CDFIs have always been at the forefront of providing accessible, innovative, and critical capital to communities that mainstream finance hasn’t traditionally reached. CDFIs provide replicable and success-proven examples of creating unconventional opportunities and wealth-building pathways for individuals and communities that are often marginalized. Identifying economic opportunities where mainstream finance sees risk has been inherent in CDFI impact investment. In this session, we will discuss best practices around capital flowing for impact by highlighting two (impact-first) projects – Dolores Huerta Peace and Justice Center and MKE Boss. These projects bring multiple CDFIs and investors together and break the siloes in program design and impact delivery.
MKE Boss Project- Racial desegregation has occurred in many metropolitan areas of the U.S. since the 1980s, but Milwaukee remains the nation’s most segregated metro area. Recognizing this problem, recently, three CDFIs – Wisconsin Women’s Business Initiative Corporation (WWBIC), The Northwest Side Community Development Corporation (NWSCDC), and Self-Help Federal Credit Union (SHFCU), leveraged investment from JP Morgan Chase to create a “continuum of support” for small businesses in communities of color in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, under the umbrella of MKE Boss Project.
The Dolores Huerta Peace & Justice Cultural Center Project- California’s Central Valley, on the other hand, is a prosperous agricultural region, but despite its wealth, far too many residents struggle to meet basic needs due to overlapping challenges of racism and economic and environmental injustice. The Dolores Huerta Peace & Justice Cultural Center will be a multi-service hub for community organizing and cultural celebration, fighting systemic injustices in California’s Central Valley. Through a CDFI partnership for NMTC funding and other capital-raising campaigns targeting state and local community partners, this unique project provides an innovative example of utilizing land and reclaiming space in our fight against systemic injustices.
