Show me your investment terms, and I’ll show you the soul of your capital
How do artists build an economy that works for everyone?
By Nyia Hawkins, Impact Investment Strategist & Storyteller, Ambitio US
“You have to have some kind of creativity to reimagine the world the way you want it to be.”
That’s what Victoria Jones , artist, entrepreneur, and community developer working to revitalize Orange Mound, Memphis, the first neighborhood in America built by formerly enslaved people, told me when I asked how she responded to funders and investors when asked about her non-traditional route into real estate development. What was once the largest concentration of Black Americans outside of Harlem by 1970 is now a community where more than 1 in 4 properties is vacant. Reimagining Orange Mound and other local economies is an investment in the sustainability of the U.S. economy.
Victoria’s answer in my first podcast set the tone for much of what The Soul of Capital became: two seasons of conversations with people who are already rebuilding the world, reimagining capital, ownership, infrastructure, and community that work for us all. Why?
The top 10% of households hold 67% of the nation’s wealth, while the bottom 50% hold 2.5%. More than one-third of the U.S. workforce now works in the “gig economy,” despite the fact that full-time employment is largely linked to social benefits, like healthcare, retirement savings, and unemployment protection. The median Black household holds 15 cents for every dollar held by the median white household. These gaps are not shrinking, they’re growing.
The Soul of Capital is rooted in the cultural impact and opportunity cost of leaving all that talent, creativity, and economic potential on the table. The cost is significant. Cultural production that never scales, businesses that never capitalize, communities that never compound wealth across generations. But it is also immeasurable. The ideas left unfunded, the innovation that is never built, the neighborhoods that never get to build upon what they never have access to. This is not a flaw in the system. It is the system.
The thread running through every podcast episode was the question — who gets to steward resources and on whose terms? Vanessa Roanhorse, CEO of Roanhorse Consulting , has helped move $4 million to over 300 Indigenous entrepreneurs through character-based lending. ‘Why?’ Because relationships and values are data and key to assessing risk, even when traditional underwriting refuses to value them. Sara Chester , a former member of the executive team leading The Industrial Commons in North Carolina, discussed efforts to build worker ownership through textile manufacturing in rural Appalachia, a region that has lost 85% of its textile jobs since 1992. ‘Why?’ Because someone had to believe that the local working class could be reconstituted around democratic decision-making rather than market-based economic extraction. The Industrial Commons is helping to revive a lost fiber industry that is gaining momentum.
CEO of Invest Appalachia, Andrew Crosson , is also near TIC. Invest Appalachia, based in Asheville, began with a locally rooted diagnosis: Appalachia is a resource-rich region whose wealth has historically been extracted. Appalachian coal and timber powered American industry for 150 years before decades of disinvestment that began in the late 60’s. The wealth left, and the externalities stayed (stripped mountains, communities without clean running water, and chronically underfunded schools). The $35 million fund isn’t chasing the next corporate factory to replace main street stores, and local entrepreneurs. It’s building capital stacks that finance what banks won’t, blending flexible loans with recoverable grants to root wealth in local communities that receive one-tenth the per capita philanthropy of the national average.
Noni Session , executive director of East Bay Permanent Real Estate Cooperative (EB PREC), has helped bring community-owned real estate from proof of concept to an internationally recognized model. EB PREC is the nation’s first permanent real estate cooperative to qualify through the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for a Regulation A+ Direct Public Offering. So far, the cooperative has acquired eight buildings (totaling more than 70,000 sq ft) for West Oakland residents, proving that land need not be a speculative commodity, proving that the financial infrastructure built to move capital toward investors can be rebuilt to move it toward the people who call a place home. Nearly 600 members, including neighbors and non-accredited investors, people who have historically been locked out of commercial real estate, govern the properties held in perpetuity off-market through deed restrictions and easements.
The final two podcast episodes feature Rudy Fraser , founder of Blacksky Algorithms and former fellow at Harvard’s Berkman Klein Center, who brought that argument into the digital world. Rudy is building a community-governed social media that lets users moderate on their own terms, pool funds, and own their data. Blacksky, a decentralized platform with over two million users, has not had to invest in growth. The users do it on their own. Why does tech decentralization matter? Because moderation is care work, and when social media cares, the community is both the primary investor and stakeholder.
Rudy’s answer to my final question for all the podcast episodes, ‘What is the soul of capital for you?’ was similar to almost every previous answer to that question, just built in code: you have to be willing to reimagine the infrastructure itself. Don’t optimize the existing system. Replace the assumptions. But, as I wrap up The Soul of Capital podcast and its conversations about an economy that works for everyone, Andrew Crosson’s answer resonated with me most:
“Show me your investment terms, and I’ll show you the soul of your capital.”
This article was originally published on Medium. Read it on Medium →
EB PREC Breaks Rocks: A Celebration to Preserve and Restore Esther’s Orbit Room in West Oakland
By Leeann Wallett, Ambitio US Program Officer
In early December 2025, funders, organizations, creatives, and long-time community members from West Oakland gathered at Esther’s Orbit Room, EB PREC’s pilot mixed-use project to view the space before construction begins in January 2026.
The breaking “ground” gathering invited community members to talk about the past, present, and future and included Noni Session of EB PREC, Sasha Werblin ( LISC Bay Area ), Paul Cobb (longtime resident that was born within walking distance of Esther’s and owner of the Oakland Post, a local newspaper ), Michauxnée Olier ( chef and owner of Willows and Pine , a restaurant in Fruitvale, that catered the event and whose grandparents ran the original restaurant in The Barn which is located next to Esther’s), and another longtime resident, Mechelle LaChaux, jazz and blues singer and actress, that sang a hymnal. All reflected on the history of the 7th Street corridor and the history of Esther’s and The Barn , even as the BART train interrupted them every couple of minutes (the original proposal was for an underground train, but that was scrapped in favor of an above ground train that now splits the city of Oakland).
The event ended in a ceremonial rock breaking to commemorate the beginning of a revived Esther’s space. With help from professional masons, volunteers we started removing the building’s original fabricated stones from the exterior so they can be reconstructed when the restoration is complete.
In other good news, EB PREC has secured site control over the vacant lot adjacent to The Barn with plans to purchase it by 2027. This is a huge accomplishment as they now have complete control over the end of the block and are able to truly envision a community-owned Black arts and business ecosystem along West Oakland’s 7th Street corridor. EB PREC has plans to make this a multi-purpose space with an orchard, garden, art/creative spaces, a community stage, and eventually, two more community-owned & controlled residential properties that will house dozens more East Bay residents — permanently.
Here’s a recent KQED article about the history of Esther’s Orbit Room. And EB PREC’s December newsletter .
This article was originally published on Medium. Read it on Medium →
Reimagine Possibility -Boston Ujima Project’s Assembly of Black Possibilities in Chicago
By Christopher Audain, Ambitio US Program Officer
The CCI — Ambitio US team went on a learning journey to learn about cooperative structures in the Emilia Romagna region of Italy and Basque Region of Spain from September 6–16. This intensive experience enabled us to meet with and learn about cultural and producer cooperatives, gaining firsthand knowledge of the historic cooperative systems abroad. Together with about a dozen of our movement leaders, we began to reimagine the economic systems in the U.S. Our learning journey culminated with many of us landing in Chicago for the Assembly of Black Possibilities (The Assembly) from September 18–20. Taking place every two years, The Assembly is a convening organized by Boston Ujima Project for solidarity economy practitioners and communities, bringing together working-class individuals, Black and Indigenous communities, people of color, and solidarity economy practitioners.
As the home of the first democratically governed investment fund in the U.S., Boston Ujima Project also serves as critical infrastructure and builds for the future through its translocal — interconnectedness and relationships across different local spaces or regional boundaries — approach. Recognizing the value of translocal practitioners meeting, continuing their education and professional development, and connecting with the broader field, the Boston Ujima Project established the Assembly of Black Possibilities, with its inaugural event held in Boston in 2023 . The three-day Assembly in Chicago was organized by Boston Ujima Project, Kensington Corridor Trust, and the Solidarity Economy Research, Policy & Law Project at the University of Illinois, Chicago, and was a pivotal gathering for partners across the United States invested in exploring alternative forms of ownership and economies.
By harnessing the collective wisdom, expertise, and resources of diverse stakeholders, participants can identify common patterns, leverage shared insights, and develop more robust solutions that resonate across different contexts and communities. This collaborative approach enhances the effectiveness of individual organizations and strengthens the broader movement for economic justice and social transformation.
Ambitio US Program Director Cate Fox and myself (Program Officer) attended the convening along with learning journey participants Noni Sessions ( EB PREC ), Nia Evans (Boston Ujima), Renee Hatcher (UIC Law), Stacey Sutton (UIC) and Ebony Edwards ( neighborbuilt ). I had the privilege of moderating a panel, “ReIMAGINE Scale: Learning from Cooperative Movement in Spain and Italy” featuring Evans, Sutton, and Edwards. With the panel occurring not long after we returned from abroad, there was a fresh and somewhat raw perspective that came with the immediacy.
There are several key takeaways to highlight from The Assembly, and here are a few that stood out to me. The Assembly was an incredible space for people to connect, come together, and build relationships. There was also ample opportunity to learn from one another and engage in discussions about where we go from here in this particular political moment. During our panel debrief, it became clear that some of the cultural differences in Europe and the U.S. create challenges for growing a cooperative moment that is mutalistic in the U.S. There is a different level of time, space, and care that people have for one another that is not the dominant culture in the U.S. capitalistic system that often centers individualism.
As we strive to build new systems and shift the paradigm to an economic system where our economy leads to a thriving culture for all people, especially those who have been most harmed, we must remember that no system will be perfect. Cooperatives are just a tool or an instrument for an end goal, where the structures and systems we build tangibly improve people’s lives to a significantly better level than what we have had in the past and what we have today. Lastly, our ideas are not pipe dreams. The Assembly of Black Possibilities is a clear reminder of what is possible. In desperate, challenging, and overwhelming times, the need for change is imperative, and the possibilities are infinite.
This article was originally published on Medium. Read it on Medium →
A Brief Reflection on the ReIMAGINE Scale Learning Journey
By Cate Fox, Ambitio US Program Director, and Leeann Wallett, Ambitio US Program Officer
One of the most common questions funders raise with Ambitio US and with organizations in the Movement for localized and empowering culturally rooted economic systems is how these hyper-local efforts will scale. This question implies progress! We do not have to justify why these alternatives exist in the first place; instead, the inquirer is trying to understand how this system might benefit more people. The timing for this question is finally right, as Movement leaders are exploring these same issues.
During September, a group of Economic Trailblazer grantees, academics, funders, and staff went to Emilia-Romagna, a region in Italy with a robust cooperative sector that is decentralized and decades old, and Bilbao in the Basque Country in Spain, which is a region that has a highly centralized, established cooperative economic system. During the ten-day journey, we saw firsthand that even after significant political and cultural upheaval, when people come together, they can have more control over their livelihoods. Cooperatives in both countries were not only economically successful, but they also fostered deep social connections between people and communities. We saw that in practice at Kaxilda , a cooperative project in San Sebastian, Spain, that employs 10 people. It is a bookstore, restaurant, and event space for cultural programming, and one of many examples that takes an interconnected approach to systemic issues such as work, health, social cohesion, housing, safety, and food access. And while it took decades of steady growth and persistence to establish these systems in Italy and Spain, this learning journey showed us that scale is achievable in the United States.
We intend to bring our more in-depth observations, questions, and learnings back to the United States to engage the broader mutualistic economic community in imagining what is possible and how to build it. We view this both as information gathering and another opportunity to infuse joy and strengthen the ties between people in the Movement who share the goals of paradigm change but inhabit different roles. We look forward to sharing the learnings from this Ambitio US trip by bringing the conversations (and questions) to broader alternative economic movement spaces. Sign up for the bi-monthly Ambitio US newsletter
This article was originally published on Medium. Read it on Medium →
ReIMAGINE Scale: Self-Determined Power in US
By Cate Fox, Ambitio US Program Director
One of the most common questions funders raise with Ambitio US and with organizations in the Movement for localized and empowering culturally rooted economic systems is how these hyper-local efforts will scale. This question implies progress! We do not have to justify why these alternatives exist in the first place; instead, the inquirer is trying to understand how this system might benefit more people. The timing for this question is finally right, as Movement leaders are exploring these same issues.
Movement leaders have raised questions about their own individual efforts — when is it advantageous to centralize operational structures, and when is it advantageous to decentralize operational structures? How does power manifest in each scenario? Leaders have also wondered how to ensure that their efforts are part of a larger economic paradigm change, which has led to interest in researching other models from other parts of the world. Ambitio US is ready to embrace this curiosity!
During September, a group of Economic Trailblazer grantees, academics, funders, and staff are headed to Emilia-Romagna, a region in Italy with a robust cooperative sector that is decentralized and decades old, and Bilbao in the Basque Country in Spain, which is a region that has a highly centralized, established cooperative economic system. We are interested in learning more about the enabling characteristics that have led to these two thriving regional cooperative economic systems, and to consider what would be needed to scale the Movement in the United States. We intend to bring our observations, questions, and learnings back to the United States to engage the broader mutualistic economic community in imagining what is possible and how to build it. We view this both as information gathering and another opportunity to infuse joy and strengthen the ties between people in the Movement who share the goals of paradigm change but inhabit different roles. Stay tuned for more on what we learned and what questions we are pondering!
This article was originally published on Medium. Read it on Medium →
Historic Clayborn Temple Finds Hope and Support After Devastating Fire
By Christopher Audain, Ambitio US Program Officer
During the early morning hours of Monday, April 28, a fire consumed Historic Clayborn Temple. The Memphis Fire Department called in the Department of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) to investigate the suspicious nature of the fire, and on May 21, investigators confirmed that it was intentionally set . Despite containment of the fire within an hour, devastating damage occurred that destroyed the inside of the building. Two days after the fire, on Wednesday, April 30, the east wall of the building collapsed after a storm brought in strong winds, according to the Memphis Fire Department. “Tragically, the fire destroyed the painstakingly crafted stained-glass windows that were unveiled in 2023 as a highlight of a $6 million renovation campaign organized by Historic Clayborn Temple, the nonprofit overseeing the church. Instead of traditional religious scenes, the windows featured portraits of Sanitation Striker Larry Payne; labor leader T.O. Jones of AFSCME Local 1733, which won the right to represent the sanitation workers in 1968; activist Cornelia Crenshaw; civil rights leader James Lawson; and Maxine Smith, longtime Memphis school board members of NAACP leader” (John Beifuss, The Commercial Appeal ).
On a call with funders on Friday, May 2, Anasa Troutman — the Founder and CEO of the BIG We, which manages Historic Clayborn Temple — shared that the Temple fire was actually the third fire she had experienced in as many weeks . Three weeks before the Temple fire, in the early hours of the morning, a fire (now deemed suspicious by authorities) destroyed her home. A parcel of land in Eastern Tennessee that she owns also caught fire during that time period. Anasa hired security for herself and for other properties she owns in Memphis (including the birthplace of Aretha Franklin).
Anasa continues to demonstrate resilient leadership through the tragedy, organizing her team, the community, funders, and supporters of the historic site from across the country. They have already launched a campaign, “Reimagining Historic Clayborn Temple,” to fill the immediate needs of the physical building, as well as costs related to safety and security, legal counsel, messaging and communications, and health and wellness for the team (just to name a few). Ambitio US has reached out to our networks of funder colleagues and to our allied network at Solidaire to see what additional resources can be brought to bear for this important catalytic organization. While the exact circumstances surrounding the fire are still uncertain, the act of burning a church is certainly a very public symbol of the ongoing Civil Rights struggle, both past and present. It has historical resonance and will be a harbinger for whether our collective movement has the resilience, capacity, and courage to support building new economies that work for cultural communities under threat, which will, in turn, benefit us all.
At the end of May, Anasa and the team at The BIG We hosted a convening in Memphis that brought together philanthropic leaders, local stakeholders, national preservation experts, and movement builders. The late afternoon community event was emotional and inspirational, with strong local leadership present, including from the fire and police departments, elected officials, funders, and a strong media presence. The overall mood was hopeful and optimistic for rebuilding. The goal of the convening was to have a day of visioning collective action to “commemorate the past, and begin to chart a path forward — one that ensures the historic institution rises again with the resources, infrastructure, and imagination needed to serve the Memphis community for decades to come,” explained Anasa in an email invitation. I attended the convening with Ambitio US Program Director Cate Fox, as we saw an opportunity to reflect, make meaning, and strategize about what is needed for Historic Clayborn Temple and potentially for other allied projects all over the United States.
Efforts to reopen Historic Clayborn Temple will be supported by a $1.5 million grant in a joint effort from the Ford Foundation, Mellon Foundation, and the National Trust for Historic Preservation (NTHP) . Brent Leggs, Executive Director of the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund at NTHP, broke the news of the grant and underscored the national organization’s support for healing and rebuilding efforts. NTHP deemed Historic Clayborn Temple a National Treasure in 2018. Last week, on July 17, Congress approved $3.15 million for the restoration of Historic Clayborn Temple through the Transportation and Housing, and Urban Development (THUD) subcommittee. We hope these support funds catalyze efforts for additional funding to accelerate the reopening. CCI, Ambitio US contributed to the early support efforts as well with a $150,000 general operating grant.
The rapid response is not a coincidence or simply people responding quickly to a tragedy. It is the result of the momentum Anasa and her team are building. The Temple, an important Civil Rights site, was in the process of being restored to both tell the history of the Sanitation Worker Strike of 1968 and to serve as a neighborhood anchor with programming that covers the arts, workforce development, solidarity economics, and everything in between. It was a gathering place where community members would periodically come together to talk about the future of Memphis. Anasa understands that Historic Clayborn Temple will only be successful if it is surrounded by locally-owned businesses, and neighbors are not displaced as more economic development moves into the area.
The Temple supported — and will continue to support — the neighborhood by providing jobs to local Memphians through its construction and restoration work. The BIG We runs a Cooperative Business Development program with the Southeast Center for Cooperative Development, which provides training to entrepreneurs from the neighborhood who are interested in starting cooperative structures. (All of the members of the cohort are eligible for a loan from SEED Commons , a cooperatively-governed national CDFI, former Ambitio US grantee, and nonprofit financial organization based in New York, if their business plans are viable.) The legacy of the Historic Clayborn Temple is people coming together to create a better world, but it is also about the present and the vision for the future.
Echoing the enormity of the event, Civil rights leader Martin Luther King III attended the May press conference and provided moving remarks. One line really struck me as we think about this moment and how we move forward when faced with great odds, devastation, and new threats to communities: “It only takes a few good human beings to bring about change.” I know we’ve got more than a few good folks, and the greatest power we have is in each other.
This article was originally published on Medium. Read it on Medium →
Permissionless = Permission-more Crypto Institutionalization?
By Cate Fox, Ambitio US Program Director, and Leeann Wallett, Ambitio US Program Officer
On Monday, June 23, 2025, Center for Cultural Innovation (CCI) staff arrived in New York to attend Blockworks’ Permissionless IV conference. For Leeann Wallett and Chris Audain, Ambitio US Program Officers; Jessica Mele, Research to Impact Lab Director; and Stephanie Imah, Grants Program Director, this was their first Web3/Blockchain/Crypto conference. For me (Cate Fox, Ambitio US Program Director), it was the second (and hopefully last) such conference this year. Many of the overall takeaways that I outlined from the mid-March Digital Assets Summit (found here ) hold true, and what you will read below are some additional observations from me and Leeann Wallett.
The first Permissionless was also the first crypto conference I attended when I joined CCI. It was in June 2022 in West Palm Beach, Florida. Everyone was feeling very optimistic about DeFi (decentralized finance) and crypto. Presenters were keen to tell us how DeFi would replace TradFi (traditional finance), and the world was going to be a better place based on all the innovation that was happening. The gathering had a relaxed country-club vibe with a dance club lighting scheme and soundtrack (even at 9 a.m.). Venture capital funds were flowing into blockchain companies, and the merch game was fierce. Defi Summer was in full swing. It was a strange but telling introduction to this emerging field.
The fact that the location for Permissionless has migrated from a very politically conservative environment to New York — the financial capital of the United States, which, while this conference was taking place, selected in the Democratic primary for New York City mayor, State Assemblymember and progressive, Zohran Mamdani — is an interesting signal indicating how this industry has changed in a relatively short time period. Gone were most of the pronouncements from the main stage about how DeFi will replace TradFi or CeFi (centralized finance); instead, the emphasis was on how these systems work together to enhance finance. Conversations about crypto and blockchain that were once seen as fringe are now more mainstream, even if the adoption (or the understanding) of these systems and structures is still not widespread.
There is tension between those who believe crypto and blockchain should be completely or largely new systems that would replace traditional financial systems, and those individuals who see advantages in the integration of these new technologies by traditional financial institutions. The fact that the conference is in New York suggests that the crowd that favors integration and strong relationships with TradFi has influence. Still, both viewpoints (and everything in between) were on display at the conference, which the conference planning team deserves credit for making happen. However, the fact that no women were on the main stage was a real miss.
This was my (Leeann Wallett’s, Program Officer, Ambitio US ) first time at Permissionless and my first time at a crypto conference. I had a preconceived notion about what to expect: a conference full of “tech bros” with khakis and shoes with no socks. And while that proved true, what scared me more than the lackadaisical dress code was how little the average person knows about what is happening in the crypto industry without them. What also struck me was the stark contrasts in where we were staying (Sunset Park, a working-class neighborhood near the 36th Street MTA stop in Brooklyn), where the conference was (Industry City, a metaphorical island on the New York Bay), and what content was emphasized and highlighted in the main stage discussions.
When we first arrived at Industry City, a former warehouse, now a mixed-use development with offices, restaurants, bars, and stores, that overlooks the New York Bay waterfront, my goal was to learn as much as I could about decentralized finance and how it plans to move in the current political and financial landscape. I intentionally picked sessions that spoke to the future for average consumers and users to keep myself apprised of the things that would have important ramifications to our worldbuilders that include artists, creatives, and culture builders.
While crypto moves in cyclical and, at times, unpredictable ways like the rest of the global financial system, if you zoom out to the past few years, the crypto and Web3 industry, you can see a slow and steady growth curve to the right. As Erik Voorhees, a cryptocurrency entrepreneur and founder of the exchange, ShapeShift, said, “the tent is getting bigger,” and the rising ratio of crypto traded on decentralized versus centralized exchanges is a key performance indicator that demonstrates the significant growth over the past few years (see chart below).
Even with this consistent growth, many of the main stage conversations mentioned the “persecution and pain” felt by the builders and developers over the past few years. And while we cannot deny that the crypto community has faced ongoing challenges in its ascent and dissent against TradFi, our worldbuilders have faced real-world, physical violence and persecution through their work in communities (see our Historic Clayborn Temple write-up below).
In addition, one of the more interesting main stage discussions featured exchange-traded funds (ETFs) pundit, James Seyffart, research analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence, who brought ominous predictions about the future of crypto ETFs (a type of investment that trades on exchanges, much like individual stocks). This “basket” of securities or commodities allows investors to buy into a diversified portfolio in a single transaction. The importance of this is that ETFs are an easy way to embed a small percentage of crypto (mainly Bitcoin) into an easy-to-understand consumer product. People are “willing to pay for the convenience,” said Seyffart. This would be the first entry point for many individuals to see crypto as an investment in their portfolio.
Seyffart also mentioned a key date (July 2, 2025) where the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had to decide on crypto ETFs or “specifically, the securities regulator is set to rule on Grayscale Investments’ proposal to convert its Digital Large Cap Fund (GDLC) to an ETF…GDLC has about $730 million of assets under management. While more than 90% of the fund’s assets are allocated to Bitcoin and Ethereum, it also holds XRP, Solana (SOL), and Cardano (ADA).”
In a surprising move, the SEC decided to suspend the conversion of the GDLC into an ETF after initially fast-tracking the application a day before, on July 1; a move that has sent shockwaves through the crypto community and industry and prompted Grayscale to initiate legal action against the SEC. In another twist (two weeks later), Grayscale announced by press release on July 14, 2025, that it would confidentially submit a draft registration statement to the SEC. The number of shares to be registered and the price range have not yet been determined.
The legal and regulatory battle between Grayscale and the SEC emphasizes the ongoing challenges faced by the crypto industry. As the legal and regulatory challenges unfold, it will be a significant outcome and signal that will shape the future of cryptocurrency and the digital asset market. While this is an extreme example of a regulatory battle, on a massive scale (millions of dollars) and on a public forum, it is quite similar to what some of our investees have faced while trying to align their direct public offerings to meet the SEC regulations and policies. However, the main difference is that much of the conversation goes unmentioned in mainstream news and under the radar for fear of retaliation.
This article was originally published on Medium. Read it on Medium →
Community Ownership and Crypto (DAOs, Web3, DeFi) in 30 Days
Decentralized Ownership from Coast to Coast
By Cate Fox, Ambitio US Program Director
In late February 2025, Angie Kim, Center for Cultural Innovation President & CEO, and I (the Ambitio US Program Director) attended an intimate convening of funders focused on shared ownership in Berkeley, California, held by the Center for Community Investment . This gathering was the culmination of a year-long landscape scan that included a thorough literature review, interviews with individuals involved in various facets of shared and community ownership work, and site visits.
The two-day gathering brought together funders committed to community ownership and control of real estate as a tool for preventing displacement, preserving affordability, and building community wealth. Over two days, those of us attending analyzed the community ownership landscape, discussed our experiences in funding community-ownership efforts, explored external forces shaping the field, and discussed philanthropy’s role in advancing this work. When we discussed the work that is supported through Ambitio US , we shared what grantees have told us about the value of culturally-rooted community ownership efforts, which extend beyond financial well-being towards creating a broader sense of belonging and agency. It was wonderful to spend some time with colleagues from across the country who believe in the power of community ownership and governance of shared assets.
Just a couple of weeks later in mid-March, Angie and I journeyed to New York City for Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit , billed as “Crypto’s premiere institutional conference.” If that sounds to you like a whiplash experience, that is what it felt like for us.
For years, we have been showing up and educating ourselves on Web3, decentralized finance (defi as it is more commonly known in these circles), decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs), and, yes, crypto, because artists (and particularly artists of color, especially Black artists) have migrated over to explore marketplaces without gatekeeping structures. Traditionally, structures like museums, record labels, galleries, and theaters have served as funnels, providing some artists with broad access to build their own artistic brands, sell work, and grow audiences while shutting out others. The still largely unrealized promise of decentralized finance is that artists are unencumbered by the middle structures and they can share their art directly with audiences, grow and engage those audiences in new ways, all the while generating and receiving a greater percentage of their revenues. That is the dream, anyway. You can read more about why we are skeptical about this approach in a Next City article, “If Web3 is the Future, Who Will Get to Build it? ”
This is another emerging economic system, so each year we attend at least one conference to learn about new developments, challenges, the policy environment, who is building what kinds of technology things, gauge what the field finds exciting, and to see if the mainstage, which tends to be a perch for the privileged class, has more and different kinds of perspectives to offer. We were particularly interested in this meeting as it was the first Web3 convening we would be attending post-President Trump’s inauguration. To say that the conference center was buzzing would be an understatement. Here were our topline takeaways:
With the new federal administration, the United States government went from crypto skeptic (often a person who doubts or denies the value, viability, or usefulness of crypto and related industries) to crypto booster (a person who enthusiastically endorses crypto and related industries) overnight.
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) and traditional financial institutions (TradFi) are converging, which means that if you have money in a managed retirement account, you are probably holding some Web3 and/or Web3 company shares, or if you are banked at a large, national financial institution, they are likely invested in the Web3 marketplace in some way.
Widespread adoption of crypto and blockchain still has not happened, in part because they have yet to solve a real-world problem in a visible way.
The fact that traditional finance has invested so deeply into crypto and the blockchain means that elements of it will likely infiltrate our lives (and are probably already infiltrating our lives as I type this). Artificial Intelligence and blockchain technology are already transforming our financial system and replicating many of the same problems present in our current systems (with an even worse effect on the environment). DeFi has some really interesting (and potentially more cooperative) ideas embedded in it, but right now the industry is focused on power and profit-building. Our team is scheduled to head to another Web3 conference in June, so we will have more to share then!
This article was originally published on Medium. Read it on Medium →
Evil Genius Strategy Session Recap (EGSS): Funders and Movement Leaders Convene
By Christopher Audain, Program Officer, Ambitio US
The Center for Cultural Innovation (CCI), Ambitio US, and the National Performance Network (NPN) hosted the Evil Genius Strategy Sessions (EGSS), an experimental convening from October 6–8, 2024, in Chicago. These sessions brought together Economic Trailblazers, movement leaders, and funders from around the country to unpack what it means to create a more just cultural economy, discuss pressing issues, become more informed about each other’s work, and determine if there were actions that we might want to take together. The idea for this joint conversation came from discussions between the NPN and the CCI teams about going beyond surface-level discussions about creating a more just and equitable world through the pursuit of systems-change work.
CCI/Ambitio US and NPN covered costs related to movement leaders’ travel and provided them with a stipend for this special gathering so that these leaders would not experience a financial burden as a result of attending EGSS. We know that experts in the field value unstructured time to build and, in some cases, reaffirm relationships with each other.
“Being in space with people I’ve only seen on Zoom, hearing about all the movement work happening and seeing the connections, hearing people’s experiences and the validation in similarities of struggle with philanthropy. [were all things I valued about attending this convening.]” Survey Comment
EGSS held two three-hour working sessions over two days. During our time together, we explored the roles and experiences of people in the room and how those roles intersect. The first day focused on creating a sense of who was in the room, understanding how each person interacts with the economic system in their professional life, and how we might reimagine capital and resource distribution. The second and final day included more group discussion and digging deeper into the challenges and possible solutions for breaking through systemic barriers.
Key Takeaways
1) Philanthropy Must Accelerate Its Ability to Change Procedures to Meet the Moment
“The reality is that philanthropy is concerned with philanthropy. While the individual people are lovely, they do not move with urgency. And the position that they take is often meant to keep their overall positions of power.”
Movement leaders and funders alike voiced frustration about the limits of philanthropy to go beyond its standard practices and meet the urgency of the moment. Foundations are often stuck in the loop of historical procedures and unwilling to change for various reasons (including concerns about being taxed at a higher threshold or spending down an endowment). It is important, particularly in moments like these, to remember that many rules and guiding practices for philanthropic institutions are self-created and self-imposed. They should be interrogated periodically to ensure that they remain relevant and aligned with the organization’s mission.
Movement leaders observe that philanthropic institutions are often risk-averse. Still, a funder in the group pointed out that it is frequently the case that the ideas themselves are not illegal but could pose a potentially higher risk to the foundation. The risk might be nominal, but the present modus operandi is to proceed with the safer option and mitigate reputational and financial risk. This moment demands that philanthropy push against the time-honored traditions that are holding up the biggest potential wins and progressive transformation.
Many movement leaders expressed challenges with the hierarchical structure of philanthropy and seeking funding. Often field leaders make a request, which sometimes has to be presented to several additional staff members and/or program areas, and then they hear, “I have to take it [your request] to the board,” which in best cases results in additional back and forth, and in worst cases, they do not hear from the funder again. Movement leaders would like to see the process restructured so they do not waste their time and energy if it is not a good fit and clear decisions are made more quickly.
2) Deconstruct, Rethink, and be Transparent About the Role of Program Officers
“There’s a dysfunctioning gap created between program officers and the projects/initiatives they seek to support generated from the way philanthropic funds and foundations hold info, power, and strategy too close to the vest.”
Movement leaders reported that the lack of transparency related to decision-making and foundational hierarchy complicated their relationships with program officers and was needlessly confusing. Program officers have a certain amount of power, and while this power varies greatly from foundation to foundation, the actual decision-making power is often at the level of the president or the board and, in some cases, held entirely by the benefactor or relatives of the foundation’s namesake. During our session, there was palpable confusion from movement leaders about what program officers are charged to do, how much agency they have, and what it means for them to be the frontline representative of foundations.
Some foundations have redefined the role and changed the position title so it is more aligned with the work.
In a blog from the Center for Effective Philanthropy , Sarah Moody from the Missouri Foundation for Health describes the challenges that come with reimagining the role of Program Officer, especially in terms of the difficulty foundations can have with making cultural shifts and decentralizing power and decision making. It is an interesting example where this foundation did retire the title. Moody’s title changed from Program Officer to Director of Community Relationships. “A thoughtful process of reflection led us to shift away from the traditional title of program officer and lean into titles such as strategist that more appropriately align with our work. We shifted the job descriptions to give our staff more flexibility to engage with community and listen in whatever way is needed to help develop strategies” says Moody.
3) Dismantle Power Dynamics to Build A True Coalition of Change
During the gathering, a movement leader shared that no one they have worked with in the philanthropic sector has ever asked about their dreams or the fullest extent of their vision .
Whether they are aware of it or not, funders typically enter relationships trying to fit what they learn into a frame that works for them. The world builders and movement leaders have demonstrated a phenomenal capacity to create new systems and structures that seemed impossible to achieve when they started. What would it look like if philanthropy was willing to understand their dreams from the start and invest in them fully, without predetermined notions and bureaucratic encumbrances?
Another theme that surfaced was that some philanthropic institutions are funding organizations to fulfill the goals of the foundation’s mission, not necessarily the goals articulated by the community or grantees they hope to support. The fact that many grantmakers are removed from the stakeholders they wish to serve is an inherent problem with the philanthropic structure, amplifying the unbalanced power dynamic between the funder and the grantee, especially when foundations are distributing funds from a distance and not working mindfully as collaborative partners. Movement leaders described a constant hustle for basic survival, leading to burnout, fatigue, and an unsustainable work culture.
Funders deeply appreciate the relationships they develop with grantees. Still, they wondered how many meaningful relationships they could manage at one time. How many grantees are too many for one program officer? In what way does the application process actually hinder the work of the grantees rather than supporting their work that provides needed services and opportunities for our communities at large?
Overall, the goal of the convening was to begin shaping — individually and collectively — a non-extractive cultural economy that recalibrates the relationship between philanthropy and the world-builders it funds. Developing an enduring agenda held by the movement leaders and funders and creating a set of shared values is part of the work and remains a goal coming out of the EGSS. What we learned, however, is that it is vital for people — funders and movement leaders — to know each other deeply before moving earnestly into strategy work. The connections made were the best parts for most attendees, “Connecting with people I hadn’t met. Learning about ideas and solutions and incredible work happening [was my favorite part], ” a participant said.
Building Relational Infrastructure
EGSS presented an opportunity for Ambitio US to invest in the relational infrastructure — the bonds between people in the cultural economic movement — that drives the organizations and endeavors we support. Ambitio US views investments in relational infrastructure as some of our most valuable work. Relationships remain long after someone has left a particular job or geography. The way to chart a new path forward is to create the time, space, and place for people doing aligned work to come together, get to know one another, and build a community of practice and support.
Further, it is rare to have a space where funders and movement builders convene and speak candidly about the challenges in philanthropy and consider how to solve them together. One attendee spoke to the power of the convening.]
“I truly appreciate the space and time together to connect, learn, and challenge how money moves, how to impact funding, to commiserate, and create with this group of people. It is not lost on me that ten years ago, I don’t think many spaces like this existed, and I certainly wasn’t getting invited into them. The more that we can demystify how funding works and build relationships the more we are able to organize and impact the funding systems. Also, there are some great things happening with funding, and we need to be able to learn about that, uplift, and invite more folks to get into it.”
Ambitio US and NPN are taking all the guidance under advisement.
If you are interested in learning more about the session or have questions, contact me at christopher@cciarts.org .
This article was originally published on Medium. Read it on Medium →
We Are (neighbor)Built for This
By Leeann Wallett, Program Officer, Ambitio US
As we embark on the seventh year of Ambitio US , there is increased urgency to find and support experimental systems change work. In the midst of great uncertainty, we must continue this necessary, generational work of economic systems change that center people and the planet. This is the exact moment Dan and Ebony Edwards of neighborbuilt were not only made for, but motivated by. “The communities we represent have been fortunate in that there’s always been chaos around us. [Even so], we find out how to get by. We were built for this. We know how to navigate this.” The Edwards envision a bright future for their three young children — to ensure they grow up in a Kansas City full of potential not limited by neighborhood, where all residents can thrive.
neighborbuilt recognizes the commonality of the problem with neighborhoods across the US, and is working towards a solution that could benefit urban areas everywhere. “Many of the urban core communities look the same: there’s a business improvement district and a highway that segregates the city into two halves. The eastside is typically the more distressed area because it is downwind from the environmental toxins that blow from the westside. Many of these eastside communities are also designated Opportunity Zones,” says Dan.
“The Magnitude of Solutions Don’t Match the Magnitude of the Crisis”
neighborbuilt began its work and focus in the South Vine District, a historically Black community and hometown to co-founders, Dan and Ebony located on the east side of Kansas City, Missouri. neighborbuilt’s mission is to equip neighbors with the agency to rebuild, own, and operate their economies using its economy creation platform, which transforms low-production “distressed communities” into high-production, thriving economies. Throughout the years, the Edwards have experienced the challenges of trying to secure, repair, and (re)build housing, especially in historically Black neighborhoods.
In 2024, Ambitio US provided legal support to ensure neighborbuilt has durable legal structures that empower the community to own and govern their assets, and to position it for philanthropic, for-profit, and government investors. This partnership allowed Dan and Ebony the opportunity to launch a revolutionary project called OneMillion.Homes . “The housing crisis is the same in every city. The real issue is every traditional economic development model favors single-site, one-off projects,” says Dan. “The magnitude of solutions aren’t matching the magnitude of the crisis.”
Earlier this year, Dan flew to Las Vegas to announce a fund to build 500 homes in five cities — Kansas City, St. Louis, Atlanta, Oklahoma City, and Chattanooga. The mayors of these five cities are part of the National Housing Crisis Task Force which will propose innovative federal, state, and local policies and practices around how to build and deliver “faster, cost-efficient housing solutions.” In other words, these cities are eager and willing to work with entities to come up with innovative solutions to the housing crisis like neighborbuilt’s plan to raise at least $50 million through a revolving construction fund in order to build at least 5,000 homes in the next 10 years.
Funding the future “Neighbor-conomy”
There is also a community ownership aspect to this work and the role it plays in building long-term, generational wealth, self-determination, and racial equity in historically neglected and distressed neighborhoods. In order to create a sustainable economy and create shared wealth, the Edwards, as the developer of record, will offer a Neighbor Stock Ownership Program (N.S.O.P.) in which neighbors, residents and businesses, owners and renters alike, are shareholders/stockholders, not in just their property, but the entire neighborhood redevelopment. Described as the “neighbor-conomy,” the new investment asset class includes all the elements needed to sustain an entire neighborhood: housing, commercial and businesses, amenities, public spaces, human capital, community wellness, and economic resiliency.
“By investing in this new asset class, individuals can generate wealth beyond the returns of a one-off home or single investment property and experience the wealth generated by the value creation of the entire stabilized neighborhood,” says Dan. An additional component of the neighbor stock ownership program is it enables neighbors to earn shares based on their many contributions outside of a direct purchase that are essential to an economy’s success.
All of this hard-earned knowledge got the Edwards thinking about how to pay it forward. They are working on a new education program called “How to Rebuild a Neighborhood.” “We want to create something that doesn’t exist yet; a dictionary or playbook that communicates and guides those who want to [re]build their neighborhood or help others get the opportunity of stability,” says Dan. The Edwards want to share their hard-earned knowledge and experience to imagine ‘This Old House’ 2.0 “…but for rebuilding and creating diverse neighborhoods for generations to come.”
For more information about neighborbuilt and its programs, please visit: OneMillion.Homes
This article was originally published on Medium. Read it on Medium →