Founder Residency · Djola Ventures
Build Your Company Where Your Community Lives.
A live-work residency for founders building sustainable health, economic development, and infrastructure solutions for overlooked communities. Embedded. Supported. Two hours from New York City.
The Residency Thesis
"Proximity is the advantage."
The best companies in the care economy are built by people who understand the problem from the inside. The Djola Founder Residency puts you on the same land as the care workers you serve: not as a research subject, but as a neighbor. That proximity is the thesis. That proximity is the edge.
The Program
What the residency includes.
Live-Work Residency
Private housing on a Djola Village campus: your home and your office, creek-side in the Catskills.
Peer Cohort
A small cohort of founders working on adjacent problems. Curated dinners. Shared thinking. No competition.
Community Access
Direct relationships with the care workers living on campus and local businesses. Real feedback. Real trust. Real proximity.
Investor Network
Access to Djola's network of impact investors, mission-aligned capital, and place-based funders.
NYC Proximity
Two hours from New York City. Close enough for meetings, far enough to build.
Flexible Duration
Residencies run 6–12 months. We work with your timeline and your company's stage.
Focus Areas
We back overlooked founders building durable solutions.
Sustainable Health
Community health, preventive care, mental health access, digital and health infrastructure for rural populations.
Economic Development
Workforce development, financial inclusion, cooperative models, and economic mobility for care workers and their communities.
Infrastructure Solutions
Housing, transportation, childcare, eldercare, and the physical and digital infrastructure that communities depend on.
Apply
Is this your next chapter?
We're looking for founders who are building with: not just for: overlooked communities. Tell us about your company, your focus, and why proximity matters to your work.
- Overlooked founders building in the care economy
- Sustainable health, economic development, or infrastructure
- Founders who want to build with, not just for, community
- Early-stage to growth