This op-ed was originally published in the Miami Herald.

Miami understands the preciousness of democracy in our soul. We are a community built by immigrants, many fled here from nations in crisis. We do not take the health of our country for granted. We also know that one of the hallmarks of a democratic, free and safe society is access to trustworthy local news. We know that communities that don’t have a healthy local news landscape are at great risk – abuses go unchecked, corruption flourishes and residents remain in the dark. We know this, yet nationally, local news outlets are shutting their doors at a rate of two per week.

If Miami is a world-class city, we need more world-class local journalism. While the Miami Herald and National Public Radio station WLRN continue to protect our community with award-winning journalism, the business model for the news industry has radically shifted with ad revenue going toward search engines and social media. The shock to the system has been hard to recover.

At The Miami Foundation, we’re taking up the charge as the home base for Press Forward, a national movement mobilizing philanthropists and communities across the country to make the future of local news a top priority.

We also feel an urgency to build a thriving local movement right here at home that takes shared responsibility for journalism across our region.

That’s why, together with Coral Gables Community Foundation, Key Biscayne Community Foundation and Community Foundation of Broward, we’ve launched Press Forward South Florida.

Our mission is to strengthen the local news ecosystem across our region by engaging donors, funders and community leaders on the need for greater investment.

Local philanthropists, big and small, have already begun directing some of their resources to keep crucial local coverage alive. Four Miami Herald reporting positions — two on climate, one on economic mobility, and one on faith — are supported by individuals and foundations including Trish and Dan Bell, Ken O’Keefe, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Florida International University, the Lynn and Louis Wolfson II Foundation and the David and Christina Martin Foundation, in partnership with Journalism Funding Partners. And the Esserman Family has been strengthening and honoring strong investigative journalism in South Florida through an annual Esserman-Knight Journalism Award, and a family fund for investigative journalism.

These investments are vital, but we must go deeper to support a thriving journalism ecosystem.

Every South Florida resident, regardless of where they live or what language they speak at home, deserves access to news and information about their community.

At Press Forward South Florida, we are committed to hyperlocal reporting that lifts up our community’s stories, shines a light on the information we all need and helps us build toward solutions and a more prosperous future together. If you’re reading opinion articles like this one in your local paper, you are clearly part of the coalition of the willing — and we want you in the fight with us.

Rebecca Fishman Lipsey is the president & CEO of The Miami Foundation. For more information about Press Forward, click here.