A spotlight on Common Future’s inner workings and strategies to transform our economy 

● July 2022

Allison Jones, Vice President of Brand & Storytelling

Dear John,

Last month we hit the one year mark since relaunching this newsletter. Whether you’re a new subscriber or have been with us the whole time, thank you for your support. Common Future’s work happens in community, and we’re so glad you’re a part of ours.

Over the past year we’ve shared pieces of ourselves, from the projects we’re working on, to issues we care about, to values we hold dear. We hope to be a source of insight to you, give you an inside look at what it takes to create an equitable and inclusive economy, and of course invite you to follow along and join us.

If you’re on this list, we don’t have to convince you that our economy isn’t working for all of us, and that things have to change. In fact, there have probably been times when you’ve felt pessimistic and wondered if change is even possible. We definitely understand that feeling, and it’s why we want to share a bit more about our strategy with you in this month’s newsletter, because we are making progress and we’re playing the long game.

Our organizational strategy is built on four pillars: we incubate ([link removed]) , co- ([link removed]) create ([link removed]) , and fund ([link removed]) solutions that build economic power and wealth in communities adversely impacted by economic and racial injustice. Then we take the insights, lessons, and results to influence ([link removed]) decision-makers across philanthropy, investing, and government to take actions that change the status quo.

This month we’re diving into each of these four pillars of our strategy so we can share a little bit more about how all our work fits together, drives tangible outcomes, and puts real power directly in the hands of the people doing the work.
* Incubate: Incubating Brilliant Leaders’ Ideas to Transform our Economy ([link removed])
* Co-Create: What Is Our Initiatives Team? Co-Creating Infrastructure for a Just Economy ([link removed])
* Fund: Beating the Funding Gap for Leaders of Color ([link removed])
* Influence: Making the Right Decision the Easy One ([link removed])

In doing this we step in our own power as a Black-led, majority BIPOC organization, modeling a new way of working, with equity and trust at the center.

With Love,

● More From Common Future
"The opportunity I see for nonprofit institutions such as Common Future is to become practitioners and exemplars of the economy we want to create. In such an endeavor, philanthropic capital has an essential role to play only so long as the financial resources serve as capital that is fully at the nonprofits’ and organized communities’ own discretion."
—Our CEO Rodney Foxworth writes about the importance of building economic power as a nonprofit in the summer issue of Nonprofit Quarterly. Read more. ([link removed])

One year ago, Common Future teamed up with Community Credit Lab ([link removed]) , MORTAR ([link removed]) , Native Women Lead ([link removed]) , and ConnectUP! Institute ([link removed]) to launch our Character-Based Lending Fund, a community-driven loan fund that was designed by community partners from the ground up, to provide right-sized loans with non-extractive terms to undercapitalized BIPOC businesses. Our capital strategies team reflects on the learnings and wins from this ongoing pilot. Learn more. ([link removed])

We are so excited to announce a new initiative from Urban Manufacturing Alliance, Concerned Capital, and Common Future: T.E.A.M.—Tools for Equitable Acquisitions in Manufacturing—a pilot program to provide CDFIs and community lenders with tools to preserve existing manufacturing businesses. Learn More ([link removed]) .
● Narratives to Build Collective Economic Power
In Narratives to Build Collective Economic Power, our series with Nonprofit Quarterly, community wealth builders from our network wrote about how their work challenges conventional narratives and offers new ways of thinking about who can be owners in our economy.
* Radical Economics: Centering Indigenous Knowledge, Restoring the Circle ([link removed])
+ Vanessa Roanhorse, founder and CEO of Roanhorse Consulting & Co-Founder of Native Women Lead
* Telling a New Story About the Economy: Building From the Bottom Up ([link removed])
+ Tomás Durán, California President for Chicanos Por La Causa & Partner in Concerned Capital
* Owning Our Businesses, Owning Our Culture: Building Black Wealth in the Delta ([link removed])
+ Tim Lamkin, founder and CEO of Higher Purpose Co
* World Building, Ancestral Wisdom, and Economies of Abundance ([link removed])
+ ChristinaMaria Patiño Xochitlzihuatl TouTou Soutil Houl, Cofounder at Las Imaginistas
* The Struggle for Black Land: Preserving Heirs’ Property by Building Trust ([link removed])
+ Dr. Jennie L. Stephens, Chief Executive Officer of the Center for Heirs’ Property Preservation
* Building Economic Power by Changing the Narrative ([link removed])
+ Allison Jones, Vice President of Brand and Storytelling at Common Future

We hope you’ll take this time to reflect with us and share what we’re doing to create a more inclusive economy. Like the stories you read? Share them with your network on social and be sure to tag @commonfutureco ([link removed]) .
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Common Future
2323 Broadway
Oakland, CA 94612
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