Equity in Community Investments
Strengthening community power to transform neighborhoods.
Equity in Community Investments
Imagine a California where low-income and Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) win equitable investments to transform their neighborhoods, creating communities full of parks and accessible public transportation, fully funded schools and youth development programs, and health, housing, and other services that support people in need rather than incarcerating them.
The Equity in Community Investments program partners with BIPOC communities by equipping them with the budget and advocacy tools necessary to win sustainable investments that help all Californians thrive. Through budget and policy analysis, trainings, and campaign support, we dismantle the systems which perpetuate public disinvestment and criminalization that create race-based disparities in our communities’ health and well-being.
WHY THIS ISSUE MATTERS
Fighting racial disparities almost always requires the commitment of public dollars, but every advocate for equity has been told: “there’s just no money for that.” Our work helps communities get funding where it’s most needed and makes the most significant difference.
IMPACT OF OUR WORK
From South Los Angeles to the Central Valley, the Equity in Community Investments team helps our partners move equity-based dollars towards community priorities while helping bring more transparency and accountability to public budgeting practices. We perform in-depth budget analysis to identify potential funding sources, assess new opportunities to invest in community needs, and help translate community demands into concrete, actionable proposals. And we support advocates, residents, and youth by providing training that demystifies the budget and policy processes that are too often inaccessible to low-income and BIPOC communities to ensure that they are effectively involved in the policy-making process and decisions that impact their communities.
DESIRED OUTCOMES
- Powerful, knowledgeable, and engaged communities who are armed with the tools they need to advance a racial equity policy and budget agenda.
- An Inclusive and transparent government that makes the public decision-making process accessible to the most-impacted communities.
- Equity-based policy and funding decisions that repair racial disparities and allow Californians of color to thrive.