We are thrilled to announce the latest round of investments from the California Endowment’s $300 million Social Bond. The grants are reflective of our commitment to fund the “good troublemakers” and their vision for long-term solutions that solidify California’s community-based, power-building infrastructure to advance racial equity and health system transformation.

For this round of social bond grants, we were particularly focused on seeking out organizations with bold projects that would create sustainable impact and advance equity on a policy- and systems-change level. The four priority areas for the Social Bond program are Community Power Infrastructure, Climate Resiliency, Health Systems, and Research and Evaluation. Read below to learn more about each portfolio’s goals and how our grantee partners are addressing these issues in their communities.

1. Power Infrastructure

This portfolio is dedicated to strengthening California’s community-based power-building infrastructure by investing in a network of innovative regional and statewide centers, leveraging capital, and expanding the capacity of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color-led community organizing. This round of grant recommendations will provide $14.7 million to the following groups.

• Bold Vision, Liberty Hill Foundation
  • Goal: To support a philanthropic-community organization partnership project to strengthen the power-building infrastructure in Los Angeles County to advance health and racial justice efforts to ensure that BIPOC youth have the resources and skills they need to thrive
• Community Ownership for Community Power, Possibility Labs
  • Goal: To provide capacity building and capital infrastructure for communities of color and immigrant communities across California to advance community ownership as a common model for equitable real estate preservation, working towards widespread housing affordability, intergenerational community wealth, and the right to health equity for all Californians
• Center for Community Organizing, Community Coalition for Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment
  • Goal: Support multi-faceted community power building to be scaled locally in LA, statewide, and nationally. CoCo is an organization at the center of the Los Angeles ecosystem with a long history of organizing, civic engagement, arts and culture, and resident leadership development in the region.
• Refugee Immigrant Cultural Hub, Partnership for the Advancement of New Americans
  • Goal: To support land acquisition and development of the Refugee and Immigrant Cultural Hub in San Diego

2. Climate Resiliency

The overall goal of this portfolio is to strengthen resilience, dignity, and the human right to clean air, water, and stewardship of their land for generations. We’re investing $7.3 million to support the capacity of these grantee partners to do work that is grounded in Indigenous and culturally rooted practices that center on community residents and partners, network building, and partnerships.

• Community Ownership for Community Power, Possibility Labs
  • Goal: To provide capacity building and capital infrastructure for communities of color and immigrant communities across California to advance community ownership as a common model for equitable real estate preservation, working towards widespread housing affordability, intergenerational community wealth, and the right to health equity for all Californians.
• Community Economic Mobilization Initiative, Sierra Health Foundation
  • Goal: Strengthen Health and Community Resiliency to strengthen the ability of BIPOC-led and serving organizations in the use of public funds designated to reduce economic and environmental inequities.
• FoodLink for Tulare County, Central Valley Agroecology Network
  • Goal: Support regenerative agriculture to support healthy land stewardship and food sovereignty for predominantly Native American and immigrant communities in Tulare and Fresno counties
• Resilience Hubs, Asian Pacific Environmental Network
  • Goal: To improve community resilience and health against climate change disasters for BIPOC communities
• Young Climate Leaders of Color, People’s Climate Innovation
  • Goal: Support the development of Young Climate Leaders of Color, a power and movement building infrastructure that develops, fosters, and supports youth of color in California as a new wave of climate justice leaders, innovators, and philanthropists working on addressing the root causes of climate injustice and transforming the health of their communities.

3. Health Systems

              In this portfolio, we are invested in building out a stronger, more racially equitable health system through addressing prevention and coverage, strengthening community governance, and building a diverse health workforce pipeline. This round of grant recommendations provides $20.5 million to the following groups:

• California Primary Care Association
  • Goal: To bridge community clinics, health centers, and networks in communities through advocacy, education, and civic engagement to improve health equity across California
• California Accountable Communities for Health Initiative, under fiscal sponsorship of Community Partners
  • Goal: To support the scaling of a model that links health care systems, providers, and health plans with public health, community and social services organizations, and residents across California

4. Research & Evaluation

              Understanding and assessing what it takes to improve California’s power-building infrastructure is critical, so this portfolio is focused on growing innovative, strategic knowledge, learning capacity, and data infrastructure in our state. We are granting $4.5 million to the following projects:

• The Johns Hopkins University P3 Lab
  • Goal: Invest in the development of the scholar and field-based infrastructure to support deep, sustained learning within the field of organizing by strengthening tools and capacity for adaptive strategy
• The University of Southern California Equity Research Institute
  • Goal: Strengthen California’s ecosystem of BIPOC and community-engaged researchers who are equipped with the skills and capacities to provide data and narrative that bolsters community power and power building for health equity

We hope you’re as inspired as we are by the tremendous work being done by champions for health equity and social justice all over our state. Stay tuned to hear more about the outcomes of these projects and stories from California’s organizers on the ground!

Bob Ross