Houston in Action
Houston in Action is a Houston, Texas-based nonprofit founded in 2017 that convenes 50+ member organizations and 80+ participating organizations across Harris County to coordinate civic engagement, voter mobilization, redistricting advocacy, and community health outreach for Black, Latinx, AAPI, low-income, young, and LGBTQ+ communities.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2017
- HeadquartersHouston, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingServices
What Houston in Action does
Houston in Action is a Houston, Texas-based nonprofit civic engagement organization founded in 2017 that operates as a convening and coordinating body for community-based organizations, grassroots leaders, academic institutions, philanthropic partners, and government entities across Harris County. With 16 staff and a four-person leadership team (Executive Director, Senior Director of People & Culture, Deputy Director, Senior Programs Director), the organization coordinates a network of 50+ member organizations and 80+ participating organizations, centering its work on Black, Latinx, AAPI, low-income, young, and LGBTQ+ communities. Its core programs are structured as organizing cohorts (Black, Latinx, AAPI), issue-area working groups (Voter Engagement, LGBTQ+ Justice, Climate Justice, Cultural Organizing, Narrative), and discrete campaigns (Grow the Circle voter turnout, Public Safety Project, Unity Maps redistricting, Safer Together vaccine equity, Election Protection), plus an Academy training program and Digital Organizing & Learning initiative.
The technical backbone combines off-the-shelf digital organizing tools (MiniVan, Thru Talk, Thru Text) with proprietary assets including the Unity Maps collaborative community-mapping platform (used to map 43 communities of interest for the 2021 Harris County redistricting cycle) and a Pulse Survey System deployed with Mathematica during the COVID-19 Equity-First Vaccination Initiative. Services are delivered at no cost to member organizations and community members, with all operating revenue derived from philanthropic grants and pooled foundation funding (e.g., the Rockefeller Foundation, Hive Fund for Climate and Gender Justice). The go-to-market motion is community-led and event-driven, relying on coalition building, working-group coordination, and participatory grantmaking rather than traditional sales or marketing channels.
Houston in Action is independently governed with no parent company or external investors, and it has no public listing. Its measurable impact includes facilitating 47 planning meetings for the 2020 Complete Count Committee, coordinating 30 partner organizations that hosted 723 vaccination events and reached 1.3M+ people with COVID-19 information, and supporting 139 organizations through Census 2020 subcommittee work. The organization remains actively operating, with documented press activity in 2022 and an ongoing expansion of issue verticals including climate justice and criminal-legal reform.
Houston in Action firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Houston in Action
- Legal name
- Houston in Action
- Website
- https://houstoninaction.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2017
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Houston in Action is a Houston, Texas-based nonprofit founded in 2017 that convenes 50+ member organizations and 80+ participating organizations across Harris County to coordinate civic engagement, voter mobilization, redistricting advocacy, and community health outreach for Black, Latinx, AAPI, low-income, young, and LGBTQ+ communities.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Houston in Action industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Civic Engagement and Community Organizing
- NAICS
- Social Advocacy Organizations (8133), Human Rights Organizations (813311)
- SIC
- Services-Membership Organizations (8600)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Democracy, Voting Rights & Civic Participation Advocacy (BPAGAFAJ)
Keywords
Where Houston in Action is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Houston
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Houston in Action business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Philanthropic Grants & Foundation Funding: Houston in Action receives funding from private philanthropy and foundations to support community organizing, civic engagement initiatives, and collective power-building efforts across Harris County.
- Member Organization Coordination: Coordinates funding and resource sharing among member organizations, facilitating access to funding for organizations of all sizes, especially those not historically favored by traditional funding structures.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels5 records
Houston in Action product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Houston in Action is a nonprofit civic engagement organization that operates as a convening and coordination body for community-based organizations, grassroots leaders, academic institutions, and philanthropic partners across the Greater Houston area. It coordinates collective action through organizing cohorts centered on Black, Latinx, and AAPI leaders, provides Academy training and technical assistance, runs voter engagement campaigns (Grow the Circle), redistricting advocacy (Unity Maps), and public health outreach (Safer Together), and re-grants participatory funding to member organizations.
Product overview
Houston in Action is a civic engagement network and coalition that serves as a convening body for community organizing across the greater Houston area. The organization operates as a unified platform comprising multiple organizing cohorts (Black, Latinx, and AAPI), working groups (Voter Engagement, LGBTQ+ Justice, Climate Justice, Cultural Organizing, Narrative), campaigns (Grow the Circle, Public Safety Project, Unity Maps, Election Protection), and programs (Academy, Digital Organizing & Learning). These components work together as an integrated civic infrastructure designed to build collective power, advocate for marginalized communities, and drive systems-level change through organizing, advocacy, and communications strategy.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Grow the Circle: A voter registration and turnout campaign targeting communities of color, youth, LGBTQ+, and other communities of focus.
- Public Safety Project
- Safer Together
Products and services
- Community Organizing Cohorts (Black, Latinx, AAPI) Central organizing program grounded by three cohorts that co-develop plans, make mutual participatory funding decisions, and inform the design of technical assistance and training programs to build collective power among historically marginalized communities.
- Voter Engagement Working Group Strategizing and training body for organizations rooted in communities of focus that educates and mobilizes voters, increases voter turnout, and influences policies and systems.
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 50 member organizations and 80 participating organizations coordinated across Houston/Harris County
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Houston in Action
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Houston in Action technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Houston in Action partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Mi Familia VotacoreMi Familia Vota is a member organization that partnered with Houston in Action to create the 2021 Harris County Commissioners Court Unity Map, participating in the community mapping exercise to identify and preserve communities of interest across Harris County.
- Pure JusticecorePure Justice co-founded community mapping initiatives with Houston in Action, contributing to redistricting advocacy and the Unity Maps campaign aimed at fair representation for communities of color.
- OCA Greater HoustoncoreOCA Greater Houston participated in the Unity Maps campaign, contributing to the collaborative effort to map 43 communities of interest and advocate for fair redistricting in Harris County.
- EMGAGE ActioncoreEMGAGE Action partnered on the Unity Maps initiative, working with Houston in Action and other member groups to create community-driven district maps for Harris County Commissioner courts.
- Green House International ChurchminorOne of 30 funded partner organizations in the COVID-19 vaccine outreach program, hosting vaccination events and conducting community outreach.
- JoltminorJolt partnered in COVID-19 vaccination outreach efforts as part of the Safer Together campaign, contributing to reaching Texas communities with health information.
- BakerRipleyminorBakerRipley participated as one of 30 funded partner organizations in the Safer Together COVID-19 vaccination outreach initiative.
- City of HoustonminorPartnered with Houston in Action on COVID-19 vaccination outreach and community health initiatives in the Houston area.
- Texas CountscoreHouston in Action participated in Texas Counts, a statewide collaborative effort serving as a partner, connector, and hub for regional Get Out the Count efforts in Texas for Census 2020.
- Northeast Houston Redevelopment CouncilminorParticipated as a funded partner in COVID-19 vaccine outreach through the Safer Together campaign.
- OCOGreater HoustonminorParticipated in COVID-19 outreach efforts as part of Houston in Action's vaccine equity initiative.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Houston in Action competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Faith in Action: National nonpartisan network of faith-based community organizations focused on civic engagement, voter participation, and racial equity. Comparable to Houston in Action in network model, racial equity framing, and grassroots organizing approach.
- Movement Voter Project: Intermediary that funds and coordinates state-level progressive civic engagement tables. Closely aligned with Houston in Action's role as a regional table and the participatory funding approach used to direct resources to grassroots groups.
- Texas Organizing Project: Texas-based civic engagement organization that builds power in communities of color across the state. Highly comparable to Houston in Action in mission, multiracial base, and emphasis on voter engagement, redistricting, and community organizing.
- New Florida Majority: Statewide civic engagement organization building multiracial power in Florida through voter registration, redistricting, and community organizing. Closely analogous to Houston in Action in structure, constituencies served, and integrated organizing-plus-advocacy approach.
- Center for Popular Democracy: National network of community organizations building progressive power at the local and state level. Operates a similar hub-and-spoke model with high comparability in mission, structure, and focus on member-led organizing for marginalized communities.
- Mi Familia Vota: National Latinx civic engagement organization focused on voter registration, education, and mobilization. Houston in Action's Latinx cohort and voter engagement work align directly with Mi Familia Vota's mission, and Mi Familia Vota is also an active Houston in Action member organization.
- State Voices: National network of state civic engagement tables that coordinates voter participation and civic infrastructure across states. Houston in Action operates as a regional analog of the State Tables model, making it directly comparable in structure and purpose.
- New Virginia Majority: Virginia-based civic engagement organization serving communities of color, low-income residents, and young people. Comparable to Houston in Action in mission, target populations, voter engagement focus, and multi-issue organizing model.
Emerging players
- Mobilize: Civic engagement platform powering volunteer mobilization, event management, and voter outreach tools used by many progressive organizations. Adjacent to Houston in Action's digital organizing infrastructure (MiniVan, Thru Talk/Text) and represents the technology layer being adopted across the civic engagement sector.
Broad incumbents
- Working Families Party: National progressive political organization and ballot line active in multiple states, including Texas. Operates at broader scale than Houston in Action with overlapping focus on voter engagement and coalition politics, but is a multi-state entity rather than a regional network.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Houston in Action social profiles
Digital presenceHouston in Action financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Houston in Action leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles5 records
Houston in Action funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Houston in Action M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Houston in Action
What does Houston in Action do?
Houston in Action is a nonprofit civic engagement organization that operates as a convening and coordination body for community-based organizations, grassroots leaders, academic institutions, and philanthropic partners across the Greater Houston area. It coordinates collective action through organizing cohorts centered on Black, Latinx, and AAPI leaders, provides Academy training and technical assistance, runs voter engagement campaigns (Grow the Circle), redistricting advocacy (Unity Maps), and public health outreach (Safer Together), and re-grants participatory funding to member organizations.
Is Houston in Action a public or private company?
Houston in Action is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Houston in Action founded?
Houston in Action was founded in 2017. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Houston in Action based?
Houston in Action is headquartered in Houston, United States, in the North America region.
How does Houston in Action make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Philanthropic Grants & Foundation Funding is the primary driver. The others are member Organization Coordination.
Who are Houston in Action's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Faith in Action, Movement Voter Project, Texas Organizing Project, New Florida Majority, Center for Popular Democracy, Mi Familia Vota, State Voices and New Virginia Majority. Mobilize is listed as an emerging player. Working Families Party is listed as a broad incumbent.
Does Houston in Action have an API?
No public API is recorded for Houston in Action.
What industry is Houston in Action in?
Houston in Action's product category is Civic Engagement and Community Organizing. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGAFAJ, Democracy, Voting Rights & Civic Participation Advocacy. Its NAICS code is 8133 and its SIC code is 8600.