The New York City-based Open Society Institute has announced that it has awarded fellowships to ten New York City community organizers, activists, and leaders working to improve the quality of public life in low-income neighborhoods.

Selected from the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, and Manhattan, this year's OSI New York City Community Fellows are working on a range of innovative public interest projects, including the creation of a community-based legal center to aid South Asian immigrants, the establishment of a domestic violence center for refugee and immigrant African women, and a program in Harlem to protect fixed-income seniors facing eviction. Each fellow will receive an eighteen-month stipend of $48,750.

The fellowship program supports a new generation of social justice activists and provides them the opportunity to initiate community-led projects that empower neighborhoods and address critical social needs. Community Fellows lead local social-change efforts that focus on economic justice, civic participation, workers' rights, health, and education.