Robert Alvarado, Committee for Environmental Justice Action (CEJA), San Antonio, TX

Diana Bustamante, Colonias Development Council (CDC), Las Cruces, NM

Fekkak Mamdouh, Restaurant Opportunities Centers United (ROC-U), New York, NY

Jose Matus, Alianza Indigena Sin Fronteras, Tucson, AZ

Denise Perry, Power U Center for Social Change, Miami, FL

Al White, Action Communication and Education Reform (ACER), Duck Hill, MS

Francis Calpotura, Transnational Institute for Grassroots Research and Action (TIGRA), Oakland, CA

Leah Wise, Southeast Regional Economic Justice Network (REJN), Durham, NC

Alston Bannerman and the Center for Social Inclusion

In 2008, the Alston Bannerman Fellowship Program became part of the Center for Social Inclusion (CSI). The Center unites public policy research and grassroots advocacy to transform structural inequity and exclusion into structural fairness and inclusion. CSI works with community groups and national organizations to develop policy ideas, foster effective leadership, and develop communications tools for an opportunity-rich world in which we all will thrive. Through the Alston Bannerman Leadership initiative, CSI supports and connects community leaders of color. The Initiative continues the Alston Bannerman Sbbatical Fellowship, which for twenty-two years has given organizers of color across the country the opportunity to take time off for reflection and renewal. In 2009, CSI added a Senior Fellowship, which gives visionary leaders of color support to develop new ideas and strategies for structural change. Beyond providing fellowships, the Initiative is building an active network of Fellowship alumni and other leaders who can cooperate in overcoming barriers to racial equity and inclusion.