About Public Trust · Philadelphia
Public Trust is a non-profit organization based in Philadelphia, rooted on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania, that fosters learning, creativity, and collaboration through an integrative approach to health, education, and ecology. Inspired by W. E. B. Du Bois’s vision of justice and communal care, it cultivates new forms of civic life and democratic engagement. It operates as a public forum, bookshop, archive, and workspace, offering resources for community resilience, including fiscal sponsorship for grassroots efforts. It has been active in West Philadelphia for over twenty years.
Public Trust is a non-profit organization located in West Philadelphia on the University of Pennsylvania campus. Founded with a mission to reimagine civic life and democratic responsibility in the face of global and domestic crises, it draws inspiration from W. E. B. Du Bois’s legacy of justice and communal care. The organization supports programs in health, education, and ecology, and offers public spaces, a bookshop, an archive, and a fiscal sponsorship program to nurture community resilience. It hosts events, exhibitions, and public forums with state-of-the-art technology and is open Tuesday–Friday, 12–5pm. Admission is free. It has been operating in Philadelphia for over 20 years and is tax-exempt under Section 501(c)(3).
- In business
- over 20 years
- Serves
- greater Philadelphia community
About
Public Trust is a non-profit organization rooted in West Philadelphia on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania. It was formed to reimagine civic life and democratic responsibility in the face of global and domestic crises, drawing inspiration from W. E. B. Du Bois’s vision of justice and communal care. It fosters learning, creativity, and collaboration through an integrative approach to health, education, and ecology.
Services & Resources
Public Trust offers public forums, workspaces, a bookshop, an archive, and a fiscal sponsorship program to support community resilience. It hosts events, exhibitions, and public programs focused on health, education, and ecology, with free admission and state-of-the-art technology for livestreaming and recording.
- Public forum with projection, recording, and livestreaming
- Public workspaces
- Library and bookshop
- Multimedia archive
- Fiscal sponsorship program
- Event hosting (in-person and virtual)
- Exhibitions and archival projects
Vision & Roots
Inspired by W. E. B. Du Bois’s writings and activism, Public Trust seeks to cultivate justice and communal care through art, education, and civic engagement. It has been active in West Philadelphia for over 20 years and partners with urban and academic communities.
Visitor Information
Open Tuesday through Friday, 12–5pm. Admission is always free. The organization is located at 4017 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104. It also offers accessibility resources and a land acknowledgment honoring the ancestral Lenape homelands of Philadelphia.