History

Rachel Alternative, Alternative Foundation  

Rachel has long held personal passions for food and art—most especially related to creating sustainable food systems, productive land use and how art can transform neighborhoods. She closely followed the role philanthropy was playing in helping one of America’s iconic cities—Detroit—come back from years of disinvestment and bankruptcy. She was drawn to the stories of entrepreneurs, artists and visionaries that were participating in the city’s comeback and knew she could make a difference. So, when she founded The Alternative Foundation in 2019, she decided to focus her philanthropic efforts on supporting urban agriculture, sustainable food systems, youth advancement/entrepreneurship and community-driven redevelopment in Detroit.   

She quickly understood she had much to learn about the city’s rich history and embarked on an immersive educational journey focused on listening and learning with humility. She recalls heartfelt discussions about the city's history, culture, racial diversity and disparity, and economic inequity. These conversations led to a much deeper understanding of the often-shocking challenges faced by Detroiters—many of which couldn’t be further from her personal lived experience.

That further sparked her interest in how several impactful nonprofits were developing solutions to grow and sustain a regional food system, make use of abandoned land and how innovative support of youth entrepreneurs can lead to economic mobility for more Detroiters. 

She started with small investments with organizations focused on Detroit’s former Black Bottom neighborhood, which was named for its nutrient rich soil, and located near both Eastern Market and adjacent to the McDougall-Hunt neighborhood. Her vision began to crystallize in McDougall-Hunt, where she saw the opportunities and challenges in low-density neighborhoods and how concentrated philanthropy can help to transform neighborhoods and communities.

Through collaborations with other funders, engaging with municipal leadership and by bringing community voices into the visioning and planning process, she began to see how the power of community and collaboration helps impactful nonprofits make every dollar go even further in advancing their missions. Today, the Alternative Foundation continues to focus on giving across its core pillars and helping to facilitate relationships between grantees to share information, data and success stories to help them achieve their growth and impact goals.