The AIR Opportunity Fund:
Building Evidence for a More Equitable World
In 2021, AIR launched the Equity Initiative to address the underlying causes of systemic inequities and to increase opportunities for people and communities. With a renewed focus on addressing disparities tied to race and place, this initiative has now evolved into the AIR Opportunity Fund. Backed by a 10-year, $225 million investment, the fund deepens our commitment to working alongside local leaders to create community-driven solutions that help people and communities thrive.
Learn more about our transition to the AIR Opportunity Fund.
Our Work: Strategies for Expanding Opportunity
We are expanding opportunity by funding new or under-resourced efforts within and across our program areas to improve educational experiences, enhance justice in public safety and policing, strengthen economic mobility, and improve health outcomes for underserved communities.
At the core of this work, we fund and foster partnerships with those who are directly affected by the inequities we seek to address and those who influence and drive decision-making. Our work incorporates diverse perspectives, experiences, and areas of expertise to shape approaches and solutions that are responsive to the communities we serve.
Building Bridges and Breaking Barriers
Our Programs
Our Approach
Track Our Progress
Creating Connections
Our 2023 annual report features stories, data, and project highlights from our efforts to build bridges toward a more equitable world, where all communities and people can thrive.
By the Numbers
Our growing number of grants and partnerships support a wide variety of projects and geographic scopes.
Figures current as of January 2024
Follow the Journey
Meet the Team
Rashawn Ray
Vice President and Executive Director of the AIR Opportunity Fund
Rashawn Ray is an AIR vice president and the executive director of the AIR Opportunity Fund. As a sociologist, Ray’s research addresses the mechanisms that manufacture and maintain racial and social inequity. He has published over 50 books, articles, and book chapters, and more than 50 op-eds. Ray regularly appears on news media and testifies at the federal and state levels on racial equity, policing and criminal justice reform, health policy, wealth disparities, and family policy.
