The mission of 400 FORWARD is to “uplift girls by giving them the tools they need to address social issues created by the unjust built environments of our inner-city communities. 400 FORWARD was named in light of the 400th living African American woman becoming a licensed architect in 2017—out of the more than 115,000 total licensed in the U.S. This initiative aims to seek out and support the next 400 licensed women architects with an underlying focus on African American girls through exposure, mentorship, and financial assistance.”