchers, environmental scientists, community organizers, and experts in urban development, sustainability, and public policy.⁴
Visionary's journey began in an unexpected place: my AP Human Geography class. It was here (shoutout Ms. Wolnik!) that the seeds of our organization were first planted. What started as classroom discussions evolved into something small, with local projects aimed at improving our own city.
But as we delved deeper into the challenges and opportunities of urban sustainability, our vision grew. We realized that the problems we were addressing locally — sustainable development, equity, and conservation — were relevant globally.
Today, Visionary operates in 12 cities across the globe, driven by the same principles that inspired us in APHUG class. Our mission is to create urban spaces where everyone can thrive — and it all began with the inspiration we found in one extraordinary classroom.
¹ This figure is based on the cumulative number of projects that have been completed across all of Visionary's chapters. Typically, project completion means achieving all predefined objectives and milestones, which typically include the successful implementation of sustainable practices, the establishment of functioning systems, meeting target outcomes, and/or the creation of lasting partnerships. A project is considered complete when it is fully operational, delivering the intended benefits, and has a plan for ongoing maintenance and evaluation to ensure its long-term success. A project refers to a structured and strategic initiative aimed at addressing specific urban sustainability challenges. This figure is accurate as of March 1st, 2025, but is liable to change.
² This figure includes only local legislation, including laws, policies, and regulations that have been passed or proposed on account of the work of Visionary chapters, cumulatively across all of Visionary's chapters.
³ This figure includes the number of partners that Visionary chapters have cumulatively worked with. A partner refers to an organization, institution, or individual part of an organization that collaborates with us on projects, providing resources, expertise, or support to help achieve our goals. Partners may include corporations, nonprofits, educational institutions, government agencies, community groups, and individuals, and their involvement can range from financial sponsorship and in-kind contributions to active participation in project implementation and research.
⁴ The Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Committees are universal and govern all of Visionary's chapters collectively, while each chapter has 4 primary members on their Executive Board: The chapter director, project manager, outreach coordinator, and policy manager.
Our commitment