Evolution by necessity: How nonprofits adapt to support the community

GREEN BAY – The world is ever changing. Although we see it daily through things like the weather, art and news, many don’t consider the lasting impact that change has on the community.

However, area nonprofits feel the impact of these changes daily.

Greater Green Bay Community Foundation (GGBCF) Senior Vice President of Community Impact Amber Paluch has experienced these changes firsthand.
Paluch started at the GGBCF in 2015, and in the last 10 years, she’s seen the needs of the community change with its population.

“Nonprofits working in this space have seen that men have larger mental health challenges. Child care costs have also increased significantly, leaving issues of availability, but there’s lots of other factors in child care”, she said.

“For a lot of different populations these needs have changed. For example, housing and homelessness have always been a challenge in our community. We’re currently seeing a lot of the older generations experiencing a housing crisis”, she added.

“A lot of these issues intersect,” she said. “We consider social belonging to be a critical and growing issue. When housing issues increase you see the same challenges in economic stability. So many issues intersect that one can affect another.”

While the needs of the community have changed, the needs of the nonprofits themselves have also changed.

One practice the GGBCF implements is impact investing.

“We are exploring impact investing. A low interest loan opportunity that provides access to capital for those who might not have that,” she said.

Impact investing uses charitable assets to invest in projects and business opportunities with not just a financial return but also a social return.

One of the main goals of impact investing is that these opportunities are paid forward to others and are reinvested over time.

GGBCF partners with Forward Community Investments to offer loans of up to $300,000 towards projects within their four major areas of funding: housing, healthcare, education and economic stability.

In their investment they create an environment that encourages self-sufficiency and creates future opportunities.

“Impact investing is a way to keep dollars because of its return on investment. It’s a tool for nonprofits to use when they need those kinds of resources.” she added.