Governor & Mayor Join Business, Labor & Community Leaders to Launch Campaign to Inspire Optimism and Civic Action

Campaign Celebrates What Makes NYC Great and Empowers New Yorkers to Show Their Love by Getting Involved

Governor Kathy Hochul, Mayor Eric Adams, business, labor, and civic leaders from across the five boroughs today launched “We ❤️ NYC”, a campaign to showcase the city’s strengths and mobilize New Yorkers to make sure this remains the greatest city in the world. The citywide campaign will kick off with a celebration of New Yorkers who are making a difference — the “doers” — and will feature opportunities for civic engagement that everyone can contribute to. New Yorkers can get engaged at welovenyc.nyc.

“From its iconic views and vibrant arts and culture to its thriving businesses and world-class cuisine, New York City represents some of the best that our state has to offer,” Governor Hochul said. “This We ❤️ NYC campaign will help to capture that energy and preserve the city’s spirit by encouraging New Yorkers of every background to come together, get involved, and make a positive change in their community.”

“This city overcame the darkest days of the pandemic because of the selfless work of everyday New Yorkers, and if each of us gives just one hour a week in an act of service, the result will be transformative,” said Mayor Adams. “That is why I am proud to announce the launch of ‘We ❤️ NYC,’ in partnership with Governor Hochul and the Partnership for New York City. The ‘We ❤️ NYC’ campaign asks everyone who loves the greatest city in the world to show it by lending a helping hand and spreading that love to every block across all five boroughs.”

“New York’s secret sauce has always been the ability of our diverse communities to work together, confidently and with common purpose, to solve problems and navigate change,” said Steven Swartz, CEO of Hearst and immediate past co-chair of the Partnership for New York City who served as the Master of Ceremonies for today’s event. “The broad spectrum of organizations that are lining up to support the We ❤️ NYC campaign demonstrates once again how our city’s diversity makes it strong.”

NYC Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO President Vincent Alvarez said, "The NYC Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO is proud to join this broad effort to ensure New York City remains a vibrant and growing city. New York City is where we work. New York City is where we live and raise our families. We love NYC and working people will do our part to continue making this the greatest city in the world."

The themes of the campaign focus on what New Yorkers can do to support the post-pandemic resurgence of the city and its neighborhoods. The campaign will establish partnerships with public agencies, nonprofit organizations, and businesses to reaffirm that New York City is the safest, cleanest, and most exciting place to live and work. Planned activations in the first eight weeks of the campaign include:

Earth Week (week of April 17) kick off with NYC Parks of an ambitious expansion of support for the parks that will seek to engage a record number of New Yorkers in over 1 million hours of service to care for their parks. The “green theme” will be marked by co-branding with the Broadway production of Wicked.

Community cleanups across the five boroughs in partnership with the NYC Department of Sanitation.

Public engagement to vote for your favorite MTA Music Under New York performer in partnership with Shutterstock.

Neighborhood business promotions in partnership with the NYC Department of Small Business Services, including the opportunity to “Shop Black” and participation in a competition to select the best menu items offered by New York City restaurants and caterers.

Spread Love NYC, a campaign to engage New Yorkers through volunteer programs at local nonprofits and city agencies, led by NYC Service and New York Cares.

The We ❤️ NYC campaign is led by marketing executive Maryam Banikarim, Andrew Lerner, and their team at MaryamB, working with the ad agency Founders, Grain Group, and Graham Clifford. Support is being provided from a variety of contributing partners here.

Among partner organizations participating in the campaign are 32BJ SEIU, Association for a Better New York, Breaking Ground, Brooklyn Public Library, the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island Chambers of Commerce, Building & Construction Trades Council of Greater New York, Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New York, Church of the Heavenly Rest, The Citizens Committee for New York City, Downtown Brooklyn Partnership, Episcopal Charities, Hotel & Gaming Trades Council, League of Women Voters of the City of New York, LISC New York, Midtown Community Court, New Visions for Public Schools, New York Building Congress, New York Cares, New York City Central Labor Council AFL-CIO, New-York Historical Society, New York Public Library, New York Urban League, NYC Hospitality Alliance, Open House New York, Queens Library, Tech:NYC, The Broadway League Inc., The City University of New York, The Garment District BID, Times Square Alliance BID, and UJA-Federation of New York.

The We ❤️ NYC mark is a trademarked adaptation of Milton Glaser’s design for the “I ❤️ NY” campaign that launched in 1977. Both marks are owned by New York State’s Department of Economic Development, which made the adaptation available at no charge.

Today’s news conference was produced by The Broadway League with support of the Times Square Alliance. It featured a performance by Anna Uzele, a star of the upcoming Broadway musical “New York, New York,” which features the iconic title song written by John Kander and Fred Ebb. Also performing at the launch event was Lucky Chops, a brass ensemble that is part of the MTA Music Under New York program.

The day will end with a lighting ceremony with the Empire State Building that will shine its world-famous spire in a heartbeat red, with a red We ❤️ NYC heart in its mast.

The campaign launch also features examples of New Yorkers making a difference and who are celebrated on the We ❤️ NYC website, including Bobby Akumah from Dare 2 Dream, John Wang from the Queens Night Market, Catie Savage from Hell’s Kitchen Litter Legion, Anthony and Janique Edwards from Eat Okra, and Sasha Gutiérrez of the Opera Nextdoor.

The campaign is supported by contributions from over 60 businesses and individuals, including Accenture, Advance / Condé Nast, AlleyCorp, Amazon, BFC Partners, Blunt Action, BXP, Charter Communications, Inc., Citi, Clear Channel Communications, Inc., Deanna Mulligan, CEO, Purposeful, Edelman, Ehrenkranz Partners, Empire State Realty Trust, Epicenter-NYC, Ernst & Young LLP, Fisher Brothers Foundation, General Atlantic Foundation, Google/YouTube, Hearst, Hess Corporation, IBM Corporation, Intersection, Jamestown and One Times Square, JCDecaux, KKR, KPMG US, Lee & Associates, Macy's, Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp. and Madison Square Garden Sports Corp., Mastercard, Meta, Nasdaq, NBCUniversal, New York Life, Nina and Tim Zagat, Ogilvy, OUTFRONT Media Inc., Paramount, Pfizer, RXR, Salesforce, Shutterstock, Inc., Spotify, Sprinklr, Spyscape, Standard Industries, The CITY, The Daily Beast, The Georgetown Company, The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America, The John Gore Organization, The New York Stock Exchange, The New York Times Company, The Nicotra Group - Lois and Richard Nicotra, The Related Companies, L.P., The Travelers Companies, Inc., TikTok, Tishman Speyer Properties, Two Trees Management Co., U.S. News & World Report, United Airlines, Inc., Vornado Realty Trust, Vox Media, Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, and WPP, VMLY&R and BCW.

Partnership for New York City Co-Chair Albert Bourla, Chairman & CEO, Pfizer stated, “New York City enjoys the greatest concentration of diverse talent in the world. This campaign intends to channel the energy and resources of millions of New Yorkers into projects that reaffirm that we are the safest, cleanest, most vibrant city in the world.”

“New Yorkers are the driving force behind our city’s success,” said Partnership for New York City Co-Chair Rob Speyer, CEO, Tishman Speyer. “This campaign celebrates our strengths and will activate people and businesses across the five boroughs to make our city even better.”

“The transit system is the lifeblood of New York City and also central to the city’s culture,” said MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber. “Music Under New York is a program that showcases New York talent and reflects the diversity of MTA’s customers. We’re thrilled to be part of this campaign, which will introduce a new spin on our MTA MUSIC program and provide New Yorkers an opportunity to engage by voting for their favorite performers. It is tremendous to see how the Governor, Mayor, and Partnership for New York City are joining forces to celebrate the diversity and talent that makes an MTA subway journey a unique experience.”

Empire State Development President, CEO and Commissioner Hope Knight said, "We believe in empowering every resident to make a positive difference in their neighborhood. By supporting small businesses, volunteering with community organizations, and participating in local events, we can all play a role in building a brighter future for ourselves and our city."

“New York City’s greatest strength is the power of its people," said First Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright. “‘We ❤️ NYCs’ people-driven, civic minded campaign taps into the spirit of our city and reminds us that when New Yorkers come together, there’s nothing we cannot achieve. I want to applaud Governor Kathy Hochul, the Partnership for New York City, and the countless city agencies coming together to celebrate New York City.”

“Since March 2020, we have seen the best of our people shine through — medical professionals and other essential workers keeping our city alive, neighbors sharing small acts of kindness, artists and performers bringing their creativity to our streets, communities banding together to help local businesses stay afloat, and so much more,” said Deputy Mayor for Economic and Workforce Development Maria Torres-Springer. “It is that very character that defines New York City’s resilience, and I want to thank Governor Hochul and the Partnership for New York City for launching ‘We ❤️ NYC’ to inspire and showcase New York’s invincible spirit.”

"We know New Yorkers love their parks, and thanks to Mayor Adams and the Partnership for New York City, we’re excited to introduce new opportunities starting this spring to give back and care for our 30,000 acres of open space and 2.5 million trees,” said NYC Parks Commissioner Sue Donoghue. “Our parks and natural areas offer respite and refuge for New Yorkers to recharge and reconnect with nature, and we’re ready to engage everyone to lend a hand and make a difference.”

“If you love this city, if you care about this city, if you believe in this city, then you have a role to play in keeping it clean,” said DSNY Commissioner Jessica Tisch. “With community clean-ups in neighborhoods across the five boroughs, every New Yorker has an opportunity to show that they love New York City. I want to thank the Partnership for New York City, Mayor Adams, and Governor Hochul for making this campaign possible.”

"Loving your city means shopping your city," said New York City Department of Small Business Services Commissioner Kevin D. Kim. “The We ❤️ NYC campaign is a reminder that small businesses are the heartbeat of every neighborhood, and you can keep them alive by making them the first stop when you shop! Check out nyc.gov/shopyourcity."

“Arts and entertainment are the heart and soul of our city and the reason why ‘We ❤️ NYC,” said Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment Commissioner Anne del Castillo. “Thank you to the Partnership for New York City, Mayor Adams, and Governor Hochul for launching this campaign that engages New Yorkers and celebrates New York City’s musicians.”

“We all love New York City, in all of its complexity, with all of its imperfections — it is the place we call home. What better way to spread that love than to give our time, our skills, and our effort to our neighbors, our blocks, our boroughs, and our city?” said New York City Chief Engagement Officer Betsy MacLean. “We are thrilled to team up with the Partnership for New York City to love our city through service. There is no limit to the ways New Yorkers can spread their love — you can plant flowers in your local park, give out meals to neighbors who are unhoused, teach English to asylum seekers, mentor young New Yorkers, and on and on. A huge thank you to Kathy Wylde for her leadership and to Chief Service Officer Laura Rog and her dynamic NYC Service team for giving us all the opportunity to spread our New York City love.”

“At its core, love is about serving one another — committing to a shared vision that is the best of ourselves and the best of our great city," said New York City Chief Service Office Laura Rog. “Every day, there is an opportunity to uplift one another and connect in impactful ways, and we invite all New Yorkers to serve in the ‘Spread Love NYC campaign. NYC Service is grateful to link arms with the Partnership for New York City, and all of our nonprofit partners and city agencies, to provide meaningful access, opportunity, and resources for communities to come together and answer the call to serve.”

"Public art reflects the vibrancy and tells the story of our communities and we are excited that, through a participatory process, residents at Morrisania Air Rights will be able to design and inspire a new mural," said New York City Housing Authority Interim CEO Lisa Bova-Hiatt. "Thank you to all of our partners who made this possible, as I know this mural will be a wonderful addition to the development."

32BJ SEIU President Manny Pastreich said, “We couldn’t be more excited to join this dynamic group of labor, business, and political leaders to highlight the diversity, energy, and cultural strengths that make New York a truly global city. 32BJ’s members were among the key essential workers on the frontlines of the city’s battle with the pandemic and have also played a key role in New York’s economic recovery. We couldn’t be more proud to bring our members’ unique perspectives to this celebration of New York’s civic, cultural, and economic dynamism.”

Hotel & Gaming Trades Council President Rich Maroko said, "We’re excited to join this dynamic group of government and civic leaders in this effort to promote New York’s recovery. Hospitality workers couldn’t be any more eager and enthusiastic to see New York City’s post-pandemic resurgence. We’re committed to doing what it takes to see every aspect of our city and every corner of our communities return to their full vibrancy."