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CIRE Community of Practices We unite sectors to foster collective learning and action in community investment. This platform equips members to collaboratively develop shared resources, innovative tools, and effective approaches for multisector partnerships that advance health through community-driven solutions.

Community Innovations for Racial Equity

In 2022, BHPN launched Community Innovations for Racial Equity (CIRE), with funding from The Kresge Foundation and the W. K. Kellogg Foundation. CIRE aims to explicitly integrate community-driven strategies and engage mission-driven investors as powerful partners for community infrastructure investments.

Community Innovations for Racial Equity (CIRE) supports BIPOC-led and allied Community Development Corporations in small to mid-sized cities. CIRE fosters collaboration, facilitates knowledge sharing, and expands access to vital resources and tools. It builds capacity for community ownership models and strategic partnerships with mission-driven investors, including healthcare systems, health payors, and Community Development Financial Institutions.

The initiative provides a robust program of virtual monthly learning sessions, targeted coaching, and an action lab for testing and developing new tools, all designed to foster innovation and collaboration among community of practice members.

CIRE-informed Resources

CIRE Community of Practice

We are proud to introduce the second CIRE community of practice cohort, generously funded by The Kresge Foundation from 2024 to 2026. Each participating BIPOC-led or allied CDC receives $50,000 in funding, along with technical assistance from BHPN, to foster collaborations with mission-driven investors and accelerate progress towards health and racial equity.

CIRE Awardees

  • Beyond Housing in St. Louis, MO: Takes a comprehensive approach to community development, addressing housing, education, health, and economic opportunity in underserved neighborhoods.
  • One Neighborhood Builders in Providence, RI: Focuses on creating affordable housing and economic opportunities in Providence’s Olneyville neighborhood, and convenes Central Providence Opportunities: A Rhode Island Health Equity Zone.
  • Parkside Business & Community In Partnership (PBCIP) in Camden, NJ: Dedicated to revitalizing the Parkside neighborhood through economic development, housing, and community-building initiatives.
  • Siċaŋġu Co in Siċaŋġu Lak̇ota nation, SD: Committed to preserving Lakota culture and promoting economic self-sufficiency on the Rosebud Reservation, Siċaŋġu Co. is guided by the 7Gen Vision. This vision, which imagines the world their descendants will inhabit in 175 years.
  • Starting Over, Inc. in Riverside, CA: Led by formerly incarcerated people provides a holistic approach to reentry, serving the needs of the Inland Region through transitional housing, policy advocacy, and civic engagement.

CIRE Happenings

Discover the Advisory Committee members that BHPN formed to identify and support CIRE community of practice partners

Experience the dynamic energy and insightful discussions from the CIRE Partners Convening in St. Louis, MO:

It was truly great spending time together in the great city of St Louis and building community through meaningful conversations, shared laughs, and a chance to recalibrate.

—CIRE participant

Through these connections, we have gained an abundance of knowledge, resources, and insights that have greatly enhanced our ability to serve and empower our community.

CIRE participant

Participation has proven to be an invaluable asset to our work, as it has allowed us to connect with a diverse array of like-minded individuals and organizations who share our passion for creating positive change.

CIRE participant

Dive into our blogs:

CIRE Awardees 2022–23

Our Services We provide technical assistance to health and community development organizations to build healthy communities together.

Our Services

Landscape / Market Analysis

Mapping, connecting to, and building on existing cross-sector initiatives that address systemic racism in historically disinvested communities and advance health equity

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Case-making

Customized case-making to provide organizations with the messaging, language, and knowledge needed to engage with other sectors to advance racial and health equity

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Brokering Connections

Fostering and managing meaningful connections between community development, healthcare and public health organizations that are mission-aligned

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Training

Convening and providing training to community development and health leaders for project development and co-investment to improve health and racial equity

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BHPN market scans for LIIF helped us target our work to engage with healthcare in key markets. Now we can forge partnerships to collaborate on investments in the social determinants of health.

—Kirsten Shaw, Director of Northeast and Mid-Atlantic Regions at Low Income Investment Fund

With BHPN’s guidance and extended capacity we are creating shared goals with healthcare systems and advancing projects that address racial equity and impact health and wellbeing in Coachella Valley, CA.

—Julia Ryan, Vice President of Health Initiatives at Local Initiatives Support Corporation

Build Healthy Places Network has been instrumental in advancing Intermountain’s investment strategies to address SDOH, embed a racial and healthy equity lens, and bring more CFDI investment to Utah.

—Nicholas Fritz, Impact Investing Director at Intermountain Healthcare

Landscape/Market Analysis

Analysis tailored to identify potential health and/or community partners, initiatives, priorities, pain points, and investment history.

We produce race-conscious analyses for health systems, CDFIs, local CDCs, and health foundations, which they then use to successfully clarify and prioritize partnership opportunities that advance health and racial equity. Partnerships will be equipped to identify locations for investment, translate language barriers to more effectively engage across sectors, and focus investment strategies based on historical disinvestment, aligned goals, existing efforts and community priorities.

Case-Making

We produce pitch decks and custom “leave behind” resources that speak to a specific potential partner’s investment priorities and history, helping to secure new funding for local projects as well as advocacy support for comprehensive community development.

Connections

We help foster and manage meaningful connections between community development and healthcare organizations that are mission-aligned.

Brokering Connections

We curate conversations to foster collaboration on a specific fund or project or in a specific location with the goal of mapping out an action plan for project development and investment.

Relationship Management

We coordinate strategic introductions (through warm hand-offs, virtual meetings, or in-person conversations), plan and participate in meetings and calls, review/revise materials and talking points to facilitate conversation, and serve as a moderator and translator to ensure ongoing successful communication. Playing this key role on behalf of CDFIs, CDCs, and health systems has brought new investments to the table and fostered new advocacy partnerships that address social determinants of health.

Training

We train community development teams on effective health engagement strategies and racial equity approaches (drawing from the Healthcare Playbook for Community Developers) and healthcare teams on the utility and best use of community development, its resources, expertise and investments including risk/return profiles.

Our trainings have allowed Community Development Financial Institutions to outsource baseline knowledge-building for interested healthcare investors and informed healthcare investors’ decisions to invest in community development funds or projects.