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Analysis and points of view on research, trends, issues, ideas and opportunities.

Arkansas Agency Empowers Low-Income Residents to Become First-Time Homebuyers

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

As homeownership in the US gets less accessible, the Mississippi County, Arkansas Economics Opportunity Commission, Inc. (MCAEOC) is empowering its rural community members to become homeowners and build economic security by way of their support services.  MCAEOC is one of 15 community action agencies in the state that were established under the 1964 Economic Opportunity […]

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How misuse of the trust bank charter model will lead to more financial woes for communities

By / / Policy, Views / 9 minutes of reading

The nation’s largest crypto firms are looking to consolidate their power to the detriment of their customers and communities already lacking vital consumer protections and economic development opportunities. As more and more digital currency companies are vying for financial legitimacy by becoming a national trust bank via the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency

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“Providing support for everyday needs”: How ¡HICA! advances economic equity in Alabama

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

Immigrant households often face significant challenges in their pursuit of financial stability, from learning a new language to better their chances of finding work to navigating their new country’s court system. It was these challenges that inspired advocates in Birmingham, Alabama to create the Hispanic and Immigrant Center of Alabama (¡HICA!).  ¡HICA! was founded in

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Funding Futures: Scale Link’s New Secondary Market for CDFI Loans is Strengthening Underserved Small Businesses

By / / Views / 3 minutes of reading

Locally-owned small businesses are almost universally admired. Yet, in a banking industry where bigger is seen as better, warm words rarely translate into hard cash. Small businesses have become a viable pathway towards economic mobility for entrepreneurs and the cornerstone of community development revitalization efforts in historically underinvested communities. However, minority-owned businesses have had to

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Data Centers Won’t Stop The Labor Market Slowdown: November 2025 Race, Jobs and Economy Update

By / / Research, Views / 4 minutes of reading

November is the second month that the Bureau of Labor Statistics has failed to produce a jobs report due to the recent government shutdown. What we do know about the economy comes from private sources, and they paint a mixed to negative picture.  Revelio Labs found that the labor market lost 9,000 jobs last month

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Building Stronger State SNAP E&T Networks: Lessons from NCRC’s Tennessee Convening

By / / NCRC Programs, Views / 4 minutes of reading

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits provide vital assistance to millions of people every year who struggle with food insecurity. The SNAP Employment and Training program (SNAP E&T) is the workforce development component of SNAP, which funds education, job training and wraparound services for people receiving SNAP benefits.  SNAP E&T is a complicated program, often

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East LA Community Corporation Builds Opportunity Through Housing and Advocacy

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

Celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, the East LA Community Corporation (ELACC) was formed by activists dedicated to serving their Boyle Heights and East LA communities. The nonprofit has funneled over $250 million into housing and other community development resources to strengthen low-income neighborhoods. Through its affordable housing portfolio, asset and wealth-building programs, homeownership counseling

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Woodstock Institute Uses Data to Advocate for Community Reinvestment and Fair Lending Across Illinois

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

Nestled in the heart of downtown Chicago, the Woodstock Institute has been working to advance economic justice and racial equity within financial systems at the local, state and national levels for over 50 years.  The organization was founded in 1973 by Chicago philanthropists Sylvia and Aaron Scheinfeld as the program arm of the couple’s foundation

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Sacramento Environmental Justice Coalition fights for cleaner air and health equity in the city’s most marginalized communities

By / / Views / 3 minutes of reading

Although Sacramento, California is currently ranked as one of the country’s most polluted cities, a coalition of advocates and grassroots leaders is determined to change that. Due to Sacramento’s location in a mountain-locked valley, the pollutants produced from the city’s high amounts of traffic and industries become trapped, consistently earning it a top spot on

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“You can’t out-budget poverty”: MakingChange, Inc. helps people overcome financial instability in affluent Maryland

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

Experiencing poverty in an affluent community like Howard County, Maryland can seem like a strange oxymoron due to the area’s high median income and low poverty rates. In 2022, the area was ranked as the sixth-richest in the nation with a median income of over $124,000 and one of the lowest poverty rates in the

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Rebuilding Generational Wealth: How Portland Community Reinvestment Initiatives Creates Pathways to Black Homeownership

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

As one of the largest Black-led affordable housing nonprofits in the state of Oregon, Portland Community Reinvestment Initiatives (PCRI) continues to expand pathways to homeownership for Black communities systemically disenfranchised by discriminatory housing practices. Founded in 1992 after taking over properties from a discriminatory mortgage company, PCRI’s holdings have grown to over 700 properties, including

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A strong and stable force: How Ceiba created a lasting community and economic development ecosystem for Latine families in Philadelphia

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

Ceiba, a coalition of Latine community organizations in Philadelphia, is named after the ceiba trees that grow in the Caribbean. These trees, known for their hardiness and far-reaching foliage, are complete ecosystems that provide shade and meet the needs of humans, animals and plants alike.   The Ceiba coalition reflects its namesake by acting as a

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Early Success Stories From NCRC’s 2024 FEF Grantees

By / / NCRC Programs, Views / 4 minutes of reading

As economic uncertainty deepens due to workforce reductions, shrinking federal budgets and mounting local challenges, community-based organizations are responding with creativity and determination. In collaboration with its member network, NCRC continues to maximize existing grant resources to empower these organizations to make a meaningful difference in low-income communities nationwide. Last November, the National Community Reinvestment

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Is the Labor Market Stalling or Re-calibrating? October 2025 Race, Jobs and the Economy Update

By / / Research, Views / 4 minutes of reading

With the federal government shutdown that began on October 1st ongoing, economic data releases from a plethora of federal agencies have ground to a halt. This also includes the jobs report issued by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Despite the lack of official government data, several private sources that collect labor market data have produced

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