The New York Foundation funds neighborhood organizations in NYC, often start-ups, that look within their own communities for solutions to   profound challenges. Grantees with often modest resource are an increasing voice at the local, state and national levels, addressing unlivable and unaffordable housing, exploitative conditions in the workplace, school reform and mistreatment of immigrants. As New York Foundation executive director Maria Mottola explains, this theory of change making is rooted in the Foundation's values and history. Whether funding Nepalese women to organize in Jackson Heights, Queens, or tenant organizers in the Bronx, Maria is expanding on the legacy of believing in, and building the capacity of, community members to make the change they want to see. In an era where immigrant communities in particular face daily pushback, Maria and the New York Foundation are engaged where it matters most, on supporting neighborhood leaders and developing community infrastructure.