History
Chicago is the city of neighborhoods, including frontline areas that are at the forefront of re-imagining healthier and safer urban communities. Since its founding in 2019, the Chicago Frontlines Funding Initiative (CFFI) has re-granted over 8 million dollars to environmental justice (EJ) non-profits serving these areas. We have invested deeply in place-based EJ organizations to raise the bar of philanthropic grassroots giving and build a stronger climate/environmental ecosystem led by community organizations. As we have grown and built up the capacity of EJ organizations in Chicagoland, the time has come for a new name, mission, and vision. CFFI is now known as the Chicago Frontlines Fund.
Mission and Vision
The Chicago Frontlines Fund’s mission is to responsibly invest in community-led solutions that address the interconnected economic and climate crises.
Our vision is rooted in and informed by environmental justice movement-building in Chicago, and aims for achieving greater community control and ownership of land and decisions concerning land in changing industrial corridors.
We focus on Chicagoland frontline areas as key sites in the emergence of a new economic arrangement that better serves people and the planet. CFF envisions Chicagoland frontline communities that are rooted in place and control wealth-building hubs supported by non-extractive investment strategies. We see communities full of hope, where people lead decisions over ownership of land, exert greater community control over food and energy systems, and benefit from thriving local economies. Local residents will be educated to protect their health and well being, and will have access to green space and nature. To protect their victories, they will be supported by a well resourced ecosystem of values-aligned organizations that move in solidarity. Led by the example of frontline communities, Chicago will be a model of local sovereignty and community-led climate adaptation.
Our Role
As an intermediary fund, we provide value that differentiates us from traditional philanthropic funders.
We are rooted in relationships and trust. We have history and trust with local movement-building and its leadership.
We are trusted by philanthropic institutions to prioritize funding based on needs, to expedite funds in a highly responsive manner, and to identify intersecting and adjacent organizations for grant support.
We are informed by frontline leadership who serve as our advisors and peers.
We break through silos and bridge the worlds of philanthropy, movement-building, nonprofits and blended capital.
Our Team
Antonio Lopez, PhD
A social movement historian and organizational development specialist, Dr. Lopez has worked with foundation, university, and non-profit leaders to work in solidarity with grassroots organizing communities. Antonio previously served as the Executive Director of the Little Village Environmental Justice Organization, and on the leadership teams of the Midwest EJ Network and the Building Equity for Environmental Justice Network. Antonio was awarded a doctoral degree in US/Mexico Borderlands History from the University of Texas, El Paso. Born in Gary, Indiana and raised in Chicago, Dr. Lopez enjoys photography, organic gardening, and competitive bowling tournaments.
Co-Director
Uzma Noormohamed
Uzma has nearly two decades of experience working with foundations, nonprofits and businesses in the areas of climate, clean energy, environmental education and underbanked/unbanked households. Her work has centered shifting capital into underserved communities in an ethical, strategic and collaborative manner. Born and raised in Albany Park, she holds a Masters of Public Policy from Northwestern University and a Bachelors of Arts in Philosophy from DePaul University. She enjoys cooking traditional family recipes, scuba diving, and being outdoors with her family.
Co-Director
Julianne Liu
Daniela Herrera
Daniela Herrera has nearly a decade of experience engaging with community based organizations in Chicago and the Midwest to help fulfill their self determined goals. She has worked in private foundations, intermediary funds, and as a philanthropic consultant working with clients to address pressing environmental and climate justice issues. Daniela grew up in Cicero and now lives in Edgewater, Chicago. She’s a founding organizer with Chicago BIPOC Birders, on the Steering Committee for Chicago Latines in Philanthropy, and enjoys walks along the lakefront with her dog, Abi. Daniela has a Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Science from Loyola University Chicago.
Program Manager
Julianne Liu is a master’s student in environmental justice at the University of Michigan and Climate Justice Movement Catalyst Fellow at the Tishman Center for Social Justice and the Environment. After graduating from the University of Utah with her B.A. in Ecojustice Education, B.A. in French, and minor in Dark Sky Studies, she worked at launching and advancing environmental justice programs at the federal level to support local power building and decision making. She also has experience in designing and facilitating curriculum for students in frontline communities. Julianne feels most at home in the letterpress/printmaking studio, Chinatown bakeries, and Wasatch mountains.
Catalyst Fellow - Tishman Center