Over the past 20 years, Latinx immigrant leaders in the Emma neighborhood (Anigiduwagi/Cherokee land) have been organizing around mutual aid, community defense, and the uplift of our cultures. From these efforts a number of grassroots organizations emerged, including Nuestro Centro (now Raíces Emma-Erwin), CIMA, PODER Emma Community Ownership, and Mä hñäkihu: Indigenous Language Preservation Project.

After years of deep collaboration, in 2018 our organizations officially united to implement a vision for greater cooperation and sustainability. Colaborativa La Milpa was established as a collective response for building capacity around fundraising, planning, evaluation, and coordinated strategic approaches.

Colaborativa La Milpa is creating a model for sharing infrastructure so more energy can go directly to our programs, and for combining efforts to avoid duplicating work. We come together to break patterns of isolation that exist on individual and organizational levels. We practice building community, being in true solidarity, and being in collaboration rather than competition. We believe that working collectively expands our impact.

We affirm that each of our organizations is stronger when all of our organizations are thriving.