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Women BuildINg Community Fund

New Mexico is a state of contrasts. The beauty and richness of the state’s stunning geography, diverse communities and generous people stand in stark contrast against a backdrop of pervasive poverty and persistent disparities, including social and economic challenges for New Mexico’s women of color.

The New Mexico Community Foundation (NMCF) Women BuildINg Community Fund exists to support New Mexico women and girls in diverse rural, urban and immigrant communities. The Women BuildINg Community Fund will be a catalyst for community change by making strategic grants and building permanent resources for New Mexico’s women and girls.

The NMCF Women BuildINg Community Fund will support working for equitable and systemic solutions addressing a wide range of challenges including a mother dealing with domestic violence, the family facing infertility and childbirth defects while living next to a hazardous waste dumpsite, the unplanned pregnancy of a teen-age girl, the economic hardships of a family in rural communities, the struggles of single mothers to make ends meet, the inequity that befalls an immigrant family trying to become a contributing citizen…and more.

The Women Building Community Fund focuses on building strategies to strengthen the economic and human investment in women as leaders. The Women Building Community Fund strives to strengthen local efforts across various distinct sectors: health, economic, and environment utilizing a reproductive/social justice framework and provides opportunities for consciousness-raising through exploration and discussion of issues impacting women… health, economics, the environment, education, culture, and more.

Mission of WBC Fund -

Building resources for a women focused Fund at NMCF that invests in New Mexico’s women and girls will leverage assets, networks and expertise to address issues that continue to perpetuate poverty AND build both long-term economic security and the well-being of women and their families.

Program Supports -

National and local foundations and individuals have joined together to invest in building the New Mexico Community Foundation’s Women BuildINg Community Fund. The Fund supports women-led organizations addressing core issues impacting women and girls and facilitates coordinated efforts in building a unified movement for services, leadership development and advocacy.

As a peer learning network, NMCF Women BuildINg Community Fund current grant recipients demonstrate that together women of color can address social inequities and impact social change by planning strategically across multiple issues and by sharing best practices in service delivery, advocacy, organizing, program and fund development.  By doing so, NMCF Women BuildINg Community Fund supports and strengthens the capacity of organizations to ensure the generations to come have the ability to access the necessary support to have healthy families and the opportunity to build for the future. The NMCF Women BuildINg Community Fund will invest in the great asset of women and girls collaborative leadership throughout our diverse communities.

Nine organizations comprise the WBC Funders Collaborative 2009 recipients:

  • Enlace Comunitario – Alb./Central NM (focus: leadership development/information resource-referrals/self-sufficiency-population: primarily immigrant women-girls)
  • El CENTRO de Igualdad y Derechos – Alb./Central NM (focus: leadership development/ information resource and referrals /safe communities-population: primarily immigrant families)
  • La Casa, Inc. – Las Cruces/Southern NM-Mexico Border Region (focus: leadership development/ information resource and referrals /self-sufficiency-population: primarily women-girls)
  • New Mexico Teen Pregnancy Coalition – Alb./Statewide (focus: leadership development/ information resource and referrals-population: primarily youth)
  • Somos Un Pueblo Unido – Santa Fe/Northern NM (focus: leadership development/ information resource and referrals/safe communities and work environments-population: primarily immigrant families)
  • Southwest Creations Collaborative – Alb./Central NM (focus: leadership development/self-sufficiency-family asset-building-population: primarily immigrant women)
  • Tewa Women United – Española/Northern NM (focus: leadership development/ information resource and referrals/safe communities and environment-population: primarily Native American women-girls)
  • Women’s Intercultural Center – Anthony/So. NM-MX Border Region (focus: leadership development/self-sufficiency-family asset-building-population: primarily immigrant women-girls)
  • Young Women United – Alb./Statewide (focus: leadership development/information resource and referrals-population: primarily young women-girls)

New Mexico’s women, girls and women-led families face challenges related to:

  • overcoming poverty and achieving self-sufficiency
  • education and healthcare accessibility
  • securing environmental, economic, reproductive justice and violence reduction