Miami, Florida

Downtown Miami
Miami skyline

Updated June 2017

The City of Miami is the center of a large urban area with a total population of about 5.5 million. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city proper had nearly 453,580 residents as of July 2016. Often referred to as “The Magic City” because it is the core of a region that grew from just 110 people in 1896, the city itself has experienced significant growth over the past several decades. Since 2000 it has gained more than 91,000 residents, a growth rate of about 25 percent.The city's racial composition is 11.4% white, 16.4% black, 70.7% Hispanic, and the remainder Asian or other races. Roughly 60 percent of Miami's population is foreign-born, giving Miami the highest concentration of foreign-born residents among the 100 largest metropolitan areas in the United States. Cuba is one obvious source of immigrants, but many immigrants come from all over the Caribbean and Central and South America.

Miami is widely regarded as the gateway city to Latin America in terms of trade and business. Yet Miami also suffers from some unique challenges. Although located right across the causeway from the wealthy resort town of Miami Beach, the city of Miami itself is one of the nation's poorest – ranking fourth among large U.S. cities according to 2012 Census estimates. In fact, according to the Annie E. Casey’s 2017 Kid Count data, nearly two-thirds of all Miami children live in high poverty areas (i.e., census tracts where poverty rates are 30 percent or more). Not surprisingly, perhaps, a 2016 Bloomberg study found that Miami had the greatest degree of income equality among all large U.S. cities. 

Faced with these formidable obstacles, community wealth building institutions in Miami are playing a significant role. Miami has a productive group of community development corporations such as East Little Havana CDC, which, since 1984, has developed 13 buildings encompassing 569 affordable housing units and 11 commercial units for small businesses. Supporting the formerly homeless and those at risk of homelessness, Carrfour Corporation oversees around 1,700 units of supportive housing serving more than 3,000 residents. Aiming to provide employment opportunities, job skills training, educational outreach, and healthy, fresh produce for its residents, the nonprofit also developed a 22-acre farm next to one of its sites in 2013, and has since added a café to provide additional job opportunities.

Other city nonprofits are also playing an important role in community wealth building.  For example, in 2016, the Urban League of Broward County’s Entrepreneurship Center supported the creation of 44 new businesses and engaged 1,000 people in asset-building workshops. Similarly, Health Foundation South Florida recently catalyzed a Community Building and Economic Prosperity Initiative that is encouraging area anchor institutions to directly support local businesses and create local jobs.

An overview of community wealth building efforts follows:

Anchor Institutions

Health Foundation South Florida

Health Foundation South Florida aims to improve the health of all South Floridians. Since its establishment in 1993, the foundation has awarded more than $120 million in grants. To help address the social determinants of health, the foundation catalyzed a special Community Building and Economic Prosperity Initiative that is encouraging area anchor institutions to support community wealth building by creating new vehicles for community engagement, supporting local businesses, developing quality educational and health services, adopting mechanisms for local hiring and contracting, and boosting community economic development through direct capital investment.

Homestead Hospital

Established in 1940 with just 10 beds, Homestead Hospital is now a full-service, 142-bed facility. To help promote healthier lifestyles, the hospital created a three-acre organic garden on an adjacent vacant plot. With the potential to grow 30,000 pounds of produce a year, Grow2Heal community garden provides fresh, nutritious food to area residents and healthy food that can be served to hospital patients, visitors, and staff.  The garden is also used as a site for educational programs, including school fieldtrips, health fairs, cooking demonstrations, wellness workshops, and support groups. Future plans include the development of an on-site greenhouse, farmers market, and handicap-accessible “healing trail” lined with scented fruits and flowers.

John S. and James L. Knight Foundation

Headquartered in Miami, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation is a national foundation with assets exceeding $2.4 billion focused on strengthening democracy by fostering informed and engaged communities.  Its grant making in Miami aims to nurture a “startup culture,” supportive of creatives, entrepreneurs, innovators, and other agents of change generating new ideas that could shape South Florida’s future.  Reflecting this, in 2017 grants have been awarded to support the NewME Accelerator (a business accelerator for minority start-ups) and FIU Miami’s Urban Future Initiative, which seeks to inform a strategy to grow a broader, more inclusive innovation economy by identifying Miami’s key economic, occupational, creative, and technological assets.

The Miami Foundation

The Miami Foundation aims to improve the quality of life in the Greater Miami area. It currently manages more than $300 million in assets and has disbursed over $250 million in grants since its establishment in 1967. Committed to advancing a civic agenda that supports Miami’s long-term progress, the foundation also runs several leadership programs designed to enhance the civic knowledge and leadership skills of emerging community leaders. Read more about The Miami Foundation...

Community Development Corporations (CDCs)

Carrfour Supportive Housing

Carrfour Corporation is the non-profit, community based, supportive housing development organization established by the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce to combat homelessness. Carrfour serves the formerly homeless and those at risk of homelessness, including Miami-Dade's special needs and very low-income populations.  The nonprofit currently oversees over 1,700 units of supportive housing serving more than 3,000 residents across Miami-Dade County. Read more about Carrfour Supportive Housing...

East Little Havana CDC

East Little Havana CDC focuses on revitalizing commercial corridors and developing affordable housing in Miami’s East Little Havana neighborhood, where over 50 percent of residents live in poverty. Since its establishment in 1984, the CDC has developed 13 buildings, which include 569 affordable low-income residential units and 11 commercial units for small businesses.

Haitian American Community Development Corporation (HACDC)

Founded in 1987, the Haitian American Community Development Corporation (HACDC), formerly known as the Little Haiti Housing Association, aims to provide decent affordable housing, as well as educational and business development programs that foster sustainable economic advancement, in South Florida’s Haitian-American communities.  The CDC acquires and rehabs distressed housing units, which are then sold or rented as affordable units.  Its Homebuyer Education program, which is offered in English and Creole, has helped about 2,650 clients.  HACDC has also assisted more than 300 people purchase their first home by securing nearly $60 million in affordable or subsidized financing.

Miami Beach Community Development Corporation

Founded in 1981, the Miami Beach Community Development Corporation aims to expand opportunities for and enhance the quality of life of Miami Beach’s low-income residents.  To do so, it owns and manages an office building and 14 residential projects, which include 340 units for low-income elderly and disabled residents. The CDC also runs a housing counseling program that helps 500 families a year become first-time homebuyers. Read more about Miami Beach Community Development Corporation...

Neighborhood Housing Services of South Florida

Founded in 1978 as Miami-Dade Neighborhood Housing Services, Neighborhood Housing Services of South Florida provides homeownership services and develops quality, green, and affordable homes in Miami-Dade and Broward County. In FY 2015, the nonprofit provided homeownership education to over 1,700 clients and helped 212 people buy homes. Read more about Neighborhood Housing Services of South Florida...

St. John Community Development Corporation

St. John Community Development Corporation, Inc. (SJCDC) is a not-for-profit community based organization founded in 1985 by the pastor and a group of concerned and dedicated members from St. John Institutional Missionary Baptist Church in Overtown. It was established to respond to the physical deterioration and social distress of Overtown, Miami-Dade County's poorest community, and to take a lead role in its revitalization.  The CDC currently owns and manages nine residential complexes that include affordable rental units and on-site supportive services. Read more about St. John Community Development Corporation...

Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs)

BAC Funding Corporation & Affiliates

BAC (originally known as the Business Assistance Center) extends commercial credit to Black owned businesses through revolving credit lines and joint venture agreements. Since its establishment in 1982 to encourage reinvestment in Miami's “Liberty City” neighborhood, BAC has disbursed nearly $50 million in loans or equity funds, making over 500 investments, of which 40 percent have been in Enterprise Zones. BAC has also helped build wealth in South Florida's Black community by developing and managing the $33.5 million MLK Transit Station Development Complex. Read more about BAC Funding Corporation & Affiliates...

Cooperatives (Co-ops)

Dade County Federal Credit Union

Founded in May 1939 through the efforts of ten county employees who used a cigar box to collect deposits, the member-owned financial cooperative has grown to become a multi-million dollar, professionally managed financial institution. Today, Dade County Federal Credit Union has 11 locations, over 95,600 members and nearly $637 million in assets. Read more about Dade County Federal Credit Union...

South Florida Educational Federal Credit Union (SFEFCU)

Chartered in 1935, South Florida Educational Federal Credit Union (SFEFCU) is now one of the largest credit unions in the state with over 76,000 members and more than $1 billion in assets.  As an institution that originally served families of those working for the Miami Dade County Public School system, SFEFCU has a strong commitment to education, providing numerous scholarships to students, including 15 four-year scholarships to graduating high school seniors on an annual basis.  SFEFCU also has 13 branches located in area high schools and runs a financial literacy program to teach youth the importance of budgeting, saving, and investing.

Cross-Sectoral

Radical Partners

Radical Partners is a social-impact accelerator focused on growing organizations working to address community challenges, convening community stakeholders to promote collective impact, and mobilizing the community to generate solutions to pressing city issues. Its 100 Great Ideas initiative relies on social media to garner opinions about how to address serious community challenges, and then shares top ideas with decision-makers who have the power to act. It also runs numerous leadership development programs, including a social entrepreneur “boot camp” focused on scaling the impact of local leaders.

Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs)

Southern Gear & Machine

Southern Gear has been producing gears for aerospace and other industries since 1957. The company converted to employ ownership in 1987. From its beginnings as a small, one bay operation with just a few employees, the firm has grown to have 94 employee-owners. Read more about Southern Gear & Machine...

Individual Wealth Building

Florida State Minority Supplier Development Council/Business Center

Based in Miami, the Florida State Minority Supplier Development Council strives to foster business development and expansion by connecting minority-owned businesses to corporations and government agencies.  The Council offers a range of capacity building services, including access to loans for a range of business needs. The Council also operates the Miami Minority Business Development Agency Business Center, which provides business development and technical assistance services to minority businesses in South Florida.  Since its establishment in 1975, the Council has helped certify 912 minority-owned businesses, resulting in sales of roughly $9 billion.

NewMeAccelerator

NewMeAccelerator (NewMe) aims to help “out-of-the-box” entrepreneurs transform their ideas into successful businesses.  The program includes 1-week residential accelerators and web-based on-going support.  Since its launch in 2011, NewMe has helped minority entrepreneurs raise over $25 million in funding.

Partners for Self-Employment

Partners for Self-Employment (PSE) aims to strengthen the financial well-being of South Florida’s low to moderate income residents by providing financial literacy training and opportunities to borrow and save. To encourage homeownership and business development, the nonprofit has a matched savings program that provides a $2 match for every dollar saved up to $1,000.  PSE also offers direct loans to small businesses seeking to grow and runs peer lending circles for new business owners. Since its establishment in 1993, PSE has supported over 8,000 South Florida residents.

Urban League of Broward County

Based in Fort Lauderdale, the Urban League of Broward County is a community-based organization working to help Black residents secure economic self-reliance, parity, power, and civil rights. Through its Entrepreneurship Center, the nonprofit supports business creation and growth in South Florida’s historically disenfranchised communities by offering a range of business development services and small loans. In 2016, the Center supported the creation of 44 new businesses and engaged 1,000 people in asset-building workshops. To increase wealth in low-income communities, the Urban League also runs an Individual Development Account program that provides a $2 match for every dollar saved for post-secondary education, business development, or homeownership.

New State & Local Policies

Catalyst Miami

With a mission to develop and support individual leadership and strong organizations that collaborate to improve health, education, and economic opportunity, Catalyst Miami focuses on identifying and launching innovative community building strategies.  In 2016, it helped nearly 5,443 people access financial or health services, engaged 268 people in two-generation leadership development programs, and mobilized over 700 residents through community events. Read more about Catalyst Miami...

The Miami Workers Center

The Miami Workers Center is based in the Liberty City area and was founded as a volunteer organization in 1999 by former union organizers. The Center helps working class people build grassroots organizations and develop their leadership capacity through aggressive community organizing campaigns and education programs. The Center also actively builds coalitions and enters alliances to amplify progressive power and win racial, community, social, and economic justice. Read more about The Miami Workers Center...

Social Enterprise

Verde Community Farm and Market

Located at Verde Gardens, a supportive housing community for formerly homeless families run by the nonprofit Carrfour Supportive Housing, Verde Community Farm and Market is a 22-acre organic-certified fruit and vegetable farm established in 2013 to provide employment opportunities, job skills training, educational outreach, and healthy, fresh produce for Verde Garden residents.  In 2015, the project added a restaurant component, Verde Kitchen Café, which serves products grown on the farm and provides additional job opportunities. As of 2015, Verde Community Farm and Market employed 15 people.  All of the enterprises’ revenues support the health, financial, and psychological services offered by Carrfour to Verde residents.

Transit-Oriented Development

Miami-Dade County Transit Joint Development

Miami recognized the importance of joint development as early as 1978, six years before the opening of its Metrorail transit system, and adopted a city ordinance to specifically promote joint development.  A key TOD project now under development is Miami-Dade Transit’s 7th Avenue Transit Village, a $34 million mixed-use project located in Liberty City, one of Miami-Dade’s oldest communities.  Phase I, completed in 2015, includes 76 units of affordable housing.  Once completed, Phase II will add 100 affordable units, a community theater space, and a metro transit hub.

University & Community Partnerships

Florida International University, Research Institute on Social and Economic Policy

Florida International University’s Research Institute on Social and Economic Policy aims to connect the University’s academics and research to the broader community.  Guided by a mission to improve the lives of working people and their families, the Institute focuses on three core activities:  1) Conducting non-partisan social science, law, and policy research on issues that impact low-wage, immigrant, marginalized, and middle income workers and their families; 2) Serving the research and support needs of social justice, community, and labor organizations; and 3) Building community collaboration to address issues facing working people.

StartUP FIU

StartUP FIU focuses on nurturing traditional and social entrepreneurship among Florida International University students, faculty, staff, alumni, and the South Florida community by supporting the development of new startups, the acceleration of early-stage companies, and the commercialization of groundbreaking technologies. The effort includes StartUP FIU Food, an incubator seeking to help grow food businesses with limited resources and a commitment to job creation. It also includes the Empower Accelerator, a 14-week program that aims to develop scalable ventures by providing entrepreneurs with coaches, skills training, workspace, and related supports.

Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs)

BAC Funding Corporation & Affiliates

BAC (originally known as the Business Assistance Center) extends commercial credit to Black owned businesses through revolving credit lines and joint venture agreements. Since its establishment in 1982 to encourage reinvestment in Miami's “Liberty City” neighborhood, BAC has disbursed nearly $50 million in loans or equity funds, making over 500 investments, of which 40 percent have been in Enterprise Zones. BAC has also helped build wealth in South Florida's Black community by developing and managing the $33.5 million MLK Transit Station Development Complex. Read more about BAC Funding Corporation & Affiliates...

Community Development Corporations (CDCs)

Carrfour Supportive Housing

Carrfour Corporation is the non-profit, community based, supportive housing development organization established by the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce to combat homelessness. Carrfour serves the formerly homeless and those at risk of homelessness, including Miami-Dade's special needs and very low-income populations.  The nonprofit currently oversees over 1,700 units of supportive housing serving more than 3,000 residents across Miami-Dade County. Read more about Carrfour Supportive Housing...

East Little Havana CDC

East Little Havana CDC focuses on revitalizing commercial corridors and developing affordable housing in Miami’s East Little Havana neighborhood, where over 50 percent of residents live in poverty. Since its establishment in 1984, the CDC has developed 13 buildings, which include 569 affordable low-income residential units and 11 commercial units for small businesses.

Haitian American Community Development Corporation (HACDC)

Founded in 1987, the Haitian American Community Development Corporation (HACDC), formerly known as the Little Haiti Housing Association, aims to provide decent affordable housing, as well as educational and business development programs that foster sustainable economic advancement, in South Florida’s Haitian-American communities.  The CDC acquires and rehabs distressed housing units, which are then sold or rented as affordable units.  Its Homebuyer Education program, which is offered in English and Creole, has helped about 2,650 clients.  HACDC has also assisted more than 300 people purchase their first home by securing nearly $60 million in affordable or subsidized financing.

Miami Beach Community Development Corporation

Founded in 1981, the Miami Beach Community Development Corporation aims to expand opportunities for and enhance the quality of life of Miami Beach’s low-income residents.  To do so, it owns and manages an office building and 14 residential projects, which include 340 units for low-income elderly and disabled residents. The CDC also runs a housing counseling program that helps 500 families a year become first-time homebuyers. Read more about Miami Beach Community Development Corporation...

Neighborhood Housing Services of South Florida

Founded in 1978 as Miami-Dade Neighborhood Housing Services, Neighborhood Housing Services of South Florida provides homeownership services and develops quality, green, and affordable homes in Miami-Dade and Broward County. In FY 2015, the nonprofit provided homeownership education to over 1,700 clients and helped 212 people buy homes. Read more about Neighborhood Housing Services of South Florida...

St. John Community Development Corporation

St. John Community Development Corporation, Inc. (SJCDC) is a not-for-profit community based organization founded in 1985 by the pastor and a group of concerned and dedicated members from St. John Institutional Missionary Baptist Church in Overtown. It was established to respond to the physical deterioration and social distress of Overtown, Miami-Dade County's poorest community, and to take a lead role in its revitalization.  The CDC currently owns and manages nine residential complexes that include affordable rental units and on-site supportive services. Read more about St. John Community Development Corporation...

New State & Local Policies

Catalyst Miami

With a mission to develop and support individual leadership and strong organizations that collaborate to improve health, education, and economic opportunity, Catalyst Miami focuses on identifying and launching innovative community building strategies.  In 2016, it helped nearly 5,443 people access financial or health services, engaged 268 people in two-generation leadership development programs, and mobilized over 700 residents through community events. Read more about Catalyst Miami...

The Miami Workers Center

The Miami Workers Center is based in the Liberty City area and was founded as a volunteer organization in 1999 by former union organizers. The Center helps working class people build grassroots organizations and develop their leadership capacity through aggressive community organizing campaigns and education programs. The Center also actively builds coalitions and enters alliances to amplify progressive power and win racial, community, social, and economic justice. Read more about The Miami Workers Center...

Cooperatives (Co-ops)

Dade County Federal Credit Union

Founded in May 1939 through the efforts of ten county employees who used a cigar box to collect deposits, the member-owned financial cooperative has grown to become a multi-million dollar, professionally managed financial institution. Today, Dade County Federal Credit Union has 11 locations, over 95,600 members and nearly $637 million in assets. Read more about Dade County Federal Credit Union...

South Florida Educational Federal Credit Union (SFEFCU)

Chartered in 1935, South Florida Educational Federal Credit Union (SFEFCU) is now one of the largest credit unions in the state with over 76,000 members and more than $1 billion in assets.  As an institution that originally served families of those working for the Miami Dade County Public School system, SFEFCU has a strong commitment to education, providing numerous scholarships to students, including 15 four-year scholarships to graduating high school seniors on an annual basis.  SFEFCU also has 13 branches located in area high schools and runs a financial literacy program to teach youth the importance of budgeting, saving, and investing.

University & Community Partnerships

Florida International University, Research Institute on Social and Economic Policy

Florida International University’s Research Institute on Social and Economic Policy aims to connect the University’s academics and research to the broader community.  Guided by a mission to improve the lives of working people and their families, the Institute focuses on three core activities:  1) Conducting non-partisan social science, law, and policy research on issues that impact low-wage, immigrant, marginalized, and middle income workers and their families; 2) Serving the research and support needs of social justice, community, and labor organizations; and 3) Building community collaboration to address issues facing working people.

StartUP FIU

StartUP FIU focuses on nurturing traditional and social entrepreneurship among Florida International University students, faculty, staff, alumni, and the South Florida community by supporting the development of new startups, the acceleration of early-stage companies, and the commercialization of groundbreaking technologies. The effort includes StartUP FIU Food, an incubator seeking to help grow food businesses with limited resources and a commitment to job creation. It also includes the Empower Accelerator, a 14-week program that aims to develop scalable ventures by providing entrepreneurs with coaches, skills training, workspace, and related supports.

Individual Wealth Building

Florida State Minority Supplier Development Council/Business Center

Based in Miami, the Florida State Minority Supplier Development Council strives to foster business development and expansion by connecting minority-owned businesses to corporations and government agencies.  The Council offers a range of capacity building services, including access to loans for a range of business needs. The Council also operates the Miami Minority Business Development Agency Business Center, which provides business development and technical assistance services to minority businesses in South Florida.  Since its establishment in 1975, the Council has helped certify 912 minority-owned businesses, resulting in sales of roughly $9 billion.

NewMeAccelerator

NewMeAccelerator (NewMe) aims to help “out-of-the-box” entrepreneurs transform their ideas into successful businesses.  The program includes 1-week residential accelerators and web-based on-going support.  Since its launch in 2011, NewMe has helped minority entrepreneurs raise over $25 million in funding.

Partners for Self-Employment

Partners for Self-Employment (PSE) aims to strengthen the financial well-being of South Florida’s low to moderate income residents by providing financial literacy training and opportunities to borrow and save. To encourage homeownership and business development, the nonprofit has a matched savings program that provides a $2 match for every dollar saved up to $1,000.  PSE also offers direct loans to small businesses seeking to grow and runs peer lending circles for new business owners. Since its establishment in 1993, PSE has supported over 8,000 South Florida residents.

Urban League of Broward County

Based in Fort Lauderdale, the Urban League of Broward County is a community-based organization working to help Black residents secure economic self-reliance, parity, power, and civil rights. Through its Entrepreneurship Center, the nonprofit supports business creation and growth in South Florida’s historically disenfranchised communities by offering a range of business development services and small loans. In 2016, the Center supported the creation of 44 new businesses and engaged 1,000 people in asset-building workshops. To increase wealth in low-income communities, the Urban League also runs an Individual Development Account program that provides a $2 match for every dollar saved for post-secondary education, business development, or homeownership.

Anchor Institutions

Health Foundation South Florida

Health Foundation South Florida aims to improve the health of all South Floridians. Since its establishment in 1993, the foundation has awarded more than $120 million in grants. To help address the social determinants of health, the foundation catalyzed a special Community Building and Economic Prosperity Initiative that is encouraging area anchor institutions to support community wealth building by creating new vehicles for community engagement, supporting local businesses, developing quality educational and health services, adopting mechanisms for local hiring and contracting, and boosting community economic development through direct capital investment.

Homestead Hospital

Established in 1940 with just 10 beds, Homestead Hospital is now a full-service, 142-bed facility. To help promote healthier lifestyles, the hospital created a three-acre organic garden on an adjacent vacant plot. With the potential to grow 30,000 pounds of produce a year, Grow2Heal community garden provides fresh, nutritious food to area residents and healthy food that can be served to hospital patients, visitors, and staff.  The garden is also used as a site for educational programs, including school fieldtrips, health fairs, cooking demonstrations, wellness workshops, and support groups. Future plans include the development of an on-site greenhouse, farmers market, and handicap-accessible “healing trail” lined with scented fruits and flowers.

John S. and James L. Knight Foundation

Headquartered in Miami, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation is a national foundation with assets exceeding $2.4 billion focused on strengthening democracy by fostering informed and engaged communities.  Its grant making in Miami aims to nurture a “startup culture,” supportive of creatives, entrepreneurs, innovators, and other agents of change generating new ideas that could shape South Florida’s future.  Reflecting this, in 2017 grants have been awarded to support the NewME Accelerator (a business accelerator for minority start-ups) and FIU Miami’s Urban Future Initiative, which seeks to inform a strategy to grow a broader, more inclusive innovation economy by identifying Miami’s key economic, occupational, creative, and technological assets.

The Miami Foundation

The Miami Foundation aims to improve the quality of life in the Greater Miami area. It currently manages more than $300 million in assets and has disbursed over $250 million in grants since its establishment in 1967. Committed to advancing a civic agenda that supports Miami’s long-term progress, the foundation also runs several leadership programs designed to enhance the civic knowledge and leadership skills of emerging community leaders. Read more about The Miami Foundation...

Transit-Oriented Development

Miami-Dade County Transit Joint Development

Miami recognized the importance of joint development as early as 1978, six years before the opening of its Metrorail transit system, and adopted a city ordinance to specifically promote joint development.  A key TOD project now under development is Miami-Dade Transit’s 7th Avenue Transit Village, a $34 million mixed-use project located in Liberty City, one of Miami-Dade’s oldest communities.  Phase I, completed in 2015, includes 76 units of affordable housing.  Once completed, Phase II will add 100 affordable units, a community theater space, and a metro transit hub.

Cross-Sectoral

Radical Partners

Radical Partners is a social-impact accelerator focused on growing organizations working to address community challenges, convening community stakeholders to promote collective impact, and mobilizing the community to generate solutions to pressing city issues. Its 100 Great Ideas initiative relies on social media to garner opinions about how to address serious community challenges, and then shares top ideas with decision-makers who have the power to act. It also runs numerous leadership development programs, including a social entrepreneur “boot camp” focused on scaling the impact of local leaders.

Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs)

Southern Gear & Machine

Southern Gear has been producing gears for aerospace and other industries since 1957. The company converted to employ ownership in 1987. From its beginnings as a small, one bay operation with just a few employees, the firm has grown to have 94 employee-owners. Read more about Southern Gear & Machine...

Social Enterprise

Verde Community Farm and Market

Located at Verde Gardens, a supportive housing community for formerly homeless families run by the nonprofit Carrfour Supportive Housing, Verde Community Farm and Market is a 22-acre organic-certified fruit and vegetable farm established in 2013 to provide employment opportunities, job skills training, educational outreach, and healthy, fresh produce for Verde Garden residents.  In 2015, the project added a restaurant component, Verde Kitchen Café, which serves products grown on the farm and provides additional job opportunities. As of 2015, Verde Community Farm and Market employed 15 people.  All of the enterprises’ revenues support the health, financial, and psychological services offered by Carrfour to Verde residents.