NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Today the Ours To Own campaign was announced at the CGI America meeting in Denver. The campaign is a Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) Commitment to Action that leverages the collective power of individuals’ small investments to support local community development in the Denver region.

Starting today, people will be able to invest as little as $20 in the Denver region through Calvert Foundation’s Community Investment Note on the Vested.orgplatform. This investment will support the work of local organizations, including Urban Land Conservancy (ULC), Colorado Enterprise Fund (CEF), and the Community Reinvestment Fund, USA (CRF), who are creating equitable opportunity for all Front Range residents.

Margot Kane, the Vice President for Strategic Initiatives at Calvert Foundation, commented, “We are excited to bring this investment platform to the Denver community. We have been continually inspired by the incredible work of our partners who work every day to ensure that the growth in the Denver region benefits all populations and neighborhoods.”

The investment dollars raised through this campaign provide a new source of private capital and an unprecedented approach for local community engagement.

“This unique investment into metro Denver provides residents with an incredible opportunity to actually see positive work happening on the ground,” says Aaron Miripol, President and CEO of ULC. “ULC will access these funds not only to improve the built environment here in the Denver area, but also create economic opportunities for local communities.”