The We Rise business plan curriculum guides participants through identifying effective ways to communicate their voice from paper to action. Once finished, the participant can successfully use the plan as a blueprint for day-to-day operations, obtaining funding, and overall growth.

Blanca Abarca es una orgullosa mexicana del estado de veracruz, graduada como enfermera profesional por la facultad de enfermería de la universidad veracruzana y orgullosa residente de Sur Phoenix por más de 20 años.

Su pequeña empresa Blanca 's Alterations & Creations LLC nació para dar formalidad a todas sus ideas y proyectos que ha realizado desde hace muchos años, con la intención de poder extenderlo y que la comunidad pudiera conocer más de su trabajo y labor.

The Sustainability Team at Local First Arizona is committed to connecting local businesses to more advocacy opportunities and to telling the stories of those across the state who are advocating for beneficial environmental policies. Read about some of the ways LFA has gotten involved in environmental advocacy.

The Little Colorado Foundation is rolling out a new soft skills training program that will be open to those seeking to start or enhance their career in any industry in Apache County. The program - called “UP (Unleash Your Potential)” - utilizes the National Retail Industry Fundamentals curriculum, providing students with an understanding of the retail industry, job readiness skills, and building basic customer service skills. UP is a 5-week hybrid training program that incorporates self-guided, online training and onsite community engagement activities to enhance customer service and soft skills in the Apache County workforce.  

The Florence Chamber of Commerce, in partnership with Local First Arizona and the Arizona Office of Tourism, gathered local residents and business owners to collectively create a community brand. This brand will represent the Florence business community and be utilized to promote events and other local activities. Community members who were a part of the meetings were there to be the most authentic voice for Florence. The group provided invaluable information about the history of the region, what makes Florence so special, colors that best represent their town, and more. This input helped to ensure that the final brand outcome would be representative of the community, its residents, and its businesses.

El Mes de la Herencia Hispana se celebra entre el 15 de septiembre y 15 de octubre porque celebran su independencia países hispanos como Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, México y Chile. Durante este mes se hace honor a las personas de origen hispano en Estados Unidos, festejando el 12 de octubre el Día de la Hispanidad.

Es por ello que contaremos la historia de dos representantes hispanos, graduados del programa Acelerador de Negocios de Fuerza Local y líderes en la comunidad de Sur Phoenix, Arizona.

Carlos Castillo originario de Indaparapeo, Michoacán y Erika Castillo originaria de Los Ángeles, California, con 8 años de casados dejaron sus profesiones para no solo ser dueños de su restaurante sino también para poder ayudar a su comunidad y generar empleos en Arizona con Chino-Mex, un restaurante con un encuentro de culturas gastronómicas muy especial.

Local First has a comprehensive and easy-to-use directory not only for local businesses but also for farms, community-supported agriculture (CSA) and all things food. It’s important to shop local and support your community and this directory makes it simple.

Food and farming are more than just growing and selling produce; the fall film series addresses how Arizona farms are helping families and overcoming injustice in the system.

The overall goal of the Tribal Food Sovereignty Series is to provide a space for ongoing conversations that encourage exchange between food partners and tribal food practitioners and enhance networks and collaborations for improved coordination and stronger regional and inclusive food systems.

This summer has brought a much-needed monsoon season to quench our parched ecosystems and communities across the state. Luckily, more and more businesses across the state have made conserving water and other sustainable practices a part of the way they do business. This month, three new businesses have become certified through the Arizona Green Business Program. Steady Glow Digital, Ivan Martinez Photography, and The Nile Theater + Coffee Shop.

Due to their dedication to support the San Carlos Apache community, NDC has been a close partner with United Food Bank, distributing hundreds of food boxes to San Carlos families in need during the pandemic. Local First Arizona’s Good Food Film Series captured this partnership in the ‘Farm to Food Bank’ film released in May. The film is accessible through February 2022, so don’t miss your chance to watch it!

We are also gearing up for a second volunteer engagement for our LFA staff - NDC’s first fall fair this October. This will be a family-friendly event and will feature a film screening, farmers & artisans market, Apache food cooking demonstrations, live art, and a fashion show. There will also be plenty of youth activities, including a pumpkin patch and carving station, beading, and archery. We will celebrate NDC’s hard work this year and honor the food traditions and resilience of the San Carlos Apache community.

The Local First Arizona Sustainability team is now accepting applications for the next four cohorts starting in September 2021, November 2021, January 2022, and March 2022 from businesses and nonprofits seeking to develop the knowledge and skills to implement a sustainability project that reduces their impact, benefits their community, and gets them recognized for building a vibrant, inclusive, and sustainable local economy in Arizona.

Last month, LFA held the first of a series of three workshops designed exclusively for Verde Grown vendors. These are capacity-building events free to those registered as a Verde Grown member. We now have 39 local businesses in Verde Grown and the list keeps growing! This first workshop provided information on how to best take advantage of Verde Grown as a regional marketing initiative and get more exposure for their businesses. We also reviewed the success of the digital campaign in engaging local and statewide audiences online. Lastly, we ended the event with a speed networking activity to help facilitate new connections and encourage Verde Grown vendors to leverage each other for new business opportunities. This was a wildly popular activity and well-attended event.

In the Summer of 2020, the Sky Islands Tourism Alliance reached out to Local First Arizona for assistance in creating better collaboration amongst the hospitality and tourism businesses in the region. To address these challenges, five potential solutions were presented to the group with interest arising in the creation of a Local First Arizona Small Wonders Map.

The State of Arizona has launched the Back to Work Small Business Hiring and Retention Program. This $5 million program is designed to assist small, locally owned or operated businesses hire and retain employees; the program also has a special focus on businesses that have been affected by the recent wildfires and flooding.

Earlier this month, nearly 220 rural stakeholders, leaders, and advocates convened for the 14th Annual Rural Policy Forum, hosted by the Arizona Rural Development Council (AZRDC). Representatives from all 15 counties traversed the state for the two-day conference in the Sahuarita and the Green Valley area, eager to seek new solutions for building resilient, more inclusive rural economies across Arizona.

The first-ever cohort of the YWCA Green Business Program will be wrapping up in September! Through LFA Sustainability’s partnership with the Women’s Business Center and the YWCA of Southern Arizona, several Tucson businesses have had the opportunity to receive one-on-one support for all their sustainability and business planning needs. The YWCA and LFA Sustainability along with the Tucson Mayor's Office will host a graduation event on September 9th to recognize these businesses for their green leadership.

Natural buildings are becoming a popular alternative to traditional construction. Local First Arizona sat down with a diverse group of local experts and professionals to get an in-depth perspective.