In many Native communities, an understanding of the critical role that artists and culture bearers can play in building vibrant economies has yet to take hold, and many emerging artists live on less than $10,000 per year. First Peoples Fund (FPF) was founded on the understanding that investing in artists makes economic sense for tribal communities; with adequate support, they can become viable economic engines and social change-makers. FPF’s initial grant programs supported individual artists and helped build their business skill sets. These programs were highly successful, but the FPF wanted board and staff to make larger and more lasting change. Through research, reflective learning, and enhanced programming and partnerships, FPF developed an expanded investment model based on the knowledge that when relationships between community organizations and artists are woven more tightly together, the entire local arts ecosystem is strengthened, allowing the “Indigenous arts ecology” to thrive and improving the economic and cultural lives of artists, their families, and communities.