A funders collaborative working to strengthen local neighborhood economies, supporting a strong region for all.
We Rise Together: For an Equitable & Just Recovery is a funders collaborative working with community members to respond to the urgent economic needs of underinvested communities in the Chicago region, which are predominantly Black and Latine.
Local Business RFP: The Together Fund invites applications that present strategic approaches to strengthen local enterprises, supporting a sustainable recovery and fostering a resilient economic foundation across the region. Click here to learn more about the Local Business RFP.
Workforce RFP: The Together Fund invites applications that present solutions to equip young people with the competencies, resources, and connections needed to secure meaningful employment. Click here to learn more about the Workforce RFP.
Since September 2021, more than 160 donors have contributed to the We Rise Together funding pool. The initiative has strategically invested nearly $47 million, including support for more than 40 neighborhood anchor real estate investments worth more than a half a billion dollars. As projects open their doors, they are having immediate and continued impact, including providing new activities for young people, job training and placement, support for local businesses, and much-needed healthcare, childcare, and healthy food.
In addition to real estate grants, We Rise Together also made grants to support locally owned businesses and expand employment opportunities in the neighborhoods around the real estate projects. Now, through the Together Fund, community members are helping determine $1.5 million in funding for additional local business support and workforce development. These grants will be announced in 2025.
The Model for We Rise Together
Our model for community investment at scale supports coordinated, community-led commercial and economic development in neighborhoods that were hit hardest by COVID-19 and the economic recession that followed. Through strategic grants to community-directed real estate development projects that leverage additional investment, we are building thriving neighborhoods and a stronger Chicago.
Investments in communities hit hardest by COVID-19, which are predominantly Black and Latine.
Community-centered investments in people and places.
Community engagement and collaboration that builds community voice and capacity.
$51M+
By Individual, Corporate and Philanthropic Funders
40+
In Resident-Driven Real Estate Projects Now Worth $564M+
$47M+
To Support Real Estate Development, Small Business, and Workforce Development in Underinvested Communities
We Rise Together is a funders collaborative of more than 160 philanthropic organizations and individuals. Explore our list of leading funding partners below.
Two Advisory Groups of 10 community members each will determine $750,000 worth of grants, for a total of $1.5 million in funding to…
In this episode of Trust Talks, we discuss We Rise Together’s impact and what’s next, including how the initiative—and donors—can continue to fuel the…
What we believed when We Rise Together: For an Equitable & Just Recovery launched in October 2020 has proven to be true: The…
When the new North Austin Center opened on Chicago’s West Side in February of this year, Santiago Navarro registered his son, Julian, for…
New grants approved in December bring total grantmaking for the initiative to more than $34 million in just over one year (January 10,…
Two years ago, the world was facing an unprecedented unknown: a deadly global pandemic that was shutting down life as we knew it.…
Seven neighborhood anchor projects to provide essential community services CHICAGO – We Rise Together: For an Equitable and Just Recovery today announced it…
As we mark the one-year anniversary of We Rise Together: For an Equitable and Just Recovery, it seems fitting to reflect on all…
*As of March 2021, the initiative has changed its name to “We Rise Together: For an Equitable and Just Recovery.” The Chicago region…
We’ve made a 10-year commitment to closing Chicago’s racial and ethnic wealth gap while remaining steadfast in the core areas of work that are foundational to who we are.
Learn MoreThrough the years, the Trust has created many types of initiatives to help our region—and its foundations, businesses, civic leaders, and individuals—most effectively engage with the issues they care about.
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