NNIP Welcomes Cape Fear Collective of Wilmington, NC as Its Newest Partner

The National Neighborhood Indicators Partnership (NNIP) is proud to welcome Cape Fear Collective (CFC) as our newest partner, representing Wilmington and the broader Cape Fear region of North Carolina.

Founded in 2019, CFC is a nonprofit organization rooted in the belief that equitable access to data is essential for creating lasting, community-centered change. The organization emerged in response to two persistent regional needs—access to actionable data and affordable housing—surfaced through deep community engagement. CFC’s mission is to cultivate data-driven solutions for a better North Carolina and they aim to address these challenges through strong data infrastructure, analytics, and collaborative partnerships.

The organization transforms complex data into meaningful insights via dashboards, reports, and interactive tools. One of CFC’s key offerings is the Community Data Platform, which contains over 1,000 up-to-date local metrics and integrates and standardizes datasets spanning health, housing, education, workforce, and the economy. CFC also provides tailored technical assistance on topics like infrastructure design, analytics, evaluation, and ethical data governance. CFC supports capacity building among a spectrum of nonprofits, government agencies, and grassroots coalitions, meeting them where they are in data maturity.

CFC’s work is deeply aligned with NNIP’s mission to use data to advance equity. Equity is woven throughout all of CFC’s work—from their commitment to disaggregated, place-based reporting and community storytelling to offering free or sliding-scale support for organizations serving communities of color. Rather than acting as outside experts, CFC takes a co-creation approach that values lived experience as data, ensuring that community members can use information as a tool for advocacy, planning, and decision-making.

Local leaders across sectors consistently describe CFC as a “wonderful asset to the community” and a trusted collaborator in data-informed change.

Highlights of CFC’s Local Data Work:

• Expanding Access to Health Care: While protecting confidentiality, CFC analyzed patient records alongside data on uninsurance rates to identify priority areas for HealthNet’s outreach to connect uninsured people to services. Leslie Smiley, Executive Director of Cape Fear HealthNet praised CFC’s analysis, noting their tools “save time for all the nonprofits.” 
• Identifying Regional Housing Needs: Co-developed with Cape Fear Realtors, the ‘A Place to Call Home’ report recognizes housing access and stability as core to community well-being and dives into the Cape Fear region’s specific housing needs. Zachary Pomeroy, Director of Marketing & Communications of Cape Fear Realtors, shared, “When I think about data in this area, I think of CFC.”
• Tracking Health Indicators: In collaboration with the HealthyNC 2030 taskforce, CFC developed an interactive dashboard tracking 21 public health indicators from local and national sources. The dashboard informs regional planning, funding, and accountability.
• Analyzing Regional Disparities: In collaboration with small business advocates, workforce developers, and local economic planners, CFC analyzed regional economic disparities in their ‘Inclusive Economy’ report. The report catalyzed policy action, including workforce initiatives like DigitalBridge Wilmington.

To learn more about Cape Fear Collective’s work, visit their website.