View our 2025 recap video!
In 2025, IECF made some of its most meaningful investments yet in our region’s people and organizations, building lasting strength across the Inland Empire.
In a year of major progress, new grants expanded education equity across the Inland Empire, signature funds reached exciting milestones, and nonprofits received essential resources they could put to work immediately. The year also brought new opportunities to plan for what comes next, with our donors and partners continuing to help us shape a stronger region.
Across Riverside and San Bernardino counties, IECF’s work remains focused on opportunity, stability, and long-term community strength, informed by our commitment to all people and places thriving, no exceptions. We use a framework called the Vital Conditions to drive investments to those things that can make the biggest difference in people’s lives.
Education Equity Took a Major Step Forward
One of the year’s most significant milestones was a $1.5 million grant from the Gates Foundation, supporting IECF’s commitment to Lifelong Learning.
That investment helped set the stage for another major step in September, when IECF awarded nearly $944,000 in Education Equity grants to 12 Inland Empire organizations. These grants were designed to strengthen school-community partnerships, student voice and engagement, support mental health and identity-affirming education, and build civic power through coalition work.
Young people in the Inland Empire deserve schools and systems that listen, respond, and recognize them as leaders in the decisions that affect their lives. Our Youth Grantmakers program was refreshed to incorporate these principles, leading to YG’s largest grantmaking cycle in its history. Meet the 2025 grantees they selected after deep discussion and research.
Opening Doors to Homeownership
In early 2025, IECF launched the Inland Empire Down Payment Assistance Program, providing up to $40,000 for qualifying first-time homebuyers.
Backed by a $1 million investment from U.S. Bank and implemented with Neighborhood Partnership Housing Services, an IE-based housing organization, the program supported the Vital Condition of Humane Housing by helping more families move toward stability and long-term opportunity. To date, 20 families have realized the dream of homeownership.
Women’s Giving Fund Philanthropy in Action
The Women’s Giving Fund carried its energy forward in 2025, including the Spring Fling Champagne Brunch, where $64,000 in grants were awarded to four organizations supporting women and families across the Inland Empire.
The event also honored Debbie Cannon, President and CEO of Academy for Grassroots Organizations (AcademyGO), with the Woman of Achievement Award and celebrated women whose leadership strengthens community well-being.
CIELO Fund Grantmaking and Regional Momentum
The CIELO Fund created major headlines in 2025, achieving the landmark goal of raising $3 million and awarding $450,000 to 40 organizations serving Latino communities, while also announcing a $500,000 endowment.
With this third round of grants, CIELO’s total investment since its founding reached $1.5 million. The Fund also achieved a cumulative total of $300,000 awarded in scholarships, and continued supporting research, narrative work, and partnerships that keep Inland Latino experiences visible and central, deepening the Vital Condition of Belonging & Civic Muscle.
A New Signature Fund for AANHPI Communities
In May, IECF officially launched the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Fund (AANHPI Fund), chaired by Board Member Ben Nate.
The Fund was created to meet a tangible regional need. AANHPI communities are growing quickly in the Inland Empire, and this signature fund expands culturally responsive support, strengthens nonprofit capacity, and supports Belonging & Civic Muscle across the region.
Historic Grantmaking through the IE Black Equity Fund
In June, the IE Black Equity Fund reached a new milestone with $2.2 million awarded to 42 Black-led and Black-serving organizations across the Inland Empire.
This was the Fund’s largest grantmaking round to date, supporting projects rooted in community knowledge and long-term change. The investment reflected the strength of Black leadership locally and underscored IECF’s commitment to Belonging & Civic Muscle.
Policy and Philanthropy Summit Explored Common Ground for the Common Good
IECF’s annual Policy & Philanthropy Summit returned in August, drawing more than 600 nonprofit, philanthropic, and civic leaders from across Inland Southern California.
With Angela Glover Blackwell as keynote speaker, the Summit centered on the Vital Conditions that communities need in order to thrive. It combined serious regional conversations with practical collaboration, grounded in the belief that the Inland Empire has both the leadership and the vision to shape its own future. Over 50 organizations helped produce the events content and sessions, and dozens of generous donors made the event possible.
Strengthening Local Journalism and Community Information
The Inland Empire Journalism Innovation Hub + Fund continued to strengthen local news ecosystems across Riverside and San Bernardino counties.
In its inaugural grantmaking round, the Hub + Fund awarded $220,000 to 12 local news outlets and independent media makers, supporting coverage of housing, civic life, cultural narratives, and under-reported community needs. This work supports Belonging &Civic Muscle by ensuring communities have access to information that reflects their lives and encourages participation in public life.
The Inland Empire Nonprofit Loan Fund Launched Across Two Counties
In 2025, IECF launched the Inland Empire Nonprofit Loan Fund, a new $5 million financing partnership designed to support nonprofits serving Riverside and San Bernardino counties.
Created with investments from the City of Riverside, San Bernardino County, and the Nonprofit Finance Fund, this revolving loan fund provides flexible capital when organizations need it most, helping essential services stay consistent as community needs grow.
Wildfire Resilience and Regional Collaboration
In September, IECF played a key role in bringing leaders together around wildfire resilience as part of its Regional Forest and Fire Capacity (RFFC) program. As administrator of a $1.6 million two-year state block grant from the California Department of Conservation, IECF helped develop a strategic Regional Priority Plan to guide wildfire preparedness, forest health, and cross-boundary collaboration across Riverside and San Bernardino counties. Building on that work, IECF co-hosted the California Wildfire & Forest Resilience Task Force Inland Empire Regional Meeting at the University of Redlands, where nearly 400 in-person participants and hundreds more online joined state, federal, and local partners to share strategies for reducing wildfire risk, expanding regional coordination, and strengthening a Thriving Natural World — a vital condition that supports the safety and resilience of communities and landscapes alike.
Health, Safety, and Regional Leadership
Later in the year, IECF co-hosted the Health Matters Forum at UC Riverside, elevating Inland Empire priorities in a statewide conversation with gubernatorial candidates and supporting Basic Needs for Health & Safety through civic engagement and public leadership. We were proud to partner with ten other California foundations and to welcome our local elected leaders including Patricia Lock Dawson, Mayor of Riverside; City of Riverside Councilmember Sean Mill; Senator Sabrina Cervantes; Mayor of Moreno Valley Ulises Cabrera; Denise Davis, Councilmember at the City of Redlands; Joseph R. Williams, SBCCD Trustee, and many more.
Community Impact Fund Provides Flexible Funding for Nonprofits Facing Urgent Pressures
IECF’s Community Impact Fund delivered $850,000 in core support grants to 45 nonprofits across Riverside and San Bernardino counties. Guided by nonprofit focus groups and shaped
by the pressures created by federal funding cuts, this grant round offered flexible, six-month operating support for organizations adapting to shifting community needs. The effort grew beyond its original goal with additional support from the Irvine Foundation and the IE Funders Alliance, helping expand the total amount awarded. With 132 applications received, it reflected both the scale of demand and the value of timely local support.
Here for Good Support at Year-End
As 2025 came to a close, IECF’s Here for Good Fund received an additional boost through Amazon’s match of donations up to $100,000, strengthening the Foundation’s ability to respond across all Vital Conditions, wherever the need is greatest.
A Year-End Message of Gratitude
All in all, we were encouraged as we looked back on a year shaped by deep partnership across the Inland Empire.
The impact was visible in students pursuing education backed by scholarships, organizations sustaining essential programs, families accessing support, and communities continuing to lead through challenge and change.
Looking ahead to 2026, IECF remains focused on local investment, long-term strength, and steady progress as we move forward together. Join us!
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