Kindred Futures

Our impact since 2018: $83,275,499 leveraged & influenced for the Atlanta community economic development and small business ecosystem.$2,783,740 in strategic partnerships, grants, loans & technical assistancelead.build.investblack Wealth unlocked: in 2023, Atlanta Wealth Building Initiative launched the groundbreaking black Wealth unlocked podcast which delves deep into conversations with thought leaders, entrepreneurs, financial experts, and community activists who are making waves in the black Wealth movement. Episodes explore topics like entrepreneurship, generational Wealth, economic organizing, real estate, and much more.beloved economies report: in november 2023, Atlanta Wealth Building Initiative released its landmark report, "Building a beloved economy: a baseline and framework for Building black Wealth in Atlanta." The report proposes a new framework for understanding and confronting the massive racial Wealth divide and its impact on black atlantans. It also provides an overview of the state of black Wealth, poverty, income, debt, access to capital, housing, business ownership, and jobs in atlanta.black community Wealth: Atlanta Wealth Building launched the black community Wealth network, a national network positioned to build a broad network of practitioners and supporters committed to the task of Building black community Wealth. The purpose of the broader black community Wealth network is three-fold: to serve as a think tank on issues concerning black community Wealth Building; to co-design strategies, bolster capacity, prototype new ideas, and conduct research in service to black wealth-building; and to collectively contribute to redefining and expanding the notion of black community Wealth. Since its launch in november 2023, the black community Wealth network has engaged with a diverse group of 65 unique organizations from various disciplines.strategic partnerships: to advance our strategic priorities, awbi effectively and transparently has evolved from a small grantmaking strategy to a more thoughtful and strategic alignment with programmatic, investment/grantmaking partners.1. Procure forward: awbi and ibex it have joined forces to bolster the procurement and contracting capacity of community economic development institutions and business-serving organizations in the region. Ibex developed a train-the-trainer model that will equip the end-user with specialized knowledge and skills to effectively train others in the procurement practices, which will ultimately disseminate best practices, ensure compliance, and improve efficiency across the procurement process in the public and private sectors. Those partners include afcea, now account, the city of college park, the city of Atlanta, and aerotropolis. Key result: this effort has resulted in the development of a curriculum designed as a tool and train the trainer model for business-serving organizations. Given this approach, awbi bolsters the excellent delivery of critical and tactical technical services provided by partners who work directly with businesses. 2. In partnership with village micro fund for their fall 2023 cohort of the flourish fellowship, awbi supported a cohort of entrepreneurs who successfully completed an intensive 14-week retail business development program. At the graduation of the event, the top businesses received $75,000 (three $25,000 awards) in grant capital. These awards will help businesses move to the next level of scale and production. We are happy to report the following accomplishments that reflect the growth and opportunities provided by the flourish fellowship: - 20 businesses accepted into the retail cohort - 33% received procurement opportunities - 100% improved their operational efficiency - 67% increase in revenue - 50% hired at least 1 employee - $208,000 avg revenue for 2023 3. Through a strategic partnership, the Georgia micro enterprise network (gmen) and the Atlanta Wealth Building Initiative (awbi) participated in the flex fund loan program (flex fund) established by local initiatives support corporation (lisc) to deploy small business loans under the flex fund loan program to provide underserved small businesses access to capital. The goal was to strengthen and expand their development in Georgia through lending, technical assistance, and joint outreach activities while supporting the expansion of small businesses. Awbi, with support from gmen have been able to deploy 10 small business loans.in 2024, awbi will begin implementing strategic partnerships with organizations and leaders across the south that are dedicated to Building the Wealth of black people. While we strive to improve outcomes for black people, it is important we pay attention to where they live. With roughly 55 percent of black people living in the south, and the pronounced racialized economic outcomes that stubbornly persist in the region, it is important to apply a targeted universal approach to facilitate thriving and inclusive economies. If we aspire to stimulate thriving communities, we must invest in the south.