SeedCommons

Early in our history, we realized that non-extractive finance can't work when lending decisions get made in a central office far from the communities impacted. That's why we don't just finance co-ops, but are ourselves a cooperative, governed by our local member organizations.

Our members, with their deep local connections to their communities, have then been able to build the pipelines of projects advancing democratic ownership through which we have scaled our collective impact. Learn more in our 2025 Impact Report: seedcommons.org/projects/2025-…

In just the past five years, Seed Commons has deployed $100 million in non-extractive capital to power the cooperative economy. Our secret? We raise capital at national scale, while investing in the capacity of the member organizations of our financial cooperative.

Yeleen's members can now access the equipment, technical expertise, and shared resources they need to scale their businesses, creating more opportunities and a stronger network for community-based manufacturing. Learn more: washingtoninformer.com/yeleen-beauty-…

We're thrilled to have been able to make a non-extractive investment in the launch of Yeleen Beauty Makerspace in Washington, DC: "a shared production hub designed for women and founders of color to create, manufacture, and grow their beauty brands."

Learn more about the open-source Madeline system that powers our national financial cooperative: seedcommons.org/posts/digital-…

We exist to distribute economic power to workers & communities—our software system needs to mirror that democratic financial logic in code. There’s no off the shelf software we could use, because there has never been anything that works the way Seed Commons does. So we built it.

What kind of software do you need to manage, at scale, a portfolio of over $115 million in deployed investments, made across a cooperative of 39 local member organizations?

Looking for a career opportunity building non-extractive financial infrastructure that shifts power to workers and communities? We have an immediate opening for a Bookkeeper/Staff Accountant — this is a fully remote position. Learn more and apply: seedcommons.org/posts/bookkeep…

Madeline (and Seed Commons) are one of those bright lights that are easy to miss in these brutal and terrifying times. 63/

USFWC Members - voting is open for your Board of Directors! @SeedCommons Gather your coworkers and head to usworker.coop/elections to read all the candidate statements and cast your vote! #ThisIsWhatDemocracyLooksLike

💸 Need funding to transition to employee ownership? #RMEOC partners with @SeedCommons to offer non-extractive financing that puts communities first—not profits. f.mtr.cool/rzbjeuizdg #SeedCommons #EmployeeOwnership #CoopFinancing #NonExtractiveCapital #ColoradoBusiness

Learn more in @EdibleHV's cover story: ediblehudsonvalley.com/2025/gentle-to…

Through a series of successful non-extractive loans—for startup, facilities expansion, and seasonal working capital—Seed Commons member Cooperation Hudson Valley has helped Gentle Time grow and thrive.

“To be trans and outside is something beautiful we can share.” —Kaija Xiao, founding worker-owner at Gentle Time Farming

Read more on Northgate Greenhouses conversion to a worker cooperative here: wvxu.org/environment/20…

"The transition to a worker-owned model means 20 employees are keeping their jobs and giving input on workplace decisions." Congrats to Northgate Greenhouses on becoming worker-owned after 6 decades in business, and to Seed Commons member @coopcincy for making this happen!

@coopsantaana @lacooplab And this spring, La Colmena opened its doors to the community, along w/the initial co-op businesses it is home to: La Milpa Café, Duugich Art, and the SALSA community agriculture project. Read more at @VoiceofOC voiceofoc.org/2025/04/santa-… and @nextcityorg nextcity.org/urbanist-news/…

@coopsantaana Through our member organization @lacooplab, Seed Commons made an initial non-extractive loan in 2022 to help Thrive get the ball rolling on construction. With momentum on the site underway, more funding from the state was unlocked.

Back in 2020, Thrive Santa Ana's organizing helped secure the first piece of property for their new community land trust, the first ever in this Orange County city facing major threats of displacement from rising rents and gentrification. 🧵