Field Notes

These are stories about the work and impact of NCRC members in their communities. What are the economic justice needs and solutions in your community? Submit your story ideas.

Power Through Partnership: The Coalition for Nonprofit Housing and Economic Development’s 25-Year Journey

By / / Field Notes, Views / 2 minutes of reading

Twenty-five years ago, the Coalition for Nonprofit Housing and Economic Development (i.e., the Coalition) was born from a simple realization that local advocacy organizations were weakening their impact by not working collaboratively. Two groups of local advocacy organizations focused on affordable housing and economic development respectively were constantly competing with each other for the same […]

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Representing the voice of the community: Rise Economy advocates for equitable community development efforts across California

By / / Field Notes, Views / 3 minutes of reading

BIPOC-led affordable housing organizations in California have few options to turn to for help with capacity building and grant funding, but one organization is trying to change that.  Rise Economy was founded in 1986 by a group of legal aid attorneys and other advocates who wanted to improve affordable housing access in California. The organization

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Detroit’s LOVE Building: A Communal Space for Joy, Belonging and Connection

By / / Field Notes, Views / 3 minutes of reading

The idea for the LOVE Building in Detroit began with a question asked while its founders were in line for a bathroom at a community party in 2016: What if we did more than plan events together? What if we built something together for ourselves and our community? The people asking were the longtime leaders

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Housing Opportunities Made Equal (HOME) Tackles Cincinnati’s Severe Racial Gap in Homeownership

By / / Field Notes, Views / 3 minutes of reading

Housing Opportunities Made Equal (HOME) has championed fair housing in the Greater Cincinnati area for over six decades with the mission of “eliminating unlawful discrimination in housing.”  HOME’s work targets Cincinnati’s extreme segregation due to discriminatory housing practices like gentrification that systemically displace Black homeowners by raising rents, mortgages as well as property taxes.  The

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Power in numbers: How Metropolitan Milwaukee Fair Housing Council fights against discriminatory housing practices

By / / Field Notes, Views / 3 minutes of reading

Housing advocates at the Metropolitan Milwaukee Fair Housing Council (MMFHC) have created an impactful toolkit for vulnerable communities that continue to be impacted by the legacy of redlining.  MMFHC traces its roots back to 1977 when Milwaukee’s Sherman Park neighborhood was beginning to become racially integrated. At the time, Sherman Park was a mostly white

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New York’s Center for Regional Strategies’ Program Model for Creating Community Wealth

By / / Field Notes, Views / 3 minutes of reading

The Center for Regional Strategies (CRS) is fostering sustainable wealth for residents in western New York by creating innovative economic growth models that increase household income and attract opportunities to the region. CRS serves as a central hub for connecting organizations to funders and collaborating with government offices, developers and community groups. Together, they build

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A Right, Not a Privilege: Solita’s House’s vision to make homeownership more attainable

By / / Field Notes, Views / 3 minutes of reading

For 19 years, Solita’s House has been a pillar in the Tampa, FL community by bridging the housing gap through a range of counseling and education programming that is designed to get residents “mortgage ready.” “It’s really about [helping] people understand the connection between the programs that are available in their area and how to

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“We’re not alone”: African American Trade Association’s workforce development programming for students in Colorado

By / / Field Notes, Views / 3 minutes of reading

Since 2020, the African American Trade Association (AATA) has supported Denver-area Black-owned businesses with programs that help them strengthen their internal mechanisms and further their external reach. AATA’s first programs included technical assistance for minority and women-owned businesses, including providing them with access to capital guidance, connecting them to IT-related services, and other forms of

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Virginia Community Voice Empowers Residents to Create Change in Historically Marginalized Neighborhoods

By / / Field Notes, Views / 4 minutes of reading

For the past decade, Richmond’s Virginia Community Voice (VACV) has been a blueprint for how organizations can drive equitable community engagement, amplify citizens’ voices and foster radical healing in their own backyards. VACV’s work centers on creating and implementing equitable processes for addressing community needs by empowering residents to identify challenges in their own neighborhoods

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Changing the landscape: How Community Development Advocates Build Capacity and Power in Philadelphia

By / / Field Notes, Views / 3 minutes of reading

The future of housing often feels solely in the hands of large private developers and politicians. But the Philadelphia Association of Community Development Corporations (PACDC) has spent the last three decades working to tip the scales in favor of everyday people. Since its founding in 1992, PACDC has served as the connective tissue between more

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Pittsburgh Community Reinvestment Group’s innovative approach towards tackling the local affordable housing crisis

By / / Field Notes, Views / 3 minutes of reading

Through an inclusive, community-centered approach, NCRC member Pittsburgh Community Reinvestment Group (PCRG) is working to revitalize Allegheny County’s single family housing market and put homeownership back in the hands of families through their policy advocacy and financial education efforts.  PCRG began in 1988 as a coalition of local nonprofits dedicated to addressing racially discriminatory practices

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New Jersey Citizen Action Fights Economic Injustice Through Direct Services and Coalition Power

By / / Field Notes, Views / 3 minutes of reading

For 43 years, New Jersey Citizen Action (NJCA) has been a cornerstone for economic justice in the Garden State, serving more than 15,000 families annually through programs ranging from free tax preparation to foreclosure prevention.  NJCA emerged from broader citizen action movements in response to the Reagan Administration’s cuts to social programs and deregulation efforts.

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Covenant Community Capital’s Work Making Homeownership Attainable for Working Class Buyers

By / / Field Notes, Research, Views / 4 minutes of reading

NCRC member organizations pursue a range of missions that fit broadly under the umbrella of promoting economic equity for all Americans. The research team at NCRC supports those members in many ways, including providing assistance in quantifying the impact of our members’ efforts in their communities. One Houston, TX-based community development financial institution (CDFI) offers

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A Place to Call Home: How NCRC Tools Help Denver Nonprofit Advocate for Equitable Housing

By / / Field Notes, Views / 3 minutes of reading

Housing nonprofits in Colorado had their hands full following the Great Recession of 2007. Fewer homes were being built, with unemployment causing housing insecurity rates to rise exponentially. Local and state governments also had fewer resources to help those in need. “After the Great Recession, there was a desire to co-advocate in a way that

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Reclaiming Tribal Lands Through Innovative Economic Development Efforts

By / / Field Notes, Views / 4 minutes of reading

The lack of affordable housing and other structural barriers to homeownership are a nationwide problem. Yet, for Native communities living on tribal lands, those dynamics become an even more complicated challenge to overcome. They are often overlooked by traditional state, local, regional and federal housing assistance programs and minimized as constituents given their unique sovereign

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