The Diaspora Rise Entrepreneur Incubator

Immigrant and refugee support

County of Los Angeles (select only if your project has a countywide benefit)

Pilot or new project, program, or initiative (testing or implementing a new idea)

Los Angeles is home to a vibrant immigrant population, yet many face systemic barriers to economic participation—including language access, immigration status, limited digital skills, and lack of credential recognition. These challenges disproportionately impact immigrants from African, Latin American, and Asian communities, who are often pushed into low-wage, precarious jobs with little opportunity for advancement. Traditional workforce development programs are frequently inaccessible or culturally misaligned. As a result, entrepreneurial potential goes untapped, and community wealth creation is stifled. There is a critical need for culturally responsive pathways that equip immigrants with the tools to launch and sustain small businesses, generate income, and reinvest in their communities. Our work addresses this gap by removing structural barriers and providing the training, mentorship, and support needed to foster inclusive economic mobility across Los Angeles County.

The Diaspora Rise Entrepreneur Incubator is a culturally responsive entrepreneurship training and support program designed to help immigrants overcome systemic barriers to economic opportunity. Led by the African Communities Public Health Coalition (ACPHC), this initiative equips participants with the tools to launch and sustain small businesses that generate income, jobs, and community reinvestment. With support from LA2050, the project will serve 25–30 immigrant and refugee residents of Los Angeles County—prioritizing those with limited English proficiency, low income, or disrupted education.
Participants will engage in a five-month Foundation Readiness Program (FRP), offered in multiple languages through a mobile-first platform to accommodate digital access needs. Training topics include business planning, financial literacy, marketing, and regulatory compliance. The program also provides mentorship from culturally aligned entrepreneurs, peer learning cohorts, and post-training incubation support. ACPHC complements this curriculum with wraparound services such as mental health counseling, childcare referrals, and legal navigation.
This grant will provide the opportunity to scale the FRP in LA, pilot our environmental self-assessment tool for small businesses, and deliver targeted outreach in South and Central LA neighborhoods. The result is a replicable model that transforms excluded immigrants into business owners, job creators, and community leaders.

This project will demonstrate that immigrant-led entrepreneurship is a viable, scalable solution to economic exclusion in Los Angeles County. Dozens of participants will move from economic instability to business ownership, generating income for themselves and creating jobs in their communities. Their businesses, rooted in cultural knowledge and built on sustainability principles, will contribute to neighborhood revitalization and economic resilience. Over time, these enterprises will foster stronger local supply chains, increase community wealth, and shift narratives around who drives innovation and growth in LA. The incubator model will be refined and expanded through partnerships with workforce boards, immigrant-serving coalitions, with a goal of scaling countywide and replicating the program in other immigrant-dense regions. Ultimately, the project will reshape how LA supports its immigrant communities: not just through service, but through shared prosperity and ownership.