Health and well-being for Californians are inextricably connected to their economic security.
When families are economically secure, they can meet their basic needs — such as safe and stable housing, keeping food on the table, paying the bills, caring for one another when needed, and saving for the future. This leads to healthier individuals, families, and communities—and can prevent violence in the home, as economic insecurity can be both a risk factor and a result of domestic violence.
Communities of color and people with low incomes, women, and immigrants face disproportionate barriers to achieving economic stability and mobility, and we’re committed to addressing the root causes of these inequities and removing those barriers. With a focus on policy and systems change, we invest in approaches that expand access to income and benefits: that increase care workers’ wages, benefits, and job quality, while keeping care affordable and accessible for families; and that spur innovations to provide greater economic security for survivors of domestic violence.
Supporting Californians to lead healthy and dignified lives
Our work to strengthen economic security and mobility for Californians means working with grantee partners across the state who are supporting Californians to access the resources they need to lead healthy and dignified lives.
We see income and wealth, particularly when viewed through the lens of racial and gender equity, as powerful long-term contributors to health and well-being. Strengthening economic security and mobility for Californians means creating equitable opportunity to improve financial well-being, to set up the next generations for success, plan for the future, and tend to their health and the health of their families."
Senior Program Officer
Creating impact through systems change
We support grantees who are working to catalyze policy changes that will have a positive impact on communities of color with low incomes in California. Specifically, we’re promoting:
- Increasing equity in access to paid family leave
- Exploring long-term policy solutions for guaranteed income
- Making CalWORKs and community college systems work for student parents
- Protecting the health and safety of domestic workers
- Increasing public investment in entrepreneurship and small business development for care workers
- Increasing public investment in innovative approaches to support domestic violence survivors, such as Domestic Violence Housing First programs to prevent homelessness
Grantees
| Grantee | Year awarded | Grant amount | Region |
|---|---|---|---|
| Womens Foundation of California | 2026 | $850,000 | Statewide |
| Center for Empowered Politics Education Fund | 2026 | $850,000 | Statewide |
| Downtown Women's Center | 2026 | $450,000 | Statewide |
| Watsonville Law Center | 2026 | $150,000 | Central |
| Pilipino Workers Center of Southern California | 2026 | $150,000 | Statewide |
| Equal Rights Advocates | 2026 | $150,000 | Statewide |
| United Ways of California | 2025 | $100,000 | Statewide |
| Womens Foundation of California | 2025 | $77,050 | South |
| United Way of the Bay Area | 2025 | $50,000 | San Francisco Bay Area |
| CalMatters | 2025 | $300,000 | Statewide |
| United Ways of California | 2025 | $250,000 | Statewide |
| Family Violence Law Center | 2025 | $150,000 | San Francisco Bay Area |
Related publications and insights
The faces behind the work