Strategic Concepts in Organizing and Policy Education (SCOPE) is an advocacy organization that focuses on implementing liberal policies in south Los Angeles that ostensibly benefit individuals in low-income, Black, and immigrant communities. It advocates increasing funding for public education, increasing Black voter turnout, increasing taxpayer-funded jobs available in Los Angeles’s water and energy departments, ending oil drilling in Los Angeles, and increasing taxpayer funded housing programs. ¹

SCOPE founded California Calls, works closely with the California Environmental Justice Alliance, and is a leading organization for the California Climate Equity Coalition. ²

History

SCOPE was founded in 1993, in the aftermath of the riots that erupted in response to the video of Rodney King’s altercation with Los Angeles police officers. The group sought to rally people in the Black, low-income, and immigrant communities to advocate liberal policy changes in Los Angeles. The organization was originally called “Action for Grassroots Empowerment and Neighborhood Development Alternatives” (AGENDA). After a few years of expanding, the organization changed its name to the Los Angeles Metropolitan Alliance and focused on rebuilding efforts in South LA. After more growth, the organization became known as SCOPE and focused its efforts on implementing liberal policy changes in Los Angeles instead of localized rebuilding efforts. ³

Advocacy

Jobs

SCOPE advocates for the City of Los Angeles to increase the number of taxpayer-funded jobs available to low-income Black and immigrant communities. ¹ In 2016, SCOPE worked with Fix LA to convince then-Mayor Eric Garcetti (D) to create 5,000 government jobs that used targeted hiring practices to benefit Black and Latino communities. ⁴

Environment

SCOPE states that poor health in Los Angeles communities is a result of “A legacy of racist land use decisions [that] brought polluters in and has kept health-promoting land uses out, disproportionately burdening low-income communities of color.” ⁵ in 2019, SCOPE began working with other activist groups in South LA to advocate for plans that are decided by community activists instead of city planners, with the funding still coming from tax dollars. ⁵

SCOPE is working with the Stand Together Against Neighborhood Drilling (STAND) LA Coalition to close the Los Angeles City Oil Field in downtown Los Angeles. SCOPE states these oil fields are located in low-income communities, which has allowed those economies to develop at the expense of residents’ health. SCOPE supports “stronger environmental and land use regulations coupled with the adequate resources to address years of pollution and disinvestment in oil drilling communities.” ⁶

Civic Engagement

SCOPE seeks to raise voter turnout in Black and Latino communities. It claims that since 2012 it has mobilized thousands of voters to support liberal legislation, such as Proposition 30 which raised taxes to increase public education funding, Proposition 47 which reclassified drug position or theft valued under $950 down to misdemeanors, and Proposition HHH which allowed the City of Los Angeles to issue $1.2 billion in state bonds to be invested in permanent and temporary housing for homeless people in LA. SCOPE also works to recruit one million voters across California through the Million Voter Project, which is run by California Calls. ⁷

Funding

Over the years, Strategic Concepts in Organizing and Policy Education has received funding from a variety of foundations, labor groups, and activist organizations, including 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East, Amalgamated Charitable Foundation, Asian Pacific Environmental Network, Bend the Arc, California Calls Action Fund, California Calls Education Fund, Calvert Impact Capital, Community Partners, California Environmental Justice Alliance, Energy Foundation, Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund, ImpactAssets, Liberty Hill Foundation, Local Initiative Support Corporation, Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy, Movement Strategy Center, National Philanthropic Trust, Natural Resources Defense Council, New World Foundation, Physicians for Social Responsibility, Possibility Labs, PowerPAC Foundation, Praxis Project, Resources Legacy Fund, Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, Strategic Actions for a Just Economy (SAJE), San Francisco Foundation, Silicon Valley Community Foundation, Solutions Project, State Power Fund, and Water Foundation. ⁸

1. “A New Economy for South Los Angeles.” SCOPE. Accessed September 22, 2025. https://scopela.org/our-work/campaigns/. 
2. “Building Coalitions.” SCOPE. Accessed September 22, 2025. https://scopela.org/about-us/building-coalitions/. 
3. “History.” SCOPE. Accessed September 22, 2025. https://scopela.org/about-us/history/. 
4. “Developing Job Pathways That Work.” SCOPE. Accessed September 22, 2025. https://scopela.org/our-work/developing-job-pathways-that-work/. 
5. “The South Los Angeles Climate Commons.” SCOPE. Accessed September 22, 2025. https://scopela.org/our-work/photos-2/the-south-los-angeles-climate-commons/. 
6. “Ending Neighborhood Oil Drilling in South L.A.” SCOPE. Accessed September 22, 2025. https://scopela.org/our-work/ending-neighborhood-oil-drilling-in-south-l-a/. 
7. “Growing Community Power.” SCOPE. Accessed September 22, 2025. https://scopela.org/our-work/growing-community-power/. 
8. “Strategic Concepts in Organizing and Policy Education.” ProPublica. Accessed September 22, 2025. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/full_text_search?form%5B%5D=IRS990ScheduleI&page=5&q=95-4635737&sort=name&submit=Apply.