Hello, sweet readers! I hope everyone's in good spirits after the midterm election results.

I have mixed feelings about it, tbh. I'm hopeful about the blue wave, but I am also disheartened that California lost Prop 40, which would impose a one-time wealth tax on billionaires. That one-time tax would have provided affordable healthcare for Californians. In Nebraska, Colorado, and Arizona, trans kids lost their rights to join sports teams and use public bathrooms aligned with their gender identity.

But for me, hope does not come from politicians and legislation. Hope comes from community — the tangible ways we show up for each other and build new support systems when our political overlords leave us behind.

In that spirit, I'm highlighting some of my favorite solution-oriented stories from past newsletters below, after two short announcements.

Happy hopescrolling,
— Leo 🌞

The best solution-oriented stories we've published in 2026

• In Texas, Jalyn Gordon started a susu fund for Black- and women-owned small businesses. A susu fund is a collective savings method with ancestral origins in West Africa.
• In Minnesota, a nonprofit organization called Exodus Lending is helping people escape the predatory payday loan cycle. The average interest rate on a payday loan is 367%, and payday loan companies disproportionally target BIPOC communities. Exodus Lending buys debt from the payday lender, and converts the loan into an interest-free loan that helps community members pay down their debt faster.
• In Chicago, Bunny McKensie Mack built a seven-figure net worth — then gave away $2 million in mutual aid.