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Milken Institute Finance

10,000 Communities

Despite myriad federal and state funding opportunities, many urban and rural communities are unable to adequately fund or finance critical community infrastructure investments that underpin their long-term economic growth. The 10,000 Communities Initiative works in partnership with other private and public organizations around the US to ensure to connect people, projects and partners to facilitate the effective and equitable distribution of resources to traditionally underfunded communities and support long-term community resilience.

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Funding needed to build climate-smart U.S. infrastructure by 2050
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Americans who still lack affordable home broadband
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Community Disaster Resilience Zones designated for special attention
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10,000 Communities

Workstreams

We work in partnership with other private and public organizations around the U.S. to ensure to connect people, projects and partners to facilitate the effective and equitable distribution of resources to traditionally underfunded communities and support long-term community resilience.

Better Bonds and Best Practices

Muni bonds fund 2/3 of all U.S. built infrastructure. Our better bonds team works to address the challenges of 50,000+ diverse muni market issuers, inspire outcomes-based thinking, promote equitable uses of bond proceeds, and incentivize critical best practices such as better asset management and procurement to scale up the impact of public financing.

Community Infrastructure Center

The Community Infrastructure Center (CIC) is an innovative solution to scale up equitable capital deployment and accelerate community-led community infrastructure projects in historically underserved communities. The CIC offers free technical assistance capacity for community project sponsors, project advancement tools, and links to a wide range of sources—including impact and institutional investors, federal and state grants, philanthropy, and project development expertise.

Initiative for Inclusive Entrepreneurship

Small businesses are the heartbeat of our economy. They account for almost half of our GDP and employ nearly half of all private-sector workers. Entrepreneurs of color represent the fastest growing segment of the small business market, yet they have the least access to capital. They are more likely to be denied credit; more likely to pay high interest rates; and less likely to apply for loans out...

Regional Partnerships

Cross-sectoral collaboration is key to build bottom-up innovation economic results between businesses, communities, and federal, state, and local governments. We work with partners to create regional strategies and events to effectively link together investors, technical assistance experts, and community leaders to build local and national resilience and long-term competitiveness.

10,000 Communities
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ImpactAlpha's Take on 10,000 Communities

"Together, these partnerships are designed to reduce project development costs and drive capital to under-resourced communities by linking investors, technical assistance experts, and community leaders through generative AI, online grant-matching and other innovative financing techniques,” says Milken Institute’s Rachel Halfaker. “We know we can’t solve these challenges alone."

10,000 Communities

Our Team

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Dan Carol

Senior Director, Milken Institute Finance
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Rachel Halfaker

Associate Director, 10,000 Communities Initiative, Milken Institute Finance
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Sarah Ortner

Senior Associate, Public Finance, Milken Institute Finance
10,000 Communities

Leaders

Advisory Council

This Advisory Council plays a pivotal role in our work, bringing together a distinguished group of executive-level and cross-sectoral leaders who offer strategic guidance and direction for our program's development. These experts provide...
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To learn more, email us at [email protected].