What Nuestra Casa does

Nuestra Casa is a community-based nonprofit organization founded in 2002 and headquartered in East Palo Alto, California, serving low-income, immigrant, and mixed-status Latino families across the San Mateo County Peninsula, including Belle Haven, North Fair Oaks, and Redwood City. The organization delivers services through a promotora (community health worker) model in which staff are themselves residents of the neighborhoods served, conducting door-to-door canvassing, community-event outreach, text messaging, and a community hotline. Its program portfolio has expanded from original English-language classes into a multi-vertical service center spanning Environmental Justice (including the Environmental Justice Parent Academy), Water Justice, Housing Advocacy, Civic Engagement, Food Distribution, and Immigration & Benefits Support (Libre). Documented impact includes distribution of more than 1.5 million pounds of food during the COVID-19 pandemic emergency response and policy influence extending to federal legislation on groundwater rise and California State Senate budget testimony.

The organization operates without any disclosed technology platform or proprietary product; its core "technology" is the relational infrastructure of trusted community messengers. It produces community-facing publications such as the 'Look Out Below' report on groundwater rise impacts and the 'East Palo Alto Housing Blueprint,' and collaborates through coalitions including PACT (Peninsula Accountability for Contamination Team) and DACTIP with San Francisco Estuary Partnership. Revenue is grant-based, sourced from major philanthropic funders including the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, Silicon Valley Community Foundation, and San Francisco Foundation, alongside government sources such as San Mateo County Measure K funding and federal COVID-relief allocations. Services are provided free of charge to community members, with no pricing model or commercial revenue stream.

Name

Nuestra Casa

Legal name

Nuestra Casa

Website

https://nuestracasa.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Nuestra Casa is a 2002-founded East Palo Alto nonprofit that delivers environmental justice, housing, civic engagement, water, food, immigration, and English-language programs to low-income Latino families across San Mateo County via a community-trusted promotora outreach model funded by foundation grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

East Palo Alto

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Grants and Donations: As a nonprofit organization, Nuestra Casa operates primarily through grants from foundations and donations from individuals and organizations. Major funders have included Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, Silicon Valley Community Foundation, San Francisco Foundation, and government entities.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Nuestra Casa is a community-based nonprofit that provides free programs — Environmental Justice, Water Justice, Housing Advocacy, Civic Engagement, Promotoras community outreach, Food Distribution, Immigration & Benefits Support (Libre), and English Language classes — to low-income, immigrant, and mixed-status Latino families in East Palo Alto and the San Mateo County Peninsula. Services are delivered directly via trusted-messenger Promotoras who live in the communities they serve, using door-to-door canvassing, community events, workshops, food distribution sites, and digital/text outreach.

Product overview

Nuestra Casa is a community-based nonprofit organization serving Latino families in East Palo Alto and the Peninsula region. Founded in 2002, it evolved from primarily offering ESL classes to becoming a comprehensive resource center. The organization operates through multiple interconnected programs: Environmental Justice Program (including Environmental Justice Parent Academy), Water Justice Program, Housing Advocacy, Civic Engagement, Promotoras Program (community outreach workers), Food Distribution Program, Immigration & Benefits Support, and English Language Program. The Promotoras Program serves as the primary community outreach mechanism connecting all services. Publications and reports like 'Look Out Below' and 'East Palo Alto Housing Blueprint' document community issues and support advocacy efforts. The organization primarily provides direct community services rather than technology products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Environmental Justice Program Educates and empowers Latino residents in East Palo Alto and the Peninsula to advocate on environmental injustice issues including climate change, sea-level rise, groundwater contamination, and policy engagement; includes the Environmental Justice Parent Academy that has trained 66 parents and 18 young people.
• Water Justice Program Addresses drinking water access and quality issues in East Palo Alto through community education on water rights, partnerships on water needs assessments, and policy advocacy around groundwater rise and contaminated site remediation.
• Housing Advocacy Provides housing assistance to low-income and immigrant families in East Palo Alto, including rental relief application support, eviction protection outreach, and policy advocacy for anti-displacement measures.
• Civic Engagement Promotes voter registration, census participation, and broader civic participation among Latino communities in East Palo Alto and the Peninsula region.
• Promotoras Program Community outreach workers who live in the neighborhoods they serve and deliver culturally and linguistically appropriate messages and resources to Latino families through door-to-door canvassing, community events, and places of worship.
• Food Distribution Program Distributes food to families in need in East Palo Alto and the Peninsula, including expanded COVID-19 pandemic response that delivered over 1.5 million pounds of food, with food recovery coordination with partner agencies.
• Immigration & Benefits Support (Libre) Provides immigration assistance and benefits support services to Latino families, helping undocumented and mixed-status residents navigate and access available public and community resources.
• English Language Program Offers English language classes to community members in both in-person and virtual formats, building on Nuestra Casa's founding 2002 ESL program that was later broadened into a comprehensive community resource center.

Quantifiable outcome

• Distributed over 1.5 million pounds of food during pandemic emergency response
• +3 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• SPURcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Three-year partnership addressing environmental justice issues including drinking water safety, groundwater rise, coastal flooding, and contaminated site remediation. Produced the 'Look Out Below' report in May 2024, launched the Peninsula Accountability for Contamination Team (PACT) coalition, and influenced federal policy including the Groundwater Rise and Infrastructure Preparedness Act. Currently piloting a community-driven research project to test indoor air quality near contaminated sites.
• San Francisco Estuary PartnershipcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration through the Disadvantaged Communities and Tribal Involvement Program (DACTIP) to conduct water needs assessments. Participated in tap water quality testing initiative alongside 12 other communities. Nuestra Casa conducted surveys and focus groups informing the Regional Water Needs Assessment Report (pages 223-236).
• San Mateo CountycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerReceived $30,000 in Measure K funding to purchase a refrigerated truck for food distribution. Part of Vaccine Communications & Equity Working Group. County shifted vaccination efforts toward community-based sites based on Nuestra Casa's feedback.
• San Francisco Estuary Partnership (Estuary Youth Council)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNuestra Casa serves on the Advisory Committee of the Estuary Youth Council alongside Mycelium Youth Network and Restore the Delta, working in close partnership with San Francisco Estuary Partnership to train next generation of environmental leaders ages 17-24.
• Climate Resilient CommunitiescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in addressing environmental contamination in the Ravenswood Business District development. Co-organized the San Mateo County Climate Summit with Thrive Alliance and Rise South City.
• YUCA (Youth United for Community Action)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in addressing environmental contamination concerns in the Ravenswood Business District development alongside Climate Resilient Communities.
• City of East Palo AltocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborating on the Ravenswood Business District/4 Corners Development proposal, which includes environmental impact assessment and community input on the redevelopment of this historically significant area.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Mission Economic Development Agency (MEDA): San Francisco-based Latino-focused community development organization providing services spanning economic empowerment, housing, immigration, and small business support. Directly comparable as a Bay Area nonprofit serving Latino families through a comprehensive, multi-program community resource model.
• Communities for a Better Environment (CBE): California-based environmental health and justice organization working with low-income communities of color. Comparable in environmental justice advocacy, community-led research, and policy influence targeting contamination and pollution.
• Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice (CCAEJ): Southern California environmental justice organization focused on communities of color. Comparable in the environmental justice program area and in using community-led advocacy to influence policy affecting underserved communities.
• La Colaborativa: Chelsea, Massachusetts-based Latino immigrant-serving community organization offering multi-program support including housing, immigration, education, and youth services. Highly comparable to Nuestra Casa in operating model, target population (low-income immigrant Latino families), and multi-issue community resource center structure.
• Vision y Compromiso: California-based statewide network dedicated to supporting and advancing the promotora/community health worker model. Most directly comparable peer given the shared promotoras framework that defines Nuestra Casa's outreach strategy.
• CARECEN (Central American Resource Center): Los Angeles-based multi-service Latino/immigrant-serving organization offering legal, educational, civic engagement, and community organizing programs. Comparable multi-program community resource model serving immigrant Latino families.

Emerging players

• The Greenlining Institute: Oakland-based policy and organizing nonprofit addressing racial equity through economic, environmental, and health justice work. Comparable in policy advocacy and centering communities of color across overlapping environmental justice, housing, and economic equity issues.
• Faith in Action Bay Area: Bay Area faith-based community organizing network conducting grassroots campaigns on housing, immigration, and economic justice. Comparable in civic engagement and grassroots community-led advocacy for immigrant and low-income communities.

Regional players

• Peninsula Interfaith Action: San Mateo County-based interfaith community organizing group focused on affordable housing, immigration, and economic justice in the same geographic footprint as Nuestra Casa. Comparable as a regional nonprofit using community organizing for policy advocacy on overlapping issues in San Mateo County.
• Asian Americans Advancing Justice - Asian Law Caucus: San Francisco-based civil rights organization serving Asian American communities through legal services, policy advocacy, and community organizing. Comparable as a Bay Area-based, community-anchored nonprofit advancing justice through similar advocacy and civic engagement mechanisms.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/nuestracasaepa
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nuestra-casa
• Facebookfacebook.com/NuestraCasaEPA
• Instagraminstagram.com/nuestracasaepa

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Nuestra Casa