Alyssah Hall
The Inland Empire Community Foundation held their 2026 Policy & Philanthropy Summit: “All Together” on Thursday, Aug. 6, at the Riverside Convention Center.
The IE’s “rapid growth” has strained infrastructure, increased the cost of housing and is expanding the risk of leaving communities behind. The IECF event aimed to discuss these challenges in order to create and inspire a shared regional strategy as well as collaborative solutions that empower the region to move forward “All Together.”
Rip Rapson, President & CEO of The Kresge Foundation—a private, Detroit based organization dedicated to expanding opportunities in America’s cities through grantmaking and social investing—joined in conversation with IECF President and CEO, Michelle Decker. Rapson discussed topics like coordinated leadership, place-based investment, and how philanthropy can help communities move through tough times.
Rapson said that the best mayors understand that the one “intimate” resource they have as a community is well organized people where they live. He explained once they tap into that resource other aspects of problem solving begin falling into place.
“I don’t think we have a ‘forcing’ moment here in the Inland Empire. The ‘forcing’ moment is evergreen. You have been facing issues of racial disparity, health disparity, economic dislocation…this is not new. And so, there are things that require just ongoing steady, state work that I think are susceptible [to] exactly this kind of conversation,” Rapson said.
Rapson shared that issues such as COVID 19, racial reconciliation and the Trump administration will force people to move quickly. He said the things that they know matter like economic mobility, racial justice and environmental sustainability are a long process that needs to be started by grabbing capable and interested people who are passionate about those issues.
“Don’t wait for the moment. The moment is defining you, and the moment is everything. It’s just going to be there forever,” Rapson said.
The summit was filled to overflowing with impactful community leaders and included a main stage conversation with Congressman Pete Aguilar, who represents CA’s 33rd District. There were seven main stage sessions which included: “Celebrating Immigrants: Strategies for Belonging in this Moment,” and “H.R. 1: State Response, Regional Readiness, and What Comes Next.”
The event also offered an option of six breakout rooms in the afternoon that dove deeper into the topics highlighted by the main stage discussions.
“You cannot wait for your head to be on the chopping block because guess what? Immigrants and refugees are the litmus test. They’re trying to see how far they can go with them,” said Malek Bendelhoum, executive director of the Sahaba Initiative.
During the “Celebrating Immigrants: Strategies for Belonging in this Moment” discussion panel, Bendelhoum shared that he is the child of an Algerian immigrant father who was born and grew up during French colonialism and an African American mother who grew up in the Jim Crow South. Bendelhoum stated that when talking to his family who marched in the south and had dogs and hoses put on them, they said that if this could be done to them, as people who were forcibly brought to America than try to imagine what they would do to people who chose to immigrate here.
“Don’t think it doesn’t affect you. Don’t think just because you’re not an immigrant, you’re not a refugee, it doesn’t affect you. Guess what? It starts with them, and then it comes [for] the rest of us,” Bendelhoum said.
During the “H.R. 1: State Response, Regional Readiness, and What Comes Next” panel, California Health & Human Services Secretary Kim Johnson discussed how the state is responding to the House Resolution 1 law’s impacts. Also known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” H.R. 1 cuts primarily impact low-income individuals and members of marginalized communities who rely on federal safety-net programs, healthcare and food assistance. Johnson emphasized the need for community contribution, support and the power of collective community health. The California Endowment’s Chief Strategy Officer Carolyn Wang Kong, discussed philanthropy’s role in strengthening regional resilience and partnering with the government during this period of transition.
“Whether you are in Health and Human Services; whether you have anything to do with the implementation of these provisions, I promise you it’s going to impact you…If we have not learned by now, the health of our grocery clerk matters to the health of us and everyone that we live with,” Johnson said.
“This is not exclusively an attack on California, on politics. This is actually an attack on the safety net, and it is critical for us to really understand how we work in community and live together in these ways. It really does matter. Your health matters to me in a real way and we have to really elevate that conversation to ensure that we do have the resources to support people in the ways that they need to be supported to thrive,” Johnson continued.