Building Stronger Communities Through Civic Engagement and Leadership Development
Developing civic leaders in the immigrant and refugee communities
Immigrants enrich the fabric of our city and our communities. While nearly 20 percent of Chicago’s population is made up of immigrants and refugees, this number is not reflected in leadership roles throughout the city. When immigrants and refugees are at the civic table, it helps them establish a sense of belonging and connection to their communities, ensures that people are represented by leaders who understand their background and needs, and contributes to a stronger and more equitable society and democracy as a whole.
However, current leadership and civic engagement programs in Chicago that focus on immigrants and refugees are limited and under-resourced. Additionally, leadership programs that advance social cohesion and racial equity are not always sensitive to the plight of the immigrant and refugee experience.
To encourage immigrant participation in civic activities, the Walder Foundation created Building Stronger Communities Through Civic Engagement and Leadership Development, a funding opportunity to create, expand and strengthen programs that provide immigrants and refugees with resources and tools to become civic leaders in the Chicago region. Organizations focused on eliminating administrative barriers and improving policies to welcome immigrants into public life and civic participation were also invited to apply.
The result is an investment of over $1.5 million to immigrant-serving organizations in Chicago to build a culture of participation and collaboration that leads to public life participation through:
Community Building
Programs that activate and increase community and civic engagement among immigrants and refugees at the community level through neighborhood initiatives.
Networks and Collaboratives
Initiatives that focus on network cultivation and building a common agenda among multiple partners to increase the active roles of immigrants and refugees in public life and civic engagement.
Inclusive Leadership
Established leadership programs that will create specific pathways to engage immigrants and refugees, or newly created programs that will focus on leadership development for immigrants and refugees.
The following organizations are being funded through this funding opportunity:
Alliance of Filipinos for Immigrant Rights and Empowerment*
Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights
Logan Square Neighborhood Association
Southwest Organizing Project (SWOP)
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