Lead organization: SOMOS Mayfair
Preliminary partners: Latino Business Foundation Silicon Valley, Excite Credit Union
Counties of operation: San Mateo and Santa Clara
Awarded amount: $1,500,000
Sectors: Small Business and Worker Co-Op, Sustainable Environmental Management
The project will develop a viable plan to create new Worker Cooperative Hubs in each Bay Area county. Worker-owned cooperatives (Co-Ops) increase job quality, resiliency, and community wealth while building worker-power. They’re proven pathways for workers excluded due to immigration status, education, background, language barriers, and caregiving. In Santa Clara and San Mateo counties, accessing Co-Op development services currently requires traveling outside the area, a major barrier for excluded workers. These workers also lack access to complementary information about green economy opportunities, worker rights, and unionization.
The Worker Cooperative Hubs will offer technical assistance, capital access, leadership development, and climate and labor rights education. They will also support climate resilience through education—empowering Climate Ready Ambassadors to lead community workshops on sustainable practices and collaborating with Co-Ops engaged in clean transit and energy initiatives, fostering a just transition to a regenerative economy. Additionally, the hubs will promote a democratic governance model that prioritizes dignified jobs, equitable ownership, and living wages. They will also address racial and gender wealth gaps. Catalyst funding will enable the pre-development of the infrastructure, including assessment, planning, evaluation, and testing.
