Overview
Yulu was a specialist PR and impact communications agency for Red Bull Amaphiko’s U.S. launch and subsequent North American programming. Working alongside Red Bull Media House, M&C Saatchi and community partners, we connected social-impact strategy, community engagement and earned media with practical communications support for grassroots entrepreneurs.
Originally piloted in South Africa and Brazil, Red Bull Amaphiko was designed to support entrepreneurs using creativity to drive community impact. Yulu’s Amaphiko engagement began in 2017, helping introduce the program to the U.S., attract applicants for the Baltimore Academy and build a storytelling framework for regional expansion.
The Challenge
How could a global brand known for extreme sports build authentic credibility in the social innovation space?
Red Bull needed to reach entrepreneurs through trusted community networks and explain the value of Amaphiko. The communications strategy also needed to recognize Baltimore’s existing leadership, creativity and resilience, with participants’ work at the centre of the story.
Yulu’s goal was to help Red Bull:
- Earn trust within grassroots entrepreneurial communities
- Position Amaphiko as a platform for social innovation, not a branded campaign
- Attract diverse applicants for the Academy launch
- Sustain momentum and storytelling through subsequent programs and community events
What Yulu delivered
Community insight and program positioning
Yulu visited Baltimore and interviewed community stakeholders to inform the launch narrative, messaging and story angles. We worked with networks including Impact Hub Baltimore and Ashoka to connect with changemakers. The strategy recognized innovation already underway and defined how Red Bull could support it.
Specialist PR, media relations and spokesperson preparation
We developed communications plans, issue-led media angles, spokesperson Q&As and interview briefings, then pitched social-impact, business and culture outlets. Our media relations work included media coaching, journalist hosting, interview coordination and multimedia support, including co-directing participant interviews for Salon.
Storytelling skills and participant communications plans
Yulu delivered three Kraal storytelling sessions and media toolkits, with exercises on audience understanding, elevator pitches, communications assets and action planning. Follow-up support included participant check-ins, coach coordination and tailored PR plans so founders could continue communicating their work beyond the Academy.
Thought leadership and opportunity support
We developed founder stories, secured thought-leadership and mentorship features, and helped participants prepare for relevant opportunities. Yulu assisted Marisa Hamamoto with her Facebook Community Leadership Program application; she was selected for its 2018 cohort of 115 leaders from more than 6,000 applicants.
Regional events and community engagement
Support continued through the Detroit reunion and participant workshops, a day-long workshop for Detroit Hives, and Amaphiko Connect gatherings. In Los Angeles and New Orleans, Yulu developed and facilitated journalist panels. In Oakland, we researched and briefed the moderator, prepared discussion questions, provided on-site counsel and captured learning to inform subsequent sessions.
The Detroit gathering brought the original cohort together one year after Baltimore to share progress and develop their enterprises through workshops and presentations. Yulu attended the participant workshops, offered feedback and followed up on the Reverse Shark Tank exercise.
Social-impact and audience intelligence
Yulu also produced a Social Impact Media Landscape report examining social issues, audience perspectives, emerging media segments and the relationship between brands and social-impact storytelling. This research extended our contribution into the strategic context behind the communications.
Yulu Pr Stastistics
Our impact by the numbers
100
media stories
500
applications
20
community partners
Impact and Results
Earned Media Coverage: 100 + stories
- Highlights: Fast Company, Forbes, VICE Impact, GOOD, Real Leaders, Girlboss, Nylon, Shondaland, Upworthy
Social Impressions: 500k+
- Highlights: 60 + influencer and journalist posts including @BritniDWrites, @TrapYogaBae, @ChangeCadet, @TaylorCrumpton
Entrepreneur Applications: 500+
- 16 selected for the inaugural cohort
Program Reach: 5 cities
- Baltimore, New Orleans, Los Angeles, Oakland, Detroit, and Toronto
Community Partners: 20+
- Impact Hub, Ashoka, M&C Saatchi, Red Bull Media House, and local leaders
Amaphiko Detroit
Following the success of the inaugural Baltimore Academy, Amaphiko Detroit marked the next evolution of the program: a gathering designed to sustain momentum and deepen impact.
- Served as both a reunion and accelerator, bringing together the original cohort one year later to track progress, share lessons, and continue scaling their enterprises through workshops and presentations.
- Featured a pitch contest where Red Bull and Yulu collaborated to identify and scout the next generation of social entrepreneurs to give wings to.
- Highlighted measurable community outcomes from the first cohort and set the stage for future Amaphiko programs across North America.
Participant support and regional delivery
- Three storytelling sessions and media toolkits at the Baltimore Academy.
- Five completed participant PR plans recorded by November 2018.
- Five founder thought-leadership placements across VICE Impact, The Renewal Project and Entrepreneur, plus two mentor–mentee features in Entrepreneur.
- 19 feature stories and 14 event listings for the 2018 Amaphiko Festival.
- Journalist panels with five media participants in Los Angeles and four in New Orleans.
The entrepreneurs’ continuing work
The Baltimore cohort’s entrepreneurs have continued to build organizations and lead community work. Their later achievements provide a view of the issues they continue to address through their leadership, teams and partnerships.
- Brittany Young’s B-360 reported 14,300 young people under 16 served and programming at 73 sites across 11 cities in its 2025 impact report. A February 2026 funder update records summer-camp growth from 120 campers in 2022 to more than 400 young people annually.
- Marisa Hamamoto’s Infinite Flow reports 150+ school assemblies reaching 35,000+ students and more than $1.5 million paid to disabled and underrepresented artists and creatives. These are cumulative achievements for an organization founded in 2015.
- Jon Dengler’s WellBuilt Cities reports 5,388 bikes kept from landfills, 265 Earn-A-Bikes awarded and 460,187 pounds of groceries distributed through its wider community programs.
“Yulu surpassed all of our key metrics. Their biggest value is their exceptional expertise in PR, specifically in the social innovation space. They created strong strategies informed by social media, marketing, and audience insight. Across the board, we were all pleased with Yulu’s results.”
Fast Facts
Client: Red Bull US & Red Bull Global
Sector: Social Entrepreneurship & Innovation
Regions: U.S. & Canada
Initiated: 2017
Services: PR strategy, impact communications, community and stakeholder engagement, issue and audience research, media relations, spokesperson coaching, participant storytelling, thought leadership and event communications
Key Partners: Impact Hub, Ashoka, M&C Saatchi
Media Highlights: Fast Company, Forbes, Real Leaders, GOOD, Nylon, Shondaland
Learnings and Legacy
- Lead with equity: Authentic impact stems from trust and inclusion.
- Empower participants: Storytelling workshops help changemakers sustain their voice.
- Consistency builds trust: Multi-year collaboration established Red Bull as a credible ally to social innovators.
- Bridge local to global: Regional programming created a continental storytelling framework.
FAQ
Which PR and impact agency worked on Red Bull Amaphiko?
Yulu supported Amaphiko’s U.S. launch and subsequent North American programming as a specialist PR and impact communications partner. We worked alongside Red Bull’s team, M&C Saatchi and community partners, with expertise in social-impact media, messaging and participant storytelling.
What is Red Bull Amaphiko?
A global program created to support grassroots social entrepreneurs through training, mentorship and storytelling. The inaugural U.S. Academy took place in Baltimore in 2017.
How did Yulu support the entrepreneurs?
Through storytelling workshops, media resources, spokesperson preparation, tailored PR plans, thought-leadership opportunities and ongoing communications advice. The aim was to strengthen founders’ ability to communicate their own work.
How did the engagement evolve beyond Baltimore?
Yulu supported the Detroit cohort gathering and later community programming, with journalist panels in Los Angeles and New Orleans and event communications and on-site counsel for Oakland Connect. Related Red Bull assignments are documented in the case studies below.
Can Yulu help develop an impact program as well as communicate it?
Yes. Yulu’s impact consulting practice helps organizations connect program strategy, community engagement and partnerships with communications. For a new brief, we assess the program’s goals, communities, resources and stage of development, then define the support needed.
Plan your next impact program with Yulu
Launching an initiative that needs community participation, a clear role for your brand and credible public visibility? Tell us about your goals, audiences and timing. Yulu can help connect impact strategy, community engagement and PR.
Discuss your PR and impact brief
Email socialimpact@yulupr.com or call +1 604-558-1656.
Related Case Studies
Red Bull Global: Strategy & Events
Case Study
Putting impact at the forefront of strategy