Publications & Research

This case study highlights Wyoming Housing Network's innovative partnership with Native organizations to create a culturally responsive approach to homeownership and wealth-building for Native Americans. Learn how WHN is leveraging its long-standing expertise to empower Native families on the Wind River Reservation.

Place significantly impacts various aspects of our lives, prompting communities to seek equitable and sustainable solutions. NeighborWorks America® addresses this through a place-based approach called comprehensive community development (CCD), aiming to build community strength and resilience. By investing $1.7M in CCD strategies, they empower nearly 250 local organizations to foster stronger, more equitable communities. These organizations, rooted in communities nationwide, create a platform for community engagement and empowerment, driving change through a deep understanding of place. The following case studies will showcase innovative, resident-centered approaches that exemplify the positive impact of a CCD lens in fostering equitable communities across the country.

This toolkit was developed by NeighborWorks® America (NeighborWorks) in partnership with the Center for Community Investment (CCI). The toolkit was informed by the meaningful work and progress of NeighborWorks network organizations participating in the Health Partner Investment Learning Lab and the Health Partner Investment Action Lab. The Learning Lab and the Action Lab occurred over ten months and were jointly implemented by NeighborWorks and CCI. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, The Kresge Foundation, JPMorgan Chase & Co., and The California Endowment support the Center for Community Investment.

"Centering Resident Voices to Co-Create an Equitable, Thriving Future" re-imagines what is possible across healthcare, housing and community development. It shifts who is driving change and opens opportunities to center resident voices. Positioning residents as the drivers of community change is an essential and transformative foundation to advancing health equity.

How Community-Based Organizations Serve as Backbones or Partners to Increase Local Coordination, Expand System Capacity, And Improve Local Health Outcomes

Nonprofit housing organizations are using accessory dwelling units (ADUs) to meet the demand for affordable housing in the United States. ADUs increase opportunities for multifamily housing and are reported to stimulate affordable rental rates, though restrictive zoning laws have impeded their widespread development in some municipalities. This paper considers how nonprofit organizations within and outside of the NeighborWorks America network are working to create the financial and cultural infrastructure to support ADUs in both suburban and urban neighborhoods. It also explores challenges that community development corporations (CDCs) have experienced in developing ADU programs. In doing so, the paper analyzes how nonprofit organizations are using ADUs to provide affordable housing, as well as how ADUs are being adapted to serve different populations and needs.

To recognize the land is an expression of gratitude and appreciation to those whose territory you reside on. It’s also a way of honoring the Indigenous people who have been living and working on the land from time immemorial.

Arielle Rawlings’s research draws from the experience of post-pandemic neighborhood change to provide housing and community development practitioners with a framework to illuminate the specific needs of middle neighborhoods, understand the community development programs that can serve these needs, and leverage the lessons learned from the robust work being done by NeighborWorks organizations.

On Aug. 24, 2023, NeighborWorks America convened a group of NeighborWorks network leaders who received Native Partnership grants to expand their work with Native organizations in their communities. During this gathering, more than two dozen leaders spent the day learning from each other, building relationships and sharing strategies.

Taylor Jones took a deep look at the ways in which local histories of redlining and other forms of institutional discrimination influence the mission and strategy of community development organizations, as well as the ways in which their work is viewed by funders.