The Soul of Capital: Models for a Just Economy

This is Part 2 of our conversation with Black Sky Algorithms Founder Rudy Fraser. In this episode we discuss building digital infrastructure that serves and is governed by community. Rudy gives his tak on why social media moderation is care work, why wants ussers to get mad and post about it, and how social media can help normalize the practice of mutual aid.Check out this episode on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.This episode was produced in partnership with the AmbitioUS initiative at the Center for Cultural Innovation. AmbitioUS encourages the creation of an economy that works for everyone, where philanthropy is led from the frontline, and impact-first investing is the norm. To learn more about the incredible work AmbitioUS funds, please visit https://ambitio-us.org/.Click here to subscribe: https://media.rss.com/thesoulofcapital/feed.xml

This is Part 1 of our 2-part conversation with Blacksky Algorithms Founder Rudy Fraser. Blacksky Algorithms is building social media infrastructure for and by black users. In this conversation we dig into decentralized platforms, democratic governance, and a community-oriented future for the web.Check out this episode on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.This episode was produced in partnership with the AmbitioUS initiative at the Center for Cultural Innovation. AmbitioUS encourages the creation of an economy that works for everyone, where philanthropy is led from the frontline, and impact-first investing is the norm. To learn more about the incredible work AmbitioUS funds, please visit https://ambitio-us.org/.Click here to subscribe: https://media.rss.com/thesoulofcapital/feed.xml

In this episode, we meet Krystal Valencia, founder and CEO of Rental Rescue, breaks down how they preserve affordable rentals by buying, repairing, and keeping buildings in community hands. We talk about missing middle' housing, tenant-centered stewardship, and what capital should be accountable to.Check out this episode on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.This episode was produced in partnership with the AmbitioUS initiative at the Center for Cultural Innovation. AmbitioUS encourages the creation of an economy that works for everyone, where philanthropy is led from the frontline, and impact-first investing is the norm. To learn more about the incredible work AmbitioUS funds, please visit https://ambitio-us.org/.Click here to subscribe: https://media.rss.com/thesoulofcapital/feed.xml

In this episode, originally recorded April 29, 2024, Beneficial Returns Founder and CEO Ted Levinson gives his take on what successful investments look like when the goal is impact. He and his team steward an impact-investing debt fund that makes loans to social enterprises reducing poverty in Latin America and Southeast Asia. Ted talks about his hope that philanthropy will take more risks and why the drive for market-rate returns is failing impact.Check out this episode on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.This episode was produced in partnership with the AmbitioUS initiative at the Center for Cultural Innovation. AmbitioUS encourages the creation of an economy that works for everyone, where philanthropy is led from the frontline, and impact-first investing is the norm. To learn more about the incredible work AmbitioUS funds, please visit https://ambitio-us.org/.Click here to subscribe: https://media.rss.com/thesoulofcapital/feed.xml

In the guest chair we’re talking with Erika Lucas — CEO of Stitch Crew, a workforce and entrepreneur development organization for women, as well and the general partner of Vest Her Ventures, an early stage investment fund for women. Based in Oklahoma, she is helping to reshape capital flows in America’s heartland. Find out how this former economic developer turned impact investor is reimagining how capital reaches women, the care economy, and historically excluded founders outside the usual coastal hubs. Check it out.Check out this episode on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.This episode was produced in partnership with the AmbitioUS initiative at the Center for Cultural Innovation. AmbitioUS encourages the creation of an economy that works for everyone, where philanthropy is led from the frontline, and impact-first investing is the norm. To learn more about the incredible work AmbitioUS funds, please visit https://ambitio-us.org/.Click here to subscribe: https://media.rss.com/thesoulofcapital/feed.xml

What does it take to truly scale underestimated businesses? In this episode, Allison Kelly, CEO of ICA Fund, shares how the Oakland-based fund is building an ecosystem where overlooked entrepreneurs don’t just survive—they scale. In this episode, we explore ICA’s unique approach to centering non-extractive financing, relationships, and long-term impact.Check out this episode on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.Links mentioned in this episode:-- ICA Fund-- ICA Fund Accelerator-- CDFI LocatorThis episode was produced in partnership with the AmbitioUS initiative at the Center for Cultural Innovation. AmbitioUS encourages the creation of an economy that works for everyone, where philanthropy is led from the frontline, and impact-first investing is the norm. To learn more about the incredible work AmbitioUS funds, please visit https://ambitio-us.org/.Click here to subscribe: The Soul of Capital: Models for a Just Economy

In the guest chair this week is Andrew Crosson, CEO of Invest Appalachia, a community-first impact investment platform created by and for the people of Central Appalachia. Andrew is leading a team stewarding a $35 million fund to unlock opportunities for locally rooted entrepreneurs and community-led initiatives across the region. In this episode, we dig into why traditional investment tools often fail rural areas—and how Invest Appalachia is using catalytic capital to reduce barriers and de-risk projects for historically overlooked communities.Check out this episode on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.Links mentioned in this episode:-- Invest Appalachia-- Center for Community InvestmentThis episode was produced in partnership with the AmbitioUS initiative at the Center for Cultural Innovation. AmbitioUS encourages the creation of an economy that works for everyone, where philanthropy is led from the frontline, and impact-first investing is the norm. To learn more about the incredible work AmbitioUS funds, please visit https://ambitio-us.org/.Click here to subscribe: The Soul of Capital: Models for a Just Economy

This week in the guest chair, we have Noni Session, Executive Director of the East Bay Permanent Real Estate Cooperative (EB PREC), a community-driven investment vehicle transforming how land and housing are owned. Based in Oakland, EB PREC is pioneering a model of permanent real estate stewardship rooted in cooperative economics, democratic governance, and cultural organizing. Under Noni’s leadership, the collective has raised over $15 million to remove properties from the speculative market and return them to community control—empowering longtime residents to buy back the block and co-create a future beyond displacement.Check out this episode on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.Links mentioned in this episode:East Bay Permanent Real Estate Cooperative (EB PREC)Sustainable Economies Law Center (SELC)AB-816 Cooperative corporations: worker cooperativesThis episode was produced in partnership with the AmbitioUS initiative at the Center for Cultural Innovation. AmbitioUS encourages the creation of an economy that works for everyone, where philanthropy is led from the frontline, and impact-first investing is the norm. To learn more about the incredible work AmbitioUS funds, please visit https://ambitio-us.org/.Click here to subscribe: https://media.rss.com/thesoulofcapital/feed.xml

This week in the guest chair we have New Mexico-based entrepreneur Vanessa Roanhorse. She is the CEO and owner of Indigenous-led think tank, Roanhorse Consulting. Roanhorse Consulting created a character-based lending program that has moved $4 million to more than 300 entrepreneurs, launched an Apprenticeship on-ramp for Indigenous women to become capital stewards in the investment world, and co-founded Native Women Lead, the largest organization in the U.S. serving Indigenous women entrepreneurs. Vanessa Roanhorse is helping to rematriate the economy, reimagining capitla through indigenous values.Check out this episode on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.Links Mentioned in this episode:Roanhorse ConsultingRematriating Economies Apprenticeship (REA)Living CitiesNusenda Credit UnionDelta InstituteIDEORCAC (Rural Community Assistance Corporation)Native Women LeadPeople First FinanceSOCAPThis episode was produced in partnership with the AmbitioUS initiative at the Center for Cultural Innovation. AmbitioUS encourages the creation of an economy that works for everyone, where philanthropy is led from the frontline, and impact-first investing is the norm. To learn more about the incredible work AmbitioUS funds, please visit https://ambitio-us.org/.Click here to subscribe https://media.rss.com/thesoulofcapital/feed.xml

This week in the guest chair, we have North Carolina-based entrepreneur Sara Chester. She is the Co-Founder & Co-Executive Director, along with Molly Hemstreet, of The Industrial Commons. They lead a cooperative incubator in rural North Carolina that is helping to rebuild a working class based on locally-rooted wealth. In a region that lost 85% of its textile jobs since 1990, they are leading an economic revitalization effort that empowers workers through ownership, democratic decision-making, and profit-sharing.Check out this episode on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.Links Mentioned in this episode:https://www.theindustrialcommons.org/North Carolina Textile Innovation and Sustainability EngineNational Science Foundation: Regional Innovation Engines ProgramAppalachian Regional Initiative for Stronger EconomiesThis episode was produced in partnership with the AmbitioUS initiative at the Center for Cultural Innovation. AmbitioUS encourages the creation of an economy that works for everyone, where philanthropy is led from the frontline, and impact-first investing is the norm. To learn more about the incredible work AmbitioUS funds, please visit https://ambitio-us.org/.Click here to subscribe https://media.rss.com/thesoulofcapital/feed.xml

This week in the guest chair, we have Memphis-based cultural strategist and entrepreneur Anasa Troutman. She is the Executive Director of the 130-year-old Historic Clayborn Temple, where she is leading a $30 million restoration of this National Trust for Historic Preservation-recognized National Treasure. Clayborn Temple served as the base of operations for the 1968 Sanitation Workers' Strike for civil and labor rights. Her team is tapping into that history to create an anchor for a locally-based restorative economy.Check out this episode on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.Links mentioned in this episode:https://clayborn.orghttps://www.anasatroutman.comhttps://www.nwamakaagbo.com/restorative-economicshttps://www.micahmemphis.orghttps://savingplaces.org/stories/anasa-troutman-and-the-future-of-historic-clayborn-templeThis episode was produced in partnership with the AmbitioUS initiative at the Center for Cultural Innovation. AmbitioUS encourages the creation of an economy that works for everyone, where philanthropy is led from the frontline, and impact-first investing is the norm. To learn more about the incredible work AmbitioUS funds, please visit https://ambitio-us.org/.Click here to subscribe https://media.rss.com/thesoulofcapital/feed.xml

This week in guest chair, we have the Executive Director of Memphis-based art gallery TONE. Victoria Jones is part of the visionary property developer team behind a $50 million plan to redevelop Orange Mound Tower located in the first neighborhood built by formerly enslaved persons for Black Americans. They're starting with the transformation of an abandoned 10-acre industrial site on the southeast side of town into a mixed-use arts and live-work space.Check out this episode on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.Links mentioned in this episode:https://www.tonememphis.org/homehttps://www.instagram.com/tonememphisThis episode was produced in partnership with the AmbitioUS initiative at the Center for Cultural Innovation. AmbitioUS encourages the creation of an economy that works for everyone, where philanthropy is led from the frontline, and impact-first investing is the norm. To learn more about the incredible work AmbitioUS funds, please visit https://ambitio-us.org/.Click here to subscribe https://media.rss.com/thesoulofcapital/feed.xml