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Strategic Partnerships

Open Air Economy Collaborative

In 2021, Inclusive Action, Public Counsel, California Reinvestment Coalition, and East LA Community Corporation, established a partnership to support entrepreneurs in the “open air economy.” For decades, street vendors and other types of entrepreneurs who operate businesses in the “open air” have operated on the fringes of our formal economy. Permit processes are complicated or non-existent, and these “non-traditional” entrepreneurs have a difficult time accessing capital, coaching, and legal support to grow their businesses. 

Catalyzed by a major, three year grant from JP Morgan Chase’s Advancing Cities initiative, this collaborative seeks to support Black and Latina entrepreneurs with programmatic support and capital to formalize their businesses. Inclusive Action and its partners are administering a variety of initiatives to support entrepreneurs in the “open air economy” including: low-interest micro-loans,business coaching and technical assistance, and legal support for permits and fine adjudication.

Asset Building for Communities of Color (ABC) Fund

In 2021, Inclusive Action partnered with LISC LA to support small businesses in Los Angeles through a special initiative called Asset Building for Community of Color (ABC) Fund. With support from the Wells Fargo Foundation, LISC LA and Inclusive Action for the City are working together to make sure that entrepreneurs in low-income neighborhoods of Los Angeles can thrive.

This initiative is facilitating the availability of a number of resources to support small businesses in the region. Inclusive Action is leading the administration of a special micro-loan program for entrepreneurs and is connecting entrepreneurs to a special grant program administered by LISC LA that is helping small businesses owners acquire real estate for their operations.

As our community’s entrepreneurs emerge out of the COVID-19 pandemic, low-interest capital and grants are crucial to our region’s economic stability.

Entrepreneurs of Color Fund

Inclusive Action is a network partner of the Entrepreneurs of Color Fund, a national initiative to support entrepreneurs of color who have historically found it difficult to access capital for their businesses. 

Inclusive Action recognizes that the experiences that BIPOC entrepreneurs have faced when applying for a loan is due to the myriad of policies and program decisions that have been made by public and private sector actors. To change this, and ensure that our communities have access to capital that can help them build wealth, Inclusive Action is proud to work with LISC and other EOCF partners to offer low-interest, micro-loans to business owners who have no where else to turn to.