NEW PROJECT:  More family projects to appear soon.
Small, neighborhood businesses play a critical role in our economy, as the primary employers of some of our most vulnerable low-income workers. These businesses, often family-run, are heavily representative of people of color, women, immigrants, and refugees. They tend to be the hardest for the federal government to reach with relief packages.  To reopen and rehire, they need financial backing and grants to get back on their feet and to meet new Covid requirements.

Businesses featured on the Mutuality Platform are seeking the backing of their supporters, and others in the community to meet their recovery and growth goals. You can invest in these businesses and then follow their efforts by reading their monthly progress reports. Whether you can give $10 or $1000, 100% of your contribution is tax-deductible and will go directly to the business.   

The Community Independence Initiative (CII) Oakland Business Recovery Pilot builds off of the experience and success of The Family Independence Initiative (FII), founded by Mauricio Miller in 2001-2016. Mauricio Miller is a Macarthur Genius award recipient, Ashoka Fellow and author of The Alternative. Together, CII and Root Change are working to catalyze a movement called Peer Driven Change that promotes and reinforces community and mutuality by investing in the talents, strengths, and ingenuity of people living in low-income communities.

In January 2021, CII (housed within Root Change), partnered with The Unity Council  to work directly with small businesses operating in the Fruitvale District of Oakland. This pilot initiative will test if small investments provided by CII and crowdfunded by community supporters through the Mutuality Platform can help to rebuild a sense of community and recovery, and grow the economy from the ground up. Businesses will receive two small from CII investments over a six month period and commit to pay forward the investments by helping other struggling businesses in their community. The Mutuality Platform captures those efforts and connects the businesses to other local and outside supporters.