TREND Community Development Corporation takes an innovative approach to commercial development by creating green opportunities that address climate change and improve the environmental and economic health of communities of color.

OAI, Inc. has supported the South Suburban Cook County workforce for 40+ years, but the organization keeps looking to the future through commercial opportunities that support environmental health and job safety.

The Southland has seen decades of disinvestment and job loss, but SDA’s financial investment tool seeks to bring transformative and inclusive economic growth in the region.

PCS is strengthening the economic mobility of South Suburban Cook County by empowering individuals with job readiness while forging partnerships with employers.

The Harvey Brooks Foundation has a holistic approach to economic mobility with programs that address food insecurity, education, job readiness, and more.

NICI awards its third grant to Think Big! to expand resources that support the economic vitality of minority and women-owned businesses in the region.

Stipends for YWCA Northwestern Illinois’ IT sector workforce training program will provide the extra resources needed to support childcare, transportation, internet, and more.

Why did a nonprofit founded to promote HIV prevention and testing in low-income communities do a hard pivot to become an employment solutions provider?

A Rockford woman wanted to open a soul food restaurant. She signed a lease for a 1,500-square-foot space and hired seven employees but didn’t purchase a POS system.

There’s a popular proverb that says, “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.”

It’s a fact that women, Blacks and Hispanics are the least likely to major in science and engineering in college. Even when they do, they aren’t as likely to remain on a STEM career path through graduation.

Think Big!, founded in 2018, helps disadvantaged entrepreneurs overcome barriers to establishing and growing their own businesses.

Melvin Leach, a case worker for the Harvey Brooks Foundation of Joliet, is aware of the lack of grocery stores in the city’s predominately African American neighborhoods. But living in a food desert hits harder some days than others, he said.

A common focus shared by officials and local leaders throughout Illinois is cultivating its communities and infrastructure.