Greenlining Institute

History

The Greenlining Institute was established by African American, Asian American, and Latino American community leaders in 1993 to fight injustice, increase the participation of people of color in policymaking, and encourage successful investment by corporate America into these communities. Rather than just fighting redlining, the illegal practice of denying services to certain communities, greenlining is the proactive effort of bringing profitable investments and services to communities that have been left behind.

The Greenlining Institute was founded on the principle of wealth creation, with a strong belief that diversity makes business sense and leads to greater effectiveness.

Policy Issues

Philanthropy-related activities

In 2005, Greenlining began researching the philanthropic giving patterns of California's largest foundations and found very low investment in non-profit organizations led by people of color.

According to the US Census, California's communities of color comprise over 50% of the state's population—making it a majority-minority state. Greenlining found that philanthropic giving did not reflect California's population.

Greenlining introduced AB 624, which was a piece of "sunshine" legislation which would have require large foundations operating in California to gather and disclose pertinent diversity data. AB 624 would not have required foundations to invest in minority communities, nor would it have created racial quotas for grant-making and employment. This legislation was an attempt to get foundations to disclose data related to diversity on an annual basis. The bill was ultimately withdrawn.

Opposition to Uber

The Greenlining Institute opposed the expansion of Uber into Oakland, California due to concerns that it would cause displacement of residents and gentrification.

Community reinvestment

Greenlining's Community Reinvestment program works with banks and other financial institutions to equitably execute the Community Reinvestment Act.

References

References

1. "The Greenlining Institute".
2. . (July 14, 2020). ["The Greenlining Institute Mourns the Passing of Co-Founder Bob Gnaizda"](https://www.postnewsgroup.com/the-greenlining-institute-mourns-the-passing-of-co-founder-bob-gnaizda/). *[[Oakland Post (California)*.
3. . (February 12, 2020). ["Data Transparency is a Racial Equity Issue: Communities of Color Need Diversity and Inclusion Policies at Banks – Written Testimony of Rawan Elhalaby, Senior Economic Equity Program Manager, The Greenlining Institute, For the Subcommittee on Diversity and Inclusion – "A Review of Diversity and Inclusion at America's Large Banks""](https://www.congress.gov/116/meeting/house/110498/witnesses/HHRG-116-BA13-Wstate-ElhalabyR-20200212.pdf).
4. "The Greenlining Institute : Greenlining Report > Fairness in Philanthropy Part I: Foundation Giving to Minority-led Nonprofits".
5. "US Census Press Releases".
6. "Archived copy".
7. "The Greenlining Institute : Democratizing Philanthropy > AB 624 Resources".
8. (25 August 2017). "Uber says it's exploring sale of former Sears building in Oakland". San Francisco Chronicle.