Tishman Speyer and Project Destined Launch First Global Partnership to Introduce Students from Underserved Communities to Careers in Real Estate

Tishman Speyer today announced an agreement to serve as the first-ever Global Partner with Project Destined, a social impact platform that provides students in underserved communities with training in financial literacy, entrepreneurship and real estate. 

Through this innovative collaboration, Tishman Speyer will lead teams of college students in New York City, Chicago, Washington DC, Los Angeles and London through Project Destined's work-based learning approach. Tishman Speyer's leading executives in each market will offer local students the opportunity to explore the wide range of exciting careers available to them in the real estate industry. 

Just as importantly, Tishman Speyer executives will actively encourage and mentor the students as they work to develop a range of core financial, technical, presentation and leadership skills designed to aid them in launching their careers in real estate via internships, certifications and full-time employment. 

Students in each city will form teams and be tasked with evaluating actual commercial real estate transactions. They will then take part in a pitch competition against other teams in their local market to earn scholarships. At the conclusion of the competition, the five Tishman Speyer city-based teams will compete against each other for the opportunity to share $10,000 in scholarship money. This inaugural "Tishman Speyer Cup" will be judged by CEO Rob Speyer and other leading executives of the firm.

"The real estate industry offers a variety of fulfilling career paths, from development to finance, technology and dealmaking," said Joe Ritchie, Tishman Speyer Managing Director of Business Development and Head of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. "Unfortunately, students in underserved communities have not historically been provided the chance to learn about the world of commercial real estate and thus don't view it as an option.  We are grateful for the opportunity to collaborate with Project Destined as their first global partner. Initiatives such as these are vital to cultivating a more diverse, innovative and ultimately successful real estate industry."

"We are extremely proud to launch our first global partnership with Tishman Speyer," said Cedric Bobo, Project Destined Co-Founder. "This partnership will bring together students and executives across multiple Tishman Speyer offices. It will also provide our students with a unique global network and perspective as well as the training and resources required to become leaders and owners in commercial real estate."

Since its founding in 2016, Project Destined has worked with more than 4,500 participants in 35 cities across the U.S., U.K., Canada and Europe.

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