Comcast Commits $650k to Native Women Lead’s Matriarch Revolutionary Fund, Nation’s Trailblazing Impact Investment Fund Focused on Native Women-Owned Businesses
April 04 2023 - 9:00AM
Business Wire
Partnership advances economic and
entrepreneurial opportunities for over 200 Indigenous women
Today, Comcast announced a $650,000 commitment to Native Women
Lead (NWL), becoming the nonprofit organization’s first and largest
corporate partner of its Matriarch Revolutionary Fund, the
first-ever impact investment fund in the U.S. focused on
established Native women-owned businesses.
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COMCAST COMMITS $650K TO NATIVE WOMEN
LEAD’S MATRIARCH REVOLUTIONARY FUND, NATION’S TRAILBLAZING IMPACT
INVESTMENT FUND FOCUSED ON NATIVE WOMEN-OWNED BUSINESSES (Photo:
Business Wire)
Through Comcast’s support, NWL can continue its goal of building
a $10 million Matriarch Revolutionary Fund that when fully
resourced will help empower 200 Native women-owned businesses at
$50,000 - $250,000 each. Comcast’s grant will also support NWL’s
broader network of over 20,000 Indigenous women across Turtle
Island, or North America, grow their businesses, communities, and
environment with values-aligned integrated capital.
“It’s important for us to design capital, tools, and products
that meet the needs of Native communities,” said Jaime Gloshay,
Co-Founder of Native Women Lead. “As our first corporate
partner, Comcast’s grant is truly significant and will help us
amplify our work, support our entrepreneurs in reclaiming our
narrative, and give us the opportunity to center and uplift the
people who are making meaningful change in our communities.”
As business owners, Indigenous women face institutional racism
and predatory lending when it comes to accessing capital and
federal funding. In 2017, the Native Nations Institute found that
the number of Small Business Administration (SBA) guaranteed loans
awarded to Native-owned businesses constituted less than 1%.
Native women also experience some of the highest poverty and
wealth gaps in the country. According to the Center for American
Progress, they are paid 60 cents for every $1 paid to White,
non-Hispanic men, yet 66% are their family’s primary breadwinners
and economic drivers in their communities.
“Access to capital remains a significant barrier for women
entrepreneurs, but is particularly challenging for Indigenous
communities,” says Dalila Wilson-Scott, EVP and Chief Diversity
Officer of Comcast Corporation and President of the Comcast
NBCUniversal Foundation. “We are proud to partner with Native
Women Lead to help empower these talented, innovative business
owners realize overdue economic opportunities for themselves and
their community.”
In addition to the Matriarch Revolutionary Fund, Comcast’s grant
will help NWL scale and fund the newly launched Rematriating
Economies Apprenticeship (REA) program that will support 10
Indigenous women on a five-month paid apprenticeship toward
becoming an emerging fund manager. Following the apprenticeship,
participants will also be presented with job placement
opportunities at several investment fund companies or firms
throughout the United States. The apprenticeship is currently
accepting applications for its first cohort through April 10,
2023.
“We want to see our women writing the checks themselves,”
said Vanessa Roanhorse, Co-Founder Native Women Lead.
“I want to see our entrepreneurs thrive – that has been the
magic of Native Women Lead. Being able to see someone succeed
closes that belief gap in oneself and empowers one another to
continue to push and take this journey of entrepreneurship with
that curiosity, with that awe, with that wonder, and to be open to
the challenges of business ownership,” Jaime Gloshay
added.
NWL was founded in 2017 to inspire innovation by investing in
Indigenous women entrepreneurs. Today’s grant announcement
continues Comcast’s multi-year partnership with the organization
and is part of Project UP, Comcast’s $1 billion commitment to reach
tens of millions of people in order to advance digital equity and
help create a future of unlimited possibilities.
About Native Women Lead Native Women Lead’s mission is to
revolutionize systems and inspire innovation by investing in Native
Women in business. We do this by co-creating with and convening our
community to build coalition while honoring our culture,
creativity, and connections. Our core values (BEWE) reflect our
understanding that Native Women are the Backbone of our
communities, we are Emerging as entrepreneurs, and we are Weaving
our ideas, resources, and community to manifest change while
Empowering one another. For more information, visit
www.nativewomenlead.org. To learn more about REA and to access the
application visit here.
About Comcast Corporation Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq:
CMCSA) is a global media and technology company. From the
connectivity and platforms we provide, to the content and
experiences we create, our businesses reach hundreds of millions of
customers, viewers, and guests worldwide. We deliver world-class
broadband, wireless, and video through Xfinity, Comcast Business,
and Sky; produce, distribute, and stream leading entertainment,
sports, and news through brands including NBC, Telemundo,
Universal, Peacock, and Sky; and bring incredible theme parks and
attractions to life through Universal Destinations &
Experiences. Visit www.comcastcorporation.com for more
information.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230403005718/en/
Media Contacts: K. Kim Atterbury
k.kim_atterbury@comcast.com
Elyse Dempsey elyse@roanhorseconsulting.com
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