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Berkowitz at the podium.
In a visit to the President Obama’s pad for a forum on “Citizen-Based Innovation,” SeeClickFix founder Ben Berkowitz shared lessons from New Haven, including how he went from helping clean walls to writing on them himself.
Berkowitz was invited to the White House Tuesday to share the story of his New Haven internet start-up, SeeClickFix, which tracks neighborhood problems and solutions in cities and towns around the world.
The occasion was the latest event in the “White House Social Enterprise and Opportunity Series,” a “Forum on Citizen-based Innovation.” Berkowitz joined a number of other heads of businesses and not-for-profits who spoke about their work.
Berkowitz’s remarks were streamed live at around 2:30 p.m. on the White House website.
Wearing a suit paired with white sneakers, Berkowitz explained how he started SeeClickFix after complaining futilely about graffiti in his upper State Street neighborhood.
He moved through a PowerPoint slideshow, culminating in a description of Inside Out, a community public art project Berkowitz has helped spearhead in New Haven. He ended the show with a photo of him writing a explanation of the project on the wall in chalk — an “ironic summary,” given that he started by trying to get people to stop writing on walls.
Thomas MacMillan File Photo
From State Street to Pennsylvania Avenue in white sneakers. Congrats! You make us all proud.