Category

Co-Liberation for Black and Indigenous Communities

Fred

In 2021, the Bush Foundation committed $100 million to seed two community trust funds—one Black-led and one Indigenous-led—to address racialized wealth disparities. This became Nexus Community Partners’ Open Road Fund and NDN Collective‘s Collective Abundance Fund.

Historically, Black and Indigenous people have been pitted against each other by colonizers and oppressors. But we know Indigenous sovereignty and Black liberation are tied to one another. While our people have unique histories and current needs, we are subjected to similar discrimination and violence—and neither of us will be free without the other.

At this summer’s Grantmakers for Effective Organizations (GEO) Conference, our three organizations co-facilitated the session Redefining Wealth and Promoting Co-Liberation for Black and Indigenous Communities, highlighting how our shared values strengthen our partnership and deepen our collective impact in the communities we serve.

What We Believe: Lessons & Commitments from the Community Trust Fund Initiative

Click to read our shared belief statements.

Staff from NDN Collective, Bush Foundation, and Nexus Community Partners present at the 2026 GEO National Conference.

The 2026 GEO National Conference gathered more than 1,000 grantmakers in Boston to explore what it means to transform philanthropic culture and practice. Participants learned how philanthropy can strengthen trust, build deeper relationships, move resources more effectively, and show up in service of thriving nonprofits and communities. We were honored to attend and share our work!

For the past five years, the Bush Foundation, NDN Collective, and Nexus Community Partners have been working together to address racial wealth disparities for Black and Native American communities in our region. Together, we have been learning a lot about what is needed to do shared decision making—and to share power—well.

Where We’ve Been

In March 2021, the Bush Foundation committed $100 million to seed two community trust funds to address wealth disparities rooted in the lasting impacts of historical race-based U.S. policy. These funds invest directly in Black and Native American communities across Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota through grants to individuals to support building generational wealth.

Through an open selection process, the Bush Foundation chose Nexus and NDN Collective to design and manage the trust funds on behalf of their communities:

  • NDN Collective stewards the $50 million Collective Abundance Fund, providing awards of $25,000 and $50,000 to Native American individuals to support generational wealth-building, including cultural practices, ceremony, language, land and community.
  • Nexus Community Partners stewards the $50 million Open Road Fund, providing $50,000 gifts to 100 Black individuals each year through a random selection process, affirming that all people are worthy without requiring proof of need, merit, or hardship.

Where We Are Now

Staff from NDN Collective, Bush Foundation, and Nexus Community Partners connect on a walk through sacred Lakota land.

In April 2025, representatives from all three organizations gathered for a two-day retreat. After four years of working together, we were curious about what made this collaboration tick, and what might be helpful to others who want to try it. We asked ourselves: What do we know to be true? What has served and steadied us as we’ve undertaken this work?

What emerged was the following set of shared beliefs that has guided us in our work together:

1) Trust is at the root of the work.

The relationship between our three organizations required understanding of the different forms of power at the table and a high degree of trust. That trust took time and steady intention to build. It did not happen just because we wanted to do this work together.

For Bush, it meant trusting in NDN and Nexus to design grant programs that they knew would best serve their communities. For NDN and Nexus, it meant trusting in community members to know what would most help their families build wealth and to use the resources they received accordingly.

Our approach to evaluation also reflects trust. We are accountable to the communities we serve, rather than conventional metrics. We center learning and trust the stewards to design evaluation plans that will be most informative and beneficial for their work.

2) There’s strength in solidarity.

When Bush selected NDN and Nexus as the steward organizations of this work, there was no requirement or even expectation that the two organizations work together. But from the very first meeting, the chemistry and solidarity between them—plus the Black woman and Native woman representing Bush—was unmistakable.

What has emerged from five years of this partnership has become what the leaders of this work call a practice of co-liberation: a belief that Black and Native histories and futures are tied to one another. And through this partnership, a shared recognition that our communities are brilliant, resilient and capable—and are more powerful together than apart.

3) Building individual wealth can ripple through the community.

Our work together is continually showing us how wealth can be relational and serve a community. It doesn’t have to be about hyper-individualism. What one person builds can serve their family, their neighbors, and the next generation. There can be a ripple effect when we invest in individuals. We have seen awardees start businesses that employ others, as well as examples of awardees hosting community events that feed hundreds of people experiencing homelessness. This is how wealth, even when it’s directed toward individuals, nurtures entire communities.

We also know that wealth is generational, and that today’s wealth gaps reflect past injustices. To address this, we believe that rematriation—a process of reclaiming and restoring something to its rightful place—goes a long way toward closing these gaps and repairing our communities.

4) Our communities define what wealth means.

We believe that communities should define what wealth means for themselves. NDN Collective and Nexus Community Partners did exactly that, and the Bush Foundation trusted those definitions to guide how funds are used.

  • Nexus defined Black Wealth as “owning what we produce, and building and inventing for our families and community. It is a creative and sovereign practice of restoration that reaffirms the excellence that has always been in us.”
  • NDN defined Indigenous Wealth as “encompassing family and community well-being and the care of relationships—self, family, extended family, community, land and environment. It’s a life abundant in social and cultural sharing.”

Along with trust in communities to define wealth for themselves, the eligible uses of the community trust funds are able to go far beyond what conventional philanthropy allows. The money can support a pilgrimage to Africa. It can support ceremony, language learning, or cultural practice. It can fund a food truck that feeds hundreds, or a home that becomes the foundation of a family’s generational security. If wealth is clean water, good relationships, and the ability to give things away, money is just the tool to get there.

5) This work demands resilience and determination.

Our ancestors survived enslavement, forced relocation, and attempts at outright annihilation. We are here because they did not go quietly. We draw strength from that. We are not afraid to speak clearly about why this work exists and why it matters.

Our communities and this work face threats, fear, and pressure to retreat. We are not stopping, even as the work gets harder to do and more uneven. Continuing the work together, continuing to learn together, and seeing what is possible for our shared futures is what fuels us.

Closing the racial wealth gap is a moral imperative that stabilizes communities and builds a more just and resilient society for everyone. We will continue doing equity-centered, reparative work that addresses the lasting harms of historical injustice. We will protect the people we serve. We will keep telling the truth. We will stand together for the long arc of this work and for the next generation of leaders who will carry it forward.

These belief statements grew organically from five years of relationship, from listening to awardees, from hard conversations, and from the deep wisdom our communities carry. We offer them not as a prescription or blueprint, but as inspiration and an invitation. If you are doing this kind of work—or considering it—ask yourself: What do you believe? What have you learned? What do you refuse to give up? The most powerful beliefs are the ones that grow from the work itself, that are developed and acknowledged together and held with accountability.

That’s a wrap, y’all! Our 2026 application period is now closed. Thank you to everyone who applied for the Open Road Fund this year! If you’d like a copy of your application, or if you have not received a confirmation of your application, please email us at ORFSupport@nexuscp.org.

If you are selected to receive a gift from the Open Road Fund, you’ll receive an email and phone call from our team at the end of August. If your application is not selected this year, you’ll be notified via email at the beginning of September.

Please note that if you are selected, we will not share your information as a potential gift recipient. We respect your privacy and understand that it is your choice to share this information. We will announce on our social media and website that the finalists for 2026 have been selected, but we will not disclose their names or identifying information.

If you are not selected for this round of gift-giving, don’t worry! There are four more rounds of the Open Road Fund, and we encourage you to apply each year you are not chosen. Applications will relaunch Juneteenth 2027!

To stay up to date on Open Road Fund and Nexus Community Partners news and opportunities, subscribe to our newsletter and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and/or LinkedIn!

 

The Open Road Fund is our collective opportunity to build Black wealth within our communities and honor our ancestors. Many thanks to the community organizations below for offering free technical assistance on this year’s application!

If you need Wi-Fi, an accessible space to fill out your application, or someone to help walk you through the form, stop by a site near you during the hours listed below.

And don’t forget to submit your application by July 19, 11:59 pm CT!

Heal Minneapolis

  • 4171 Lyndale Avenue N, Minneapolis, MN 55412
  • Monday through Friday, 12-6 pm

Tears of Hope

  • Hiawatha Collegiate High School, 3500 E 28th St, Minneapolis, MN 55406
  • Wednesdays & Thursdays, 9 am – 3 pm

T.O.U.C.H Outreach

  • 2222 E Lake Street, Minneapolis, MN 55407
  • Tuesdays & Thursdays, 12-4 pm

Diversity Council

  • 600 South 5th Street, St. Peter, MN 56082
  • Tuesdays & Saturdays, 11 am – 4 pm and Fridays, 4:30-6 pm

Immigrant Development Center

  • 725 Center Ave, Ste 1, Moorhead, MN 56560
  • Monday through Friday, 10 am – 6 pm

We Shall Overcome Outreach

  • 3700 East 3rd St, Sioux Falls, SD 57103
  • Saturdays, 3:30-4:30 pm

April 14, 2026, was Co-op Day at the Capitol! Nexus joined the Cooperative Network to show lawmakers the power of the cooperative model to address community challenges, showcase worker-owned cooperatives as a solution to the business succession crisis, and demonstrate the benefits of worker co-ops in St. Paul and beyond.

Director of Community Wealth Building Nonkululeko (Nkuli) Tabata, Cooperative Developer Christina Nicholson, and Shared Ownership Center client Dave Abbott, Lead Carpenter and VP at Terra Firma Building & Remodeling Co-op, testified alongside other local cooperative leaders and worker-owners at an informational hearing with the Minnesota Senate Labor Committee.

Nkuli reflects, “Capitol Co-op Day felt like a powerful moment to share the work many of us have been building for years and bring it into greater visibility. Being able to speak directly to the impact and potential of worker co-ops felt both grounding and energizing. The hearing created space to connect our work to real solutions, especially around building community wealth, expanding ownership, and strengthening local economies. It also reinforced how important it is to continue lifting up the stories, experiences, and leadership within our communities. This work does not happen overnight, and moments like this help build momentum and deepen understanding of what a cooperative future can look like.”

Christina says, “Spending time with senators and representatives at the capitol signaled to me a significant increase in interest of the role that worker-owner cooperatives do and can play in retaining jobs and businesses in Minnesota. The connection between national trends in job satisfaction, retention, and equity of roles and stability of income for worker-cooperatives has broken through to the elected stewards of Minnesota. We are hearing more requests for ways to support our work through direct funding of technical assistance, zero-interest and forgivable loans for equity shares, and a general promotion through DEED to current business owners and their teams of how to retain jobs across the state through worker-owned conversions.”

Watch the hearing here!

Nkuli Tabata, Nexus Director of Community Wealth Building (right), speaks to the Minnesota Senate Labor Committee (left) about the power of cooperatives and Nexus’ North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship program.

Want to build Black community wealth with us? Become an Open Road Fund Community Access Site!

We’re looking for community organizations and technical assistance providers who can support Open Road Fund applicants this year. Your organization could offer vital resources like physical space, computers/tablets, internet access, language support, or something else!

Let’s work together to create motivating, encouraging, and community-building spaces for Open Road Fund applicants.

Fill out the inquiry form here!

On March 24, our Founder & CEO Repa Mekha made an appearance on MPR News with Angela Davis. Their conversation was imbued with warmth, sincerity, hope, and connection, featuring stories and questions from community members who called in.

Over the hour, Angela and Repa talked about his vision for building wealth and well-being for Black Minnesotans, particularly through cooperative ownership. He also shared about his life and the journey he took to get here:

“Repa saw slim opportunities for himself and his peers growing up as a young Black man in Milwaukee. He ended up in prison, where he started college and embarked on his life’s work of figuring out what it takes to create more paths forward for Black Americans and other groups left out of mainstream economies.

He worked with homeless teens in the Twin Cities and got a master’s degree from Harvard University. He also founded Nexus Community Partners, a nonprofit that promotes cooperatively owned businesses and distributes wealth-building grants to people who are descendants of the transatlantic slave trade.”

Listen here

Repa Mekha (left) and Angela Davis (right) in the Minnesota Public Radio studio.

As part of the 2025 Grantmakers in the Arts Conference: Building Solidarity, Rooted in Justice, Nexus Community Partners and AmbitioUS* co-hosted ReIMAGINE Scale: Self-Determined Power & Community Power in the U.S. The session began with an inspiring fireside chat at Penumbra Theatre between Anasa Troutman, Founder and CEO of The BIG We in Memphis, Tennessee, and Nonkululeko (Nkuli) Tabata, Director of Community Wealth Building at Nexus.

Nexus Community Wealth Building & North Star Director Nkuli Tabata (left) speaks with The BIG We Founder & CEO Anasa Troutman (right).

“We wanted to give people a real picture of what community ownership and cooperative work look like when led by Black communities and cultural workers rooted in the day-to-day reality of building something different,” Nkuli says.

Anasa added her perspective through cultural organizing and community building in the South. Together, they helped the room understand that the work happening now is part of a much longer story.

Top Takeaways

  • Power is not an abstract concept. It shows up in who owns land, who controls money, who makes decisions, and who gets to shape the future.
  • Community ownership is not new for Black communities. We have always built systems of support through mutual aid, faith communities, informal networks, and collective economic practices.
  • Scale doesn’t simply mean “bigger.” It often looks like deeper relationships, stronger alignment, and healthier ecosystems. It looks like more distributed leadership and more people practicing power together.
  • We need capital that trusts communities and follows their lead, instead of shaping or limiting their vision.
  • Cooperative development is cultural work as much as it is technical work. It takes time, alignment, conflict skills, and shared purpose.

Before the fireside chat, Nexus’ North Star Program Manager, Leanna Browne, grounded attendees with a reflection question from Harvest of Survival: An Affirmation Deck Inspired by Octavia Butler: “How are you home building, world building, and universe building?”

Then, Leanna invited attendees to move through hands-on activities by three North Star alumni collectives: Branch Out and Bloom, Mutha Art’preneur Collective, and Voice of Culture. This part of the session helped people experience how:

  • Branch Out and Bloom is building worlds that are providing life skills and creative arts education for Black children and young adults in Minnesota.
  • Mutha Art’preneur Collective is creating intersecting practices of dreaming, actualizing, and intergenerational healing where Black women can show up and be supported as their full selves.
  • Voice of Culture is creating and maintaining Black space for Black people to engage in the study and practice of cultural arts for mental health and physical well-being.

Branch Out and Bloom guided people through reflecting on where they first learned basic life skills. Many realized that the people who taught them the most were family members, neighborhood elders, and culture keepers. It showed how much learning happens within the community, not just within formal systems.

Mutha Art’preneur Collective held a creative and grounding space where participants mapped their dreams and connected imagination to leadership. Their station reminded people that visioning and healing are part of building cooperative models that last.

Voice of Culture brought movement, rhythm, and collective energy into the room. Participants experienced how cultural practice supports wellness, belonging, and shared responsibility. It made it clear that culture is not separate from cooperative or economic work; it is part of the foundation that helps these models grow.

“These activities created space for attendees to engage with their bodies, minds, and spirits,” Leanna recalls. “It reminded us of the power of practicing Black cooperative economics, connecting to our hearts, and moving with our hands and feet collectively for liberation.”

Throughout the afternoon, people saw that cooperatives are not just legal structures or business plans. They are ways of working that rely on culture, trust, and shared decision-making. Many participants left with a deeper understanding of the real conditions communities need to build sustainable ownership models.

This all came at a key time. With shrinking public funding and growing challenges for the social sector, community-owned and culturally grounded models are not just interesting ideas. They are essential. North Star alumni in Minnesota, The Big We in Memphis, and many others across the country are building these systems right now.

Reflecting on the conference, Leanna shares, “I think about call and response, a practice in Black culture rooted in African traditions, which is significant in many ways: inviting collective participation, co-creating a shared experience, and utilizing storytelling to share our stories and pass down knowledge. An example is ‘Ago,’ which means, ‘Are you listening?’ or ‘Attention, please,’ and ‘Ame,’ a response from the group, which means, ‘I am listening’ or ‘You have my attention’ from the Twi language of the Akan people in Ghana.”

What is your response to the call of building solidarity, rooted in justice through Black cooperative economics?

Ago!
Ame!

*Many thanks to AmbitioUS Program Officer Leeann Wallett for helping shape the vision and logistics of this session. Her care helped us bring the spirit of the North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship into a national space in a way that felt true to the people doing this work!

This fall, our North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship team jetted to Oakland, CA, for the Repaired Nations 7th Annual Black Solidarity Cooperative Conference, running Oct. 10-11, 2025. Over the long weekend, Program Director Nkuli Tabata and Program Manager Leanna Browne built new relationships, learned about exciting cooperative work happening throughout the country, and reconnected with folks from the 2023 conference in Ghana.

This year’s theme, Leaving a Legacy: Land, Wellness, Cooperative Futures, came to life in every moment, from the opening drumming and libations to the closing reflections that reminded us our work is both historical and visionary. Being surrounded by so many Black cooperative leaders, organizers, and culture bearers reminded us that this movement is rooted in generations of collective care, resource sharing, and imagination.

A couple standouts from the many amazing groups in attendance:

  • Aleta Toure with Parable of the Sower Co-op, a Black women-led, worker-owned, intentional community cooperative for Black women and their families. Their mission is to develop a Black land housing model for Black women organizers and worker-owned intentional communities.
  • The REAL People’s Fund, a $10 million community-powered fund and entrepreneurship program that includes non-extractive capital, holistic business support, and opportunities to build political power for BIPOC East Bay communities (Black, Indigenous, Spanish-speaking/Latine, Asian/AAPI, low income, immigrant, undocumented, formerly incarcerated and working-class communities of color)

Each session wove together practical learning with cultural and spiritual grounding. Conversations about ownership, land stewardship, and building community-based institutions were layered with song, poetry, and ancestral honoring.

“It reminded me that cooperation is not just an economic model; it is a cultural practice and a way of being that has sustained our people for generations.”

— Nkuli Tabata, Director of Community Wealth Building

Cultivating Our Cooperative Roots: A Gallery Walk of Black Cooperative Journeys

Nkuli and Leanna closed the first day with their session, Our Cooperative Roots: A Gallery Walk of Black Cooperative Journeys, highlighting people, moments, and groups in Black cooperative economics past and present.

The activity invited people to reflect on what cooperation looks like in practice, what sustains it, and what makes it hard. It moved us to see people recognize themselves in one another’s stories, the shared challenges, the moments of growth, and the deep commitment it takes to build something together. The gallery became a space of storytelling and connection, showing how our experiences are part of a larger story of Black cooperative work and collective possibility.

“It was powerful to share the story of the Black Panther Party’s Survival Programs while in Oakland, where the Black Panther Party was founded. It was also inspiring to hear and learn from Charlotte O’Neal, also known as Mama C, who shared about leading with love. Mama C and her husband, Pete O’Neal, were Black Panthers and live in Tanzania, where they co-founded the United African Alliance Community Center (UAACC), an NGO based in Arusha, Tanzania, providing programs and projects for both rural and urban communities and connecting communities in America to the world.”

— Leanna Browne, North Star Program Manager

On Sunday, Leanna joined a day trip to Oaxxanda, a sanctuary of holistic healing and restoration in Berry Creek, CA. This Black-led land co-op is an exciting site of possibilities for Black people to center land stewardship, self-determination, and healing.

It was much needed to experience Black people gathering in nature to rest, be in community, and just be. We enjoyed a nourishing meal prepared by some of the organizers and connected with each other through fellowship. Some people took naps and played in the creek. Some folks went on a tour of the land to experience its fullness and see the progress of the land project. The children played, running around with laughter and joy. The fresh mountain air, quiet, and stillness were healing.

“I’m grateful I had this time and space to experience the land in community with other Black people. Much gratitude to Mia Jackson, Shayara Etter, Gregory Jackson Jr., Mikhael Ali, and the rest of the Repaired Nations team for the opportunity to share and continue building the Black cooperative ecosystem together.”

— Leanna

Listening to organizers from Oakland, Richmond, and beyond reminded us how much possibility lives within this movement. People are reclaiming land, developing cooperative businesses, and creating new models for shared wealth and belonging. These stories affirmed that our work is not only about ownership, but about building community and ensuring that our people have the power to shape their own futures.

“Leaving the conference, I felt renewed and grateful to be part of this broader journey. The experience affirmed that the work we are doing at North Star and Nexus is connected to something much bigger than ourselves. Land and legacy are not abstract ideas; they are living commitments that require care, trust, and continued practice. This gathering reminded me that the future we dream about is already unfolding in the ways we collaborate, care for one another, and choose to keep building together.”

— Nkuli

Repaired Nations has built something powerful and lasting, a living example of what it means to invest in cooperative ecosystems that center Black voices and creativity. We give our deep gratitude for hosting and curating this beautiful gathering with so much intention and care!

Since 2010, Nexus has been exploring and partnering with community, philanthropy, government, and private-sector leaders to promote community wealth building as an approach to achieving more equitable economic-development impact.

How We Define Community Wealth Building

Cooperative ownership, including worker co-ops, is a community wealth building strategy. Unlike traditional economic development, community wealth building works to build just and equitable communities by:

  • Promoting local and broad-based ownership
  • Lifting up cooperative and culturally based economic practices
  • Developing the next generation of leaders
  • Influencing economic policy and investment decisions

What’s a Worker Cooperative?

Worker co-ops are businesses that are both governed and owned by their employees. Approximately 100 new worker co-ops are started every year in the United States, and the model is taking off. Since 2019, the number of worker co-ops in the US has grown 30%!

The purpose of this toolkit is to provide policymakers, government officials, and staff with a national sample of tools and resources to incentivize worker ownership in their respective communities. Click below to learn more!

October is National Co-op Month! For people who have been intentionally shut out of mainstream economies, cooperatives and cooperative economics present a tried and true alternative.

Our North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship provides training, education, and networking for new and emerging Black cooperative leaders, while our Shared Ownership Center provides in-depth technical assistance and resources for local worker and real estate investment cooperatives.

Nexus’ Community Wealth Building Director Nonkululeko (Nkuli) Tabata, North Star Program Manager Leanna Browne, and Cooperative Developer Christina Nicholson share what led them to cooperative work, the cooperators who’ve inspired them, and some of the key co-ops they’ve supported along the way.

What inspired you to get involved in the cooperative movement?

Nkuli

“The cooperative movement, for me, has been an evolving journey shaped by a deep desire for collective liberation and self-determination. It started with recognizing the power of unity and the potential of people coming together to create systems that reflect their values. The concept of Ubuntu, ‘I am because we are,’ has resonated with me deeply, as it speaks to the interconnectedness of our lives and struggles. This philosophy of shared humanity aligns perfectly with the cooperative principles of mutual aid, solidarity, and democratic decision-making.

My path was also deeply influenced by the work of Black cooperators and organizers who have long recognized that cooperatives offer a path to economic justice and community empowerment. From the teachings of our elders to the modern-day initiatives, I’ve seen how cooperatives can dismantle oppressive structures by redistributing power and resources in ways that honor the wisdom and strength of communities.

What inspired me most was seeing firsthand the transformative potential of cooperatives, not just as businesses, but as spaces of cultural and political resistance. It’s about more than just economic exchange—it’s about shifting our relationships with each other and with the land, and imagining a world where we can live with dignity, freedom, and equality. By embracing the cooperative model, we tap into our collective power, building a future rooted in cooperation, justice, and liberation.”

Leanna

“I’ve seen the familiarity of cooperative work in my life before I had the formal, specific language for it. My family is from Montserrat, in the Caribbean, and I’ve seen the ways family has come together to support each other. Examples include living in multi-family and multi-generational households when folks first move to new places where family already is; pooling resources; savings circles. I’ve also seen cooperative work in different artist communities I’m a part of.”

Christina

“I was first introduced to cooperatives through the Twin Cities’ natural foods cooperative scene when I moved to Minneapolis. Since that time, in my work, I have learned about the expansive global history of cooperatives, formal and informal. I have been able to study cooperative structures that value the labor, production, and creativity of the individuals involved in building their communities and how those contributions enrich the communities they serve.”

Who are the key figures or mentors that influenced your path toward cooperative work?

Nkuli

“Steve Biko and Black Consciousness Thought have been incredibly influential in shaping my path. Biko’s philosophy, which emphasizes the need for Black people to reclaim their sense of self-worth and power, aligns deeply with the cooperative movement’s focus on self-determination. His call for a radical shift in how Black people see themselves and their communities resonates with the principles of cooperatives, where we build systems that reflect our values and needs, and where collective ownership and decision-making are tools for liberation.

The leadership and courage of Harriet Tubman and Fannie Lou Hamer have also played a significant role in my thinking. Tubman’s fierce resistance to oppression and her work on the Underground Railroad are examples of how liberation requires not just fighting against systemic forces but also building alternative systems of support and care. Hamer’s tireless work for voting rights and her advocacy for economic justice, particularly for Black farmers, speak to the importance of political action and community-based economic solutions. Both women exemplified the kind of collective action and organizing that is at the heart of the cooperative movement.

The work of these figures, along with others, reminds me that cooperative work is not just about creating businesses or economic models; it’s about building movements rooted in collective action, solidarity, and the pursuit of liberation. Their legacies inspire me to continue pushing for systems that empower communities, foster agency, and challenge the structures of power that seek to keep us divided.”

Leanna

“Harriet Tubman, as well as the Black women in my family such as my Auntie Venoreen, Grandma Browne, and my mom.”

Christina

“My introduction to Fannie Lou Hamer and the Freedom Fund Cooperative while studying the history of the Federation of Southern Cooperatives in the United States, formed in 1967. The Federation was shaped by the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, and focused on both economic and policy changes that historically punished Black grassroots farming communities in the South. Since that time, the Federation has worked to leverage and pool economic access to markets as well as focusing on legislation that improves the lived experience of the farmers they serve. The Freedom Farm project was started in 1969, formed with a $10,000 grant. During the time that the Freedom Farm was in operation, it had over 1500 members and helped improve the economic lives of the participating members through taking aggregated crops to market and creating a pig bank that allowed farmers to access livestock at fair prices to grow their farm size and incomes.

I first met Professor Jessica Gordon Nembhard when I attended an event at the Capri Theatre in 2015, when she was on a book tour for her powerful and groundbreaking book, Collective Courage. It was an exciting and robust conversation that helped me to further my understanding of how the history of cooperatives has always been and continues to be multifaceted and global. I have continued to follow Dr. Gordon Nembhard’s work in emerging worker cooperatives in incarcerated spaces.

I learned about the Rochdale Pioneers while working in retail cooperatives here in the Twin Cities. My understanding of the Rochedale cooperative movement is rooted in the labor movement and the desire of the members of the cooperative to be able to buy clean products at a fair price, outside of the control of the industry barons they were controlled by. Their commitment to building a decision–making system that was democratic, transparent, and fair was a new model to me, and helped me understand that the way decisions are made in community can be an impactful counterweight to unchecked power.”

What roles have you played in the development and support of cooperatives?

Nkuli

“I’ve been deeply involved in supporting Black-led cooperatives by helping build strong leaders, sustainable models, and powerful networks. Through my work leading the North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship at Nexus, I’ve supported Black cooperative leaders with education, connections, and strategic tools to help them grow and sustain their work.

As a founding board member of the Taproot Investment Cooperative, I’ve helped shape community investment strategies, making sure Black and BIPOC communities have access to sustainable, locally driven real estate opportunities that build long-term wealth.

Beyond these roles, I’ve been hands-on in program leadership and strategy, managing and expanding cooperative fellowships to make sure they have lasting impact. I’ve also designed and facilitated curriculum on cooperative economics, helping communities understand and apply cooperative principles in real ways. And because this work is bigger than any one program, I’ve been active in policy and movement building, pushing for Black-led cooperative development on a broader scale and staying engaged with national networks to help grow the movement.”

Leanna

“I am a member of BLAQ, a dance company for Black people that is founded and led by DejaJoelle, that centers healing and liberation. I was also an artist in the first and second year programs for Body Prayers: For Artists, also led by DejaJoelle, a Poly-Realmic (RECLAIM, SURRENDER, CONJURE) practice that centralizes Black dancers and utilizes dance, healing, community collaboration, and transmission of knowledge to guide Black artists to their most powerful version of themselves and artistic voice.”

Christina

“I spent 20 years, from 1995 to 2015, in retail cooperatives here in the Twin Cities, supporting cooperative staff and organizations through a range of positions from Front–End Manager, Project Manager, Owners Representative, and General Manager. After completing my MBA, in the last five years I have been able to expand my work in the cooperative ecosystem through the development of worker-owned cooperatives, focusing on improving the economic and democratic infrastructures of locally owned businesses.”

In celebration of the International Year of Cooperatives, CoMinnesota, Minnesota Farmers Union, the University of Minnesota Morris, and West Central Initiative launched the first-ever Minnesota Cooperative Summit at the end of July!

The two-day gathering uplifted Minnesota’s rich history of cooperation—and invited new voices to shape its future. The event welcomed those deeply rooted in cooperative work, like Nexus, as well as those exploring it for the first time. Attendees heard real-life success stories, discovered cooperative strategies, and connected across sectors and geographies. It was a launchpad for cooperative action, showcasing how cooperation can help address Minnesota’s economic and social challenges and shape a stronger, more inclusive future.

Diana Siegel-Garcia, Christina Nicholson, and Nkuli Shongwe from our Community Wealth Building team presented on North Star and our Shared Ownership Center, connected with fellow changemakers, and left with tools and inspiration for our future work!

Attendees pose in a large group, smiling, with a banner to celebrate the International Year of Cooperatives.
Shared Ownership Center Program Manager Diana Siegel-Garcia and Cooperative Developer Christina Nicholson table with brochures about Nexus Community Partners.
Community Wealth Building Director Nonkululeko Shongwe laughs onstage with Christina as they give a presentation.
Diana, Christina, and Nkuli smile together as they mingle with other attendees.

Photo credit: Heather Elaine Fotography