"Just give us the damn money!"

I hear this time and time again in my role at Camelback Ventures from frustrated founders who are being forced to jump through the hoops/hurdles of a funding and philanthropic system that's been built to keep them out. 

When our organization, Camelback Ventures, was launched nearly a decade ago, we knew how important it was to have an organization built by and for Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC), women, and non-binary entrepreneurs. Camelback was founded on the lived experiences of undervalued founders, including our CEO and Founder, Aaron Walker. We ARE the friends and family round for over 130-plus BIPOC, women, and non-binary founders. 

At the heart of it, Camelback exists to increase access to opportunity for entrepreneurs. We do this by investing in their ventures and leadership through the Camelback Ventures Fellowship while also advocating for fairness in funding. A motto that drives us is ‘genius is equally distributed, but opportunity is not’. We do all of our work with the hope of creating more liveable communities and wealth for future generations to come. 

The Impact of Funding BIPOC-led Organizations

We’ve seen success since 2015. We have directly invested over $5.5 million in our founders, and they have secured over $109 million in follow-on funding. These statistics alone confirm what we have always known - this isn’t a pipeline problem. BIPOC, women, and non-binary entrepreneurs are just as, if not more, successful than their white and male counterparts. 

As our entrepreneurs found success, we realized that while the grassroots work of the Fellowship was on track, our efforts weren't solving the more systemic issues around philanthropy and funding. We know that only 4% of the $76 billion foundations gave out in the U.S. in 2019 went to Black and Latiné entrepreneurs, even though they represent 29% of the population1. We also know that 76% of foundation staff identify as white and white Americans’ social networks are 91% white2. All of this led us to the creation of the Capital Collaborative in 2019. Capital Collaborative works directly with white-identifying individuals in philanthropy to be co-conspirators to disrupt and dismantle the systems that lead to unfair funding.

Unpolluting the Funding Waters: The Capital Collaborative Is Born

Since the inception of Capital Collaborative, we have actively engaged over 70 funders in programming from various organizations including Blue Meridian Partners, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, and John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. We have worked with larger foundations and family foundations. We have worked directly with Executive Directors, Chief Financial Officers, program managers and, soon, we hope to work with board members. We have not only worked with organizations from the coasts, but also organizations in the middle of and rural parts of the country including The Opportunity Trust and Spartanburg County Foundation. We recently launched programming for Capital Collaborators of the Cohort Program, with virtual quarterly “Meet Ups” in 2021. 

Throughout three cohorts, the Capital Collaborative alumni have accomplished change in a variety of ways, including:

  • An increase in their organizations’ funding of BIPOC leaders and organizations by 34% with a deal count of $22 million going to these leaders. 
  • Capital Collaborators of our program become advocates by using their voice to author opinion pieces about racial equity work at their organizations, speaking on panels, and working with other organizations to move more money to BIPOC leaders and organizations. 
  • Individuals have become thought leaders among their peers, presenting lessons learned in national webinars.
  • Our Capital Collaborators have been active in having conversations with our BIPOC, women, and non-binary entrepreneurs to help demystify the funding world and be more transparent with them. 

We are grateful for the first 70-plus individuals who jumped in with both feet to disrupt the status quo of philanthropy. We acknowledge the advocacy, work, changes, and time they have put into shifting their organizations towards becoming more equitable funders for our undervalued entrepreneurs and leaders.

If you are interested in having the support and space to drive change in your funding organization, please complete an Interest Form or sign up for a short informational call with one of our team by contacting capitalcollaborative@camelbackventures.org. 

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The Capital Collaborative by Camelback Ventures works with white funders and social impact investors who want to deepen their individual and organizational commitment to racial and gender equity in philanthropy — but may not know how. You can learn more about how to get involved by submitting an interest form for the Capital Collaborative’s 2023 cohort or signing up for the newsletter.