Overview: The Cultivating Inland Empire Latino Opportunity (CIELO) Fund, launched by the Inland Empire Community Foundation, has raised over $3 million since 2022 to support Latino-led and Latino-serving organizations and allies in the region. The fund has invested almost $1.5 million into the region’s Latino community through scholarships, grantmaking, narrative change initiatives, and original research. The CIELO Leadership and Grant Committee also established the CIELO Endowed Fund with an initial investment of $500,000 to ensure the important grantmaking work continues for generations.
Alyssah Hall
In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, the Inland Empire Community Foundation (IECF) announced the Cultivating Inland Empire Latino Opportunity (CIELO) Fund has raised over $3 million since launching in 2022. The CIELO Fund was created with the desire to support Latino-led and Latino-serving organizations and allies throughout the IE.
The CIELO Fund Leadership and Grantmaking Committee is made up of Latino leaders who live and work in the region. It includes community-based organization leaders, college district chancellors, university presidents, several vice chancellors, leaders in academia, and corporate leaders.
The CIELO Fund has invested nearly $1.5 million into the region’s Latino community through scholarships, grantmaking, narrative change initiatives and original research. This includes more than $300k in scholarships to students and $1.2 million in grant awards to over 100 grassroots organizations and initiatives.
The CIELO Leadership and Grant Committee also established the CIELO Endowed Fund in 2025 with an initial investment of $500,000 to ensure that the important grantmaking work continues for generations. This lasting resource was made possible through the generosity of multiple donors over the years and the visionary support of the James Irvine Foundation.
“At a time when many Inland residents are facing fear and uncertainty, The CIELO Fund is stepping in by providing support to local organizations and students,” stated Jesse Melgar, IECF Board Chair and CIELO Fund founding chair.
“Inland Latino residents are experiencing fear like we haven’t seen in decades based on recent federal actions. We are witnessing a growing mental health crisis among students and workers who feel they might be targeted because of how they look, how they speak, or where they work. Yet, even in this moment of uncertainty, we are also seeing something powerful — a renewed sense of unity, purpose, and resilience across our community,” stated Elizabeth Romero, assistant vice chancellor of Governmental & Community Relations at UC Riverside.
The CIELO Fund also released a summary of a new report produced by the UCLA Latino Policy & Politics Institute looking at Key Facts and Worker Voices: The Latino Workforce in California’s Inland Empire.
The 2025 grantmaking involved media partnerships to highlight positive regional narratives through effective and original programming. The CIELO Fund is continuing to support and partner with KVCR/NPR on the IE Latino Voices radio segment. It is also collaborating with CalMatters and the LA Times’ Latino vertical, DeLos, to spotlight Latino causes across the Inland Empire.
“The CIELO Fund exists because a group of regional leaders saw a gap in investment in our diverse communities and decided to step up. We didn’t wait for permission. We knew someone had to take the first step,” Angel Rodriguez stated. Rodriguez is the co-founder of the CIELO Fund and associate vice chancellor of Government Relations, Strategic Communications & Grants for the San Bernardino Community College District.
“But today’s challenges demand that each of us do more. We invite our neighbors to join us in helping secure the resources our communities and students need to live with dignity and opportunity,” Rodriguez continued.
“The early support we’ve received has truly laid the foundation for the CIELO Fund’s success,” said Brie Griset Smith, CSPG, Chief Development Officer at IECF. “Now we’re harnessing that momentum to bring in more donors to uplift Latino communities and spotlight the opportunities ahead in the Inland Empire.”
The CIELO Fund has raised $3 million as a result of investments from the California Endowment, the Weingart Foundation, the James Irvine Foundation, the California Wellness Foundation, the California Healthcare Foundation, The Chavez Family Foundation, the S.L. Gimbel Foundation Fund, and support from dozens of institutional and corporate donors. The Fund has also been empowered by more than 100 individual donations.