As Los Angeles prepares to welcome the world for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the impact of the Games is beginning to extend far beyond stadiums, athletes and competition. LA28 is investing in environmental resilience and community-based solutions designed to strengthen neighborhoods before the Olympic flame arrives—and create benefits that can remain long after the Games conclude.
Building upon its Impact and Sustainability Plan, the LA28 Organizing Committee has announced the inaugural recipients of the LA28 Resilience Champions Fund, an initiative supporting Los Angeles-area nonprofit organizations working on wildfire resilience, nature restoration, ocean protection and community cooling solutions.
The program connects sports, environmental responsibility and community health while demonstrating how hosting a global sporting event can help generate local action.
Sports, Sustainability and the LA28 Legacy
Los Angeles will become the center of the international sports world in 2028, welcoming thousands of elite Olympic and Paralympic athletes alongside spectators, media and visitors.
But preparing a region for an event of this magnitude involves more than competition venues.
The Resilience Champions Fund focuses on environmental challenges already affecting communities throughout Los Angeles, including extreme heat, wildfire risks and environmental degradation. Projects are being developed in and around communities where Olympic and Paralympic activities will take place.
“Resilience is built in communities and sustained through collective action,” said LA28 Chief Executive Officer Reynold Hoover, emphasizing that the fund is investing in organizations developing locally rooted solutions for Los Angeles.
The fund is one component of the broader LA28 Resilience Champions Initiative, which is also expected to encourage community action through volunteerism ahead of the Games.
Meet the 2026 Resilience Champions
Each selected project will receive $100,000, representing an initial investment of approximately $800,000 across eight nonprofit organizations.
The inaugural organizations and projects include:
- Active SGV will transform unused school space in El Monte with native shade trees, natural seating and recreational features, increasing access to cooler green spaces.
- Amigos de los Rios will expand tree canopy and green infrastructure near Whittier Narrows Recreation Area, helping reduce heat while improving visitor access and environmental resilience.
- Chrysalis will address wildfire risks in the Sepulveda Basin by training and deploying a resilience workforce to remove hazardous fuels while developing pathways toward environmental employment.
- Climate Resolve will transform a Boyle Heights basketball court into a climate-ready sports hub featuring a cool court and shaded seating. The project directly connects sports, youth development and environmental resilience, while offering training opportunities and potential career pathways.
- Conservation Corps of Long Beach will train young adults in coastal conservation while restoring wetlands, coastal habitats and public trails near the Long Beach competition zone.
- LA Community Garden Council will develop resident-led cooling hubs through community gardens located across neighborhoods including Sunland-Tujunga, East Hollywood and South Los Angeles.
- The Los Angeles Urban League will train young people from fire-affected Pasadena and Altadena communities in wildfire resilience and green construction while supporting communities affected by the 2025 wildfires.
- Santa Monica Mountains Fund will establish a native micro-forest in Westwood near the Olympic and Paralympic Village, creating natural cooling while restoring habitat.
Creating an Olympic Legacy Beyond Competition
The significance of these investments is particularly important when viewed through the lens of sports.
A basketball court that becomes safer during extreme heat is more than an environmental project—it is infrastructure supporting young athletes and community recreation. Restored trails and coastal environments provide spaces for physical activity. Shade trees and community gardens can create healthier gathering places where families live and play.
That connection between environment, recreation, sports and community health could become an important part of LA28’s legacy.
LA28 collaborated with Community Partners and an advisory group representing public, academic, nonprofit and philanthropic leadership to select the organizations receiving grants.
A New Symbol for Resilience
LA28 is also introducing a new Resilience Champions custom emblem representing the initiative’s three environmental pillars.
Inspired by land, water and the sun, the emblem reflects natural elements central to Southern California. The three elements rising together are intended to symbolize collective responsibility, optimism and action toward building a more resilient region.
Los Angeles Prepares for the World
The LA28 Olympic and Paralympic Games will bring more than 15,000 athletes to Southern California and place Los Angeles on one of the world’s largest sporting stages.
Los Angeles will become only the third city to host the Olympic Games three times, following its previous Games in 1932 and 1984, while 2028 will mark the city’s first Paralympic Games.
LA28 is also planning to stage the Games without constructing new permanent competition infrastructure, relying heavily on Southern California’s existing stadiums, arenas and venues.
As athletes prepare to chase medals and history, Los Angeles has another opportunity: to demonstrate that the legacy of a global sporting event can reach into the neighborhoods surrounding the competition.
The road to LA28 isn’t only about who wins in 2028. It’s also about what Los Angeles builds, protects and leaves behind for the generations who will play, compete and live here next.
Report by Mark Winkler
WEDGEDIN Magazine | Sports • Culture • Community • LA28
