November 2019 | Field News and Resources

Washington State put together a working group — comprised of the National Development Council, Mission Investors Exchange and the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco — to ensure that Opportunity Zone investments result in positive social outcomes in low-income communities, The Seattle Times reports. 

Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon introduced legislation that would eliminate hundreds of Opportunity Zones (OZ) in relatively wealthy neighborhoods, The New York Times reports. This scrutiny follows several articles detailing how wealthy investors and real estate developers may benefit from the program in ways that harm communities or work against the OZ program's intentions.

Oweesta invites professional assistance to develop sessions for it 2020 Native CDFI Capital Access Convening. The submission deadline is Nov. 29.  

Michael Roberts, president and CEO of First Nations Development Institute, argues against the rationale of choosing social impact investments based on population size, a strategy that often neglects Native American populations.

Native Americans are more likely than any other group to lack access to clean water, a new report from DigDeep and the U.S. Water Alliance finds.

Frontline Solutions has launched Equity Footprint, a framework designed to assess the impact of philanthropic organizations.

The Open Society Foundations commissioned a report examining “systems change” in impact investing, which aims to address the systemic root causes of problems and avoid unintended negative consequences. 

An article on the Transformational Investing in Food Systems Initiative (TIFS), a network of foundations committed to sharing investment opportunities, learning and insights into investing in small farmers, social justice and sustainability, was featured in Inside Philanthropy.

This article explores Michigan’s first social impact bond for Strong Beginnings, a Grand Rapids-based federal Healthy Start program, in the Detroit Free Press. The bond’s investors include Kellogg Foundation, Michigan Health Endowment Fund, PNC Bank, Spectrum Health, and the State of Michigan.

Faith-based investing means aligning an organization’s investment decisions with its spiritual values, writes Beth Sirull of the Jewish Community Foundation of San Diego.

Omidyar’s origins, evolution, and approach to venture philanthropy are explored in this TechCrunch interview with Omidyar Network's Mike Kubzansky.

The Atlantic provides insight into the need to focus on place-based policies and solutions that can encourage economic growth in small towns around America. This article also highlights examples of foundations and organizations that are encouraging local entrepreneurship and helping towns generate new business economies.