CALIFORNIA FORWARD
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
California, the world’s fifth largest economy and a state known for innovation, is also home to significant challenges. From having the highest rate of real poverty in the country to disastrous wildfires to systemic social, racial, and geographic inequities, California harbors tremendous barriers for many to achieve shared prosperity and the California Dream.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
California Economic Summit
Co-hosted by the California Stewardship Network and grounded in triple-bottom-line solutions, the Summit is a vehicle to put forth policy recommendations that transform regions, including initiatives that create more homes, more skilled workers, and more quality jobs.
From preparing a 21st century workforce, ensuring equitable homeownership, and bridging the digital divide to creating ecosystems and climate resiliency, the Summit is the only space of its kind to provide a platform to showcase inclusive, regional economic development efforts to a broad range of stakeholders, influencers, and powerbrokers, including the governor, legislators, and investors. Leaders across all sectors, industries, and regions come together at the Summit to propel solutions-oriented, bipartisan collaboration that moves the state forward.
Young Leaders Advisory Council
The California Forward Young Leaders Advisory Council is comprised of Californians ages 16-24 from diverse backgrounds and social identities who are committed to intergenerational collaboration. The Council is poised to address both regional and statewide issues that greatly impact the next generation through advocacy, civic engagement, coalition building, and policy development. The Council is constructing a future of equity and opportunity for all Californians.
California Dream Index
The California Dream Index consists of 10 trackable outcome measures that influence economic security, mobility, and inclusion through a common platform. The California Dream Index offers regions an "apples to apples" comparison across the state. Through the California Dream Index, local, regional, and state leaders have access to both a shared platform of measurement tools and a community of practice that spurs policy and collective action across the state.
Becky Morgan Steward Leadership Program
The Becky Morgan Steward Leadership Program invites local leaders to deepen their understanding of regional and statewide policy issues, hone their decision-making skills, and unite with other leaders to learn, grow, and change California. The learning objectives of the program aim to develop an awareness and commitment to practicing stewardship, building coalitions, leading consciously, and incorporating triple-bottom-line approaches into community-based solutions and decision-making.
Where we work
External reviews

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Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of people who attended the California Economic Summit
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
California Economic Summit
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Impact: 590 people networking, sharing, learning, and moving policies forward in the state.
Number of scholarships provided to people attending the California Economic Summit
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
California Economic Summit
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
California Forward drives collective action to bring people together across communities, regions, and interests to identify triple-bottom-line (economy, environment, equity) solutions that can be taken to scale to meet the challenges the state is facing; improve government; and create inclusive, sustainable growth for everyone.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
California Forward works closely with cross-sector partners throughout the state to improve economic, environmental, and equitable outcomes for the people of California. California Forward carries out this work through a core set of institutional assets that include the California Stewardship Network (a diverse alliance of regional leaders), the California Economic Summit and associated policy work groups (California Forward’s signature event fostering cross-sector collaboration and elevating state and regional policy initiatives), the Young Leaders Advisory Council (representing youth and young adult voices throughout the state), and the Becky Morgan Steward Leadership Program (a leadership development program for rising professionals). All residing under the umbrella of California Forward, these entities are focused throughout the year on creating a more inclusive and prosperous California for all. In addition, California Forward houses the California Dream Index, a data platform that tracks progress toward a more equitable California utilizing 10 indicators for economic mobility, security, and inclusion.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
California Forward has extensive experience in areas such as engaging in collective action, building coalitions, hosting convenings, conducting research, and providing policy expertise and technical assistance—all of which contribute to moving the policy needle forward to create inclusive and sustainable impact within the state’s different regions.
For our equitable economies work, California Forward offers specific capabilities to help regions with inclusive economic growth strategies. Please note that these capabilities can be tailored to fit the needs of other initiatives as well.
Imagine & Design: With an equity lens, California Forward works with partners to imagine and design a customized regional economic planning process from strategic planning to implementation, providing support to accelerate collaboration by bringing diverse stakeholders together to ensure community voices are included at the thought leadership table.
Impact: Harnessing the power of our influential regional network (California Stewardship Network), policy work groups (California Economic Summit), data platform and community of practice (California Dream Index), and our advocacy partner (California Forward Action Fund), we help partners move data-based policy solutions forward to drive sustained impact and systemic change.
Scale: Leveraging California Forward’s policy expertise, we provide counsel on how regional economic efforts can best align with statewide strategies and be taken to scale. Leaders of our California Stewardship Network are deeply engaged in model regional economic development efforts, allowing us to tap into valuable insights, best practices, and opportunities for collective action.
Invest: By regranting resources that provide the opportunity for local organizations to build capacity, we help partners accelerate their vision to create an economy where all can prosper.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
California Forward, with support from our partners, networks and work groups, continues to advance collective action work that is moving the policy needle forward within interconnected issue areas ranging from homeownership expansion to climate resilience to workforce development.
Throughout the state’s different regions, California Forward also continues to collaborate with California Stewardship Network partners and other stakeholders to identify and elevate inclusive regional economic development priorities through strategic convenings and planning sessions. Some of the regional initiatives include Fresno DRIVE, Better Bakersfield & Boundless Kern (B3K), Regions Rise Together: Salinas, Inland Economic Growth and Opportunity (IEGO), and Propel LA, among others.
As California Forward’s reach, network, and institutional assets continue to grow, more progress will be made in helping all Californians achieve greater shared prosperity and the California Dream.
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
CALIFORNIA FORWARD
Board of directorsas of 02/03/2022
John Chiang
Apollo Medical Holdings
Term: 2019 - 2021
Ashley Swearengin
Central Valley Community Foundation
Term: 2021 - 2023
Peter Weber (Co-Chair)
California Partnership for the San Joaquin Valley
Jennifer Hernandez
Holland & Knight
Pete Peterson
Davenport Institute for Public Engagement and Civic Leadership, Pepperdine School of Public Policy
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? GuideStar partnered on this section with CHANGE Philanthropy and Equity in the Center.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 10/19/2021GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
- We analyze disaggregated data and root causes of race disparities that impact the organization's programs, portfolios, and the populations served.
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We disaggregate data by demographics, including race, in every policy and program measured.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We use a vetting process to identify vendors and partners that share our commitment to race equity.
- We have a promotion process that anticipates and mitigates implicit and explicit biases about people of color serving in leadership positions.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We measure and then disaggregate job satisfaction and retention data by race, function, level, and/or team.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.