- Social Innovation Fellowship
Award Year
The poor, urban population in Providence, RI, has little access to credit, keeping many stuck in a severe cycle of poverty and unemployment. Over the past several decades microfinance institutions have proven their ability to break this trap. I work with the Capital Good Fund, a new microfinance initiative in Providence, to bring small loans to the city’s low-income neighborhoods. As Community Partners Coordinator, I use the proven tool of coalition-building to strengthen its partnerships. My project will establish the organization in the non-profit community, allowing it to challenge Providence’s inequalities in a sustainable manner.
CGF Press:
The bottom line: Rebranding a City
Social Enterprise Live, August 19, 2009
Personal Statement
I grew up comfortably in suburban Philadelphia, only 10 minutes away from one of the nation’s poorest cities – Chester, PA. My surroundings made me acutely aware of the difference between my privileged lifestyle and that of poor neighbors. They helped give me an instinctive drive to bridge the gap between rich and poor. I believe that permanent structural change, not un-sustainable charity, can most directly break down institutions of inequity. In my experience, I have found that both market-based solutions and community organizing have great potential to achieve this. With a Starr Fellowship, I fuse these approaches to make CGF’s microfinance initiative sustainable.
Awards/ Recognition:
- Clinton Global Initiative University- Outstanding Commitments Award
- Ashoka Youth Venture
- Ashoka Plum Grant
- Social Innovation Initiative Seed Grant
- Sparkseed Youth Venture
- Brown Elevator Pitch Competition (2nd Place)
- RI Elevator Pitch Competition (2nd Place)