After Hurricane Katrina, young people have turned away from rebuilding by large nonprofits because of the liability associated with reconstruction. Instead of accepting rejection, a committed group of teens created Youth Rebuilding New Orleans. Since 2005, YRNO has helped over 500 families recover from disasters and complete home repairs.
While YRNO's mission remains engaging local youth in the betterment of the New Orleans community, as New Orleans has changed in the past 14 years, so have YRNO's goals. Today YRNO addresses key issues in New Orleans: youth unemployment, blight, disasters, community service, gentrification, flooding, and affordable housing while designing our programs around our values of authentic youth-adult partnerships, youth leadership, social justice, and diverse participation.
In 2010, YRNO started Project HOMEwork (Housing Opportunities for Metro Educators) to renovate blighted homes to sell to educators at below-market prices in exchange for continued efforts to educate the city's youth. Operational since 2011, YRNO's Reforming Employment build (REbuild) Program has provided training and employment for 226 under/unemployed youth aged 16-21. Additionally,