Join Us in Chicago to See What’s Possible Now

CategoriesAccess to Capital Asheville Community Investment Local Economic Policy Local Mission-Guided Investing Ownership Matters Racial Wealth Gap San Antonio By
It’s easy to find stories about what’s broken in our economy, how inequality deepens, systems fail, and despair feels justified. These challenges are real and must be acknowledged. But when they dominate the conversation, we risk missing something equally true: there are hundreds of people, enterprises, funds, and initiatives actively repairing their local economies, quietly, effectively, and often in isolation from one another.That’s why we want you to come to Chicago.
If you want to see what *is* working, what’s possible when innovation meets moral clarity and when local leaders are in the same room, you belong with us.

What We’ll Explore

Chicago is a proving ground for catalytic capital, capital that listens first, moves boldly, and invests in the priorities communities actually name.

Take The Resurrection Project, for example. It began in 1990 when six congregations pooled $30,000. That seed has since grown into over $600 million invested in affordable housing, schools, and community facilities. Grounded in faith and community leadership, TRP continues to support immigrants, build healthier neighborhoods, and train local leaders. Learn more

You’ll also hear from Healing Through Justice, a bold, youth-led initiative born from a partnership between Communities United and Lurie Children’s Hospital, and supported by a $10 million grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. Young people of color are reclaiming their own stories of trauma, turning them into platforms for advocacy, healing, and lasting systems change. Discover their impact!

We’ll also explore Lyneir Richardson’s Buy Back the Block, which helps communities reclaim commercial real estate from hedge fund control. In Chatham Plaza in Chicago over 350 neighborhood residents, mostly women and people of color, invested as little as $1,000. When the center sold for $3.4 million, they saw real returns, but more importantly, they helped shift the culture toward community ownership and generational wealth in zip codes where asset ownership is not the norm. Read more

Going Deeper

We’ll weave together five powerful themes:

  • Catalytic Capital
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Faith-Based Innovation
  • Mission-Focused Real Estate
  • Community Health

We’re connecting patterns. You’ll leave with insights, relationships, and tools to apply in your own community.

 

📣 Be There

The national headlines may be bleak, but at our conference, with national leaders showing how they are repairing their local economies joining the Chicagoans,  a different story is unfolding. If you believe that local economic repair is key to a just future, and you want to be part of it,  Join us this fall or read more real-world examples of how we’re helping transform local economies from the inside out.