The CIELO Fund

The 2025 CIELO Fund Scholarship is now open! Deadline to apply: May 19, 2025

Research

The Inland Empire is a vibrant and growing region. Central to this growth is its dynamic Latino community which now accounts for 52% of the region’s population. Projections by USC show that that number is expected to balloon to 74% by 2060. To better understand the challenges and immense opportunities to drive the Latino community, and entire region, forward, the Fund sponsors original research with top academic and nonprofit institutions. The research is meant to provide important context facing the community today, and into the future. 

In 2024, The CIELO Fund partnered with the Possibility Lab at the UC Berkeley Goldman School of Public Policy and the Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies to produce a polling brief examining Inland Empire Latino Experiences Accessing Basic Resources. The report finds that most IE Latino voters have access to clean water, safety, and connectivity, yet affordable housing, healthy food, eldercare and childcare, and energy are difficult to find.

In collaboration with Latinos LEAD, a nonprofit organization that promotes more inclusive and effective civil society organizations, the CIELO Fund released a new report in 2023, called Inclusive Leadership: Examining Disparities in Nonprofit Leadership for Latinos in the Inland Empire. The report analyzes Latino representation on 198 nonprofit boards in the Inland Empire. Findings highlight disparities in board diversity across sectors. The report found that while Latinos are 52% of the population, they only hold 13% of nonprofit board positions. Additionally, in Health & Human Services, 38.4% of boards had no Latino members, while Arts & Culture had 62% without Latino representation. Despite these challenges, a commitment to diversity is growing, driven by foundations and community leaders. The report sets a baseline for measuring Latino board representation and plans a follow-up in 2025, covering 1,933 boards.

Also in 2023 the CIELO Fund commissioned a qualitative report by the USC Center for Latinx and Latin American Studies called ¡Se Ve! ¡Se Siente! ¡El Pueblo está Presente!: An Analysis of a Region in Transition from the Perspective of Inland Empire Latino Organizational Leaders. This study offers ideas to empower Latino communities for the future based on conversations with select Inland Empire Latino organizational leaders.

In 2022, the CIELO Fund launched by publishing “Aqui Estamos: A Data Profile of Latinos in the Inland Empire,” with UC Riverside. This report uses census data to evaluate where Latinos in the region are excelling and where need exists. The Committee was guided by the report’s findings in identifying where funding might carry the most impact in its first round of grant awards. 

Scholarships

Increasing Latino educational attainment in a major priority for the CIELO Fund. In 2023, the Fund launched the CIELO Fund Scholars Program to invest in Latino students attending Inland Empire colleges and universities, especially those intending to remain and work in the region upon completing their studies. To date, the Fund has awarded $232,000 in scholarships to 122 Latino students throughout the IE!

Narrative Change

The CIELO Fund prioritizes partnerships with key media outlets and initiatives that uplift Latino narratives, stories and experiences.

In 2023, the CIELO Fund co-designed a media platform with KVCR/NPR and launched IE Latino Voices. This segment has featured dozens of local Latino organizational leaders who are invited to tell the story of their work and their impact in the region. 

In 2025, IECF announced a partnership with the CIELO Fund and De Los, the LA Times’ Latino-focused vertical, to expand coverage of the Inland Empire’s Latino community. This partnership marks an important step toward ensuring that the voices, challenges, and successes of Latinos in the IE are heard—told by journalists with deep roots in the region.

The Fund has also partnered with the Desert Sun to feature Latino leaders in the Coachella Valley and is continuously exploring partnerships with local, regional, and statewide media outlets to tell authentic, positive stories about Latinos in the region. The Fund has also worked with media partners to showcase its work and the work of grantees, research, and scholarship recipients.

Why Support the CIELO Fund?

• Support Latino-led and serving nonprofit organizations doing impactful work throughout the Inland Empire
• Learn and support a better understanding of the issues impacting Latinos in the region through original research
• Combine your gift with others to enhance impact
• Network with other Latinos who are philanthropically-minded and living their passion

Give Today
With your gift, you are providing vital support to Latino-based organizations that are working to improve social and economic conditions in the Latino community and join with other donors and funders who are committed to advancing healthy communities in the region for all.

As the Latino community in the Inland Empire grows, so should investments in the people, organizations, and opportunities helping our community thrive. That’s why we created The CIELO Fund – a fund by us, for us, that uplifts our stories and experiences while centering local organizations serving those who need it most. 

Jesse Melgar –  Founding Fund Chair/IECF Board Chair