Neighborhood
Economics

San Antonio Speakers

These experts, hailing from diverse fields, will be sharing their invaluable insights, experiences, and strategies to drive impactful change. Keep an eye on this space to discover the voices that will inspire, challenge, and lead the conversations at our event!

Elizabeth Coffee

Director of Storytelling | H. E. Butt Foundation

Elizabeth Le’anani Coffee has lived in San Antonio her whole life and loves it like a sibling. She often says: “my story is wrapped up in its story.” While her formal training is in advertising and public relations, her work experience reflects a decade working alongside religious non-profits and leaders through community engagement predominately in San Antonio and South Texas.

Jay Nwavhu

President and CEO | Innovation Works & Ignite Capital

Jay is a nationally recognized leader in social entrepreneurship and impact investing. He is passionate about implementing innovative solutions to address economic disparity in underserved communities. As the President and C.E.O. of Innovation Works and Ignite Capital, a nonprofit social enterprise in Baltimore City, Jay demonstrates his commitment to reducing the city's racial wealth divide by supporting the launch and growth of sustainable social enterprises in economically distressed neighborhoods.

Curt Lyon

Executive Director | Transform Finance

Curt Lyon is the Executive Director of Transform Finance, a research, education, and advisory nonprofit that helps investors move capital towards models that create a more just distribution of wealth and power in the economy. Curt came to Transform Finance in 2017 after immersing himself in the Solidarity Economy movement, particularly in Boston, and seeing the transformative power of community-led finance initiatives and non-extractive business models. At Transform Finance, he has led major initiatives that shift narratives in the impact space and co-authored several flagship reports, including Grassroots Community Engaged Investment and Alternative Ownership Enterprises.

Paul Thomas

Director of Business Analysts | ELSEWORKS Millsaps College

Paul Thomas is the Director of Business Analysts for the ELSEWORKS Entrepreneurship Program at Millsaps College. Paul began working with the program as an intern while completing a double major in Economics and Business Administration from Millsaps and has since worked across many different business disciplines leading a team of MBA and undergraduate students that serve as consultants for businesses and nonprofits in Jackson, MS.

Joseph Minicozzi

Principal | Urban3

Joe Minicozzi is an urban planner imagining new ways to think about and visualize land use, urban design and economics. Joe founded Urban3 to explain and visualize market dynamics created by tax and land use policies. Urban3's work establishes new conversations across multiple professional sectors, policy makers, and the public to creatively address the challenges of urbanization. Urban3’s extensive studies range geographically over 30 states, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

Maddie Ulanow

Associate Director, Research | Global Impact Investing Network

Maddie Ulanow serves as the Associate Director on the GIIN research team. Prior to joining the GIIN, Maddie advised clients on due diligence and impact strategy with Deloitte and Arabella Advisors. She has also worked on a variety of humanitarian aid and development finance projects in the Middle East/North Africa region, including a US Department of State-funded refugee entrepreneurship initiative in Jordan. Maddie holds an MPP from the Harvard Kennedy School, where she also worked with the Harvard Initiative for Responsible Investment, and a BA in political science from Carleton College.

DeAmon Harges

Social Banker & Roving Listener | The Learning Tree

De’Amon Harges is a faculty member of the Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) Institute, Creator of The Learning Tree, and layperson at Broadway UMC, Indianapolis, IN. De’Amon's role is to listen and discover gifts, passions, and dreams in communities and find ways to utilize them to build community, economy, and mutual “delight.” DeAmon describes his role as a Social Banker, utilizing intangible currencies that are cultivated by human assets and relationships to build abundant community.

Ramiro Gonzales

President/CEO | Prosper West San Antonio

Ramiro Gonzales is the President/CEO of Prosper West San Antonio, a nonprofit economic and community development organization for the Westside of San Antonio focused on small business/entrepreneur support, housing, and commercial corridor redevelopment. Ramiro was born and raised in San Antonio and has nearly 20 years of experience working in local government, neighborhood revitalization, and urban redevelopment.

Lyssa Ochoa MD

CEO/Vascular Surgeon | The SAVE Clinic

Dr. Lyssa Ochoa is a board-certified vascular surgeon and founder of the San Antonio Vascular and Endovascular Clinic (The SAVE Clinic) in South San Antonio. The mission of The SAVE Clinic is to reduce the number of diabetes-related amputations in San Antonio, which occur at rates up to 3 times the already-poor statewide rate in some of the city’s most underserved and socioeconomically challenged zip codes. Dr. Ochoa was born and raised in the Rio Grande Valley, along the Texas-Mexico border, and attended medical school, general surgery residency, and vascular surgery residency at the prestigious Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, TX.

Alexandra Sing

COO | Capitalize Good

Alexandra is the Chief Operating Officer of Capitalize Good, an advocacy and consulting organization that seeks to advance Enterprise Capital as a best practice in philanthropic funding. She brings over a decade of experience in finance across lending, endowment management, and alternative investments. Alexandra was most recently an Investment Officer at Open Road Alliance, an impact investor specializing in bridge loans to social enterprises globally. Prior to joining Open Road, Alexandra worked as an analyst at the Boston University Investment Office and Forester Capital, LLC. Alexandra received her B.A. in Economics from Barnard College of Columbia University and her MBA from the Yale School of Management.

Seth Kaplan

Professor | Johns Hopkins University

Seth D. Kaplan, the author of the book "Fragile Neighborhoods: Repairing American Society, One Zip Code at a Time" as well as white paper "Strong Neighborhoods: Key to Reviving America and Building a Flourishing Society," is a leading expert on fragile states, societies, and communities. He is a Professorial Lecturer in the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) at Johns Hopkins University, Senior Adviser for the Institute for Integrated Transitions (IFIT), and consultant to multilateral organizations such as the World Bank, U.S. State Department, U.S. Agency for International Development, and OECD as well as developing country governments and NGOs.

Andrea Levere

CEO | Capitalize Good

Andrea Levere is the Founder and CEO of Capitalize Good, a new venture which aims to advance “enterprise capital” or philanthropic equity as a philanthropic asset class. She began this initiative as an Executive Fellow with the International Center for Finance at the Yale School of Management, where she published the Blueprint for Enterprise Capital to scale the delivery of multi-year, flexible funding—paired with financial technical assistance—to nonprofits and social ventures. She is President Emerita of Prosperity Now, an organization that designs and operates major national initiatives to integrate financial capability services into systems serving low-income people, build assets and savings, close the racial wealth divide and advance research and policies that expands economy mobility for all.

Brian Beckon

Partner | PathLight Law

Brian Beckon is an attorney with over thirty years of legal experience and a passion for making the world a better place. As a Partner with PathLight Law (formerly known as Cutting Edge Counsel), Brian's work is focused on strategies of community capital, along with entity structuring and other related work. Brian previously served as General Counsel for RSF Social Finance and Clean Power Finance; and before that as Corporate Counsel for Sybase and Catellus Development Corp.

Devin Culbertson

VP of Innovative Finance | Grounded Solutions

Devin brings his 20 years of experience as a developer, equity investor, and underwriter to craft housing and wealth-building solutions that bolster residents and empower community organizations. Devin is a graduate of the University of Texas and lives with his wife and sons in Austin.

Jenny Everett

Senior Advisor | The Research Cluster on Employee Ownership and Workplace Democracy (EO+WD)

Jenny is the former Managing Director of the Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs (ANDE) currently works as an Advisor to non-profits and social impact organizations. Her specialties include network and ecosystem building, non-profit management, and philanthropic advising. Interest areas include small and growing businesses and entrepreneurship, international development, impact investing, gender lens investing, workforce development, employee ownership, purpose trust ownership and climate. She is a current board member of FUNDES, ONOW, Villgro USA, and Village Capital and an active member of Social Venture Partners Austin and Impact Austin.

Stephanie Swepson Twitty

CEO | Eagle Market Sts Dev Corp, CDC Community Economic Developer, Nonprofit Governance and Management Professional, with 30+ years in banking, finance, accounting and small business development.

Scott Hackenberg

Chief Lending Officer | Cornerstone Fund

As Cornerstone's Chief Lending Officer, Scott helps identify and work with faith-based organizations looking to strengthen and grow their community impact. He has worked in the social impact investment field for over 15 years, following a 20-year career in private equity and leveraged finance.

Peter Beeson

Rev. | St. John's Lutheran Church & Realize, LLC

As the founder of Realize, LLC, Peter coaches congregations and judicatories to leverage their real estate assets for social good while generating sustainable cash flow. His latest project is the most audacious yet: shepherding St. John's Lutheran Church through a transformation of their site into 110 units of affordable housing, plus worship and community space. Previously, Peter led two other congregations through successful real estate projects for community benefit. His expertise empowers religious organizations to realize their dreams of vital, community-connected congregations.

Treena Thompson

Secretary - Board of Directors | Cornerstone Community Development Corporation

Treena Thompson is a 12-year resident of the historic West End neighborhood in St. Louis City. She is a powerful advocate for community voice and believes in breaking traumatic cycles and creating spaces where all people feel valued, heard, and prepared to do the hard work of community-building collaboratively. Treena draws upon her expertise in non-profit management, philanthropy, and coalition building to help develop a stronger, sustainable West End community, co-authoring numerous successful grant proposals and serving in various leadership capacities with neighborhood groups.

MIchael Shuman

Publisher | Main Street Journal

Michael H. Shuman is an economist, attorney, author, and entrepreneur, and a leading visionary on community economics. He is an Adjunct Professor at Bard Business School in New York City. He is also a Senior Researcher for Council Fire, where he performs economic-development analyses for states, local governments, and businesses around North America. He is credited with being one of the architects of the 2012 JOBS Act and dozens of state laws overhauling securities regulation of crowdfunding. He has authored, coauthored, or edited ten books. His two most recent books are Put Your Money Where Your Life Is: How to Invest Locally Using Solo 401ks and Self-Directed IRAs and The Local Economy Solution: How Innovative, Self-Financing Pollinator Enterprises Can Grow Jobs and Prosperity.

Gilbert Gonzalez

President and CEO | San Antonio Board of REALTORS

Gilbert S. Gonzalez initially joined SABOR in 2012 as Vice President of Risk Management and General Counsel. He later assumed the role of Chief Executive Officer in 2018, overseeing the Board of Directors and guiding staff in strategic development for association operations. Before his tenure at SABOR, Gonzalez worked as a staff attorney for the Bexar County Courts Administration and served as an assistant district attorney in the Bexar County District Attorney’s Office.

Carla Leon

CEO & President | Just Like Family Home Care

Carla Leon is an innovator. When approached with the opportunity to become part of Just Like Family Home Care, she spearheaded the first social acquisition by charities in Canada. With her vision, Just Like Family has been transformed into a Social Enterprise, with the majority of profits going to charities.

Mark Elsdon

Co-Founder | RootedGood

Mark Elsdon is author and editor two books, "We Aren't Broke: Uncovering Hidden Resources for Mission and Ministry" and "Gone for Good? Negotiating the Coming Wave of Church Property Transition" He is co-founder of RootedGood, executive director of Pres House and Pres House Apartments, and principal at Threshold Sacred Development. Mark has degrees from UC Berkeley, Princeton Seminary, and UW-Madison School of Business.

Kate Walsh

Associate Director, Faith-Based Investor Initiatives | The Global Impact Investing Network

Kate serves as the Associate Director of Faith-Based Investors Initiatives for the GIIN. In this role, Kate networks with faith- based investors to encourage the use of impact investing as a tool to further their missions. Previously, Kate served as the Associate Director of Investor Advocates for Social Justice (formerly the Tri-State Coalition for Responsible Investment) where she focused on advocacy regarding food sustainability, financial markets reform and forced labor concerns. In addition, she served as a board member for the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility. She is also experienced in impact measurement having previously been the Manager of Program Evaluation for the Actors Fund.

Christopher Miller

Board Chair | National Coalition for Community Capital

Chris is the chair and one of the founding board members of the National Coalition for Community Capital. As an on-the-ground economic developer, he saw first hand the challenges of building vibrant and sustainable local economies that represented and engaged every member of the community. To address these challenges he's led a variety of initiatives, including one of the leading state-based investment crowdfunding laws, NC3's Community Capital Accelerator, and the creation of NC3's Diversified Community Investment Fund with his colleague Brian Beckon.

Steve Dubb

Nonprofit Quarterly | Nonprofit Quarterly

Steve Dubb is senior editor of economic justice at NPQ, where he writes articles (including NPQ’s Economy Remix column), moderates Remaking the Economy webinars, and works to cultivate voices from the field and help them reach a broader audience. Prior to coming to NPQ in 2017, Steve worked with cooperatives and nonprofits for over two decades, including twelve years at The Democracy Collaborative and three years as executive director of NASCO (North American Students of Cooperation). In his work, Steve has authored, co-authored, and edited numerous articles, reports, and books; most recently, with Raymond Foxworth of the Henry Luce Foundation, Steve co-edited Invisible No More: Voices from Native America (Island Press, 2023).

Ashley Goff

Rev. | Arlington Presbyterian Church

Ashley Goff is the pastor at Arlington Presbyterian Church (PCUSA) in Arlington, VA and ordained in the United Church of Christ. Ashley is also a chaplain in the Arlington County Fire Department and lives with her family in the Green Valley neighborhood in Arlington.

Barrett Linburg

Founder | Savoy Equity Partners

Barrett Linburg is a co-founder of Dallas-based Savoy Equity Partners, with a focus on Texas multifamily real estate investment and development, leveraging his extensive experience since 2005 to master complex financial structures like opportunity zones and historic tax credits. His academic foundation in Real Estate and Finance is from SMU Cox School of Business where he obtained a BBA and MBA. Outside of real estate, Barrett enjoys spending time with his family and engaging in activities such as golf, hiking, and scuba diving.

Amy Brakeman

Impact Investor | Unlock Ownership, Pluralize Capital

Amy Brakeman is committed to the transfer of wealth and decision-making power to historically underinvested people and communities through the strategic deployment of financial resources. Amy co-founded Unlock Ownership as a multi-donor fund making catalytic investments in early-stage initiatives. Its goal is to accelerate the development of equitable asset ownership. Amy holds degrees from the University of California, Berkeley, and Harvard Business School, and resides in Cambridge MA.

Kali Akuno

Executive Director | Cooperation Jackson

Kali Akuno is the Executive Director of Cooperation Jackson. Kali is a educator, human rights activist, and cooperative enterprise developer.

Matt Eldridge

Executive Director | Realize Impact

Matt is Executive Director at Realize Impact, a nonprofit organization that has mobilized more than $37 million in philanthropic capital to fund mission-driven, impactful startups in the US and low-income countries. Previously, he served as CEO of Oikocredit US, an affiliate of Oikocredit International, a $1.2 billion cooperative that makes impact investments in Latin America, Africa and Asia. Matt brings more than 30 years of experience in launching, leading and scaling for-profit and nonprofit ventures, and holds a MBA from Yale, MA from the University of Cape Town, and BA with Honors from Stanford.

Leslie Payne

Initiative Director | James Irvine Foundation

Leslie leads the Better Careers Initiative at the James Irvine Foundation, a portfolio that focuses on supporting job training and access organizations in their work advancing racial equity and quality jobs. She is passionate about shared ownership models as a way of advancing Irvine’s North Star of ensuring low-wage Californians have the power to advance economically.

Kenda Creasy Dean

Mary D. Synnott Professor of Youth, Church and Culture | Princeton Theological Seminary

Kenda Creasy Dean is Princeton Theological Seminary's Mary D. Synnott Professor of Youth, Church and Culture, where she also works closely with the Institute for Youth Ministry and the Farminary. Her most recent book is Innovating for Love, born out of her work with Ministry Incubators, an education and consulting group that she so-founded with Mark DeVries in 2014, to collaborate with faith leaders developing creative and sustainable ministries. Kenda was recently named Wesleyan Impact Partners' 2024 Distinguished Locke Innovative Leader, for influencing faith-based innovation at both a local and systemic level.

Jennie Birkholz

Principal and Candidate for Texas House of Representatives | Breakwater Light

Jennie Birkholz, MHA, is a nationally recognized expert in community health, devoting her career to addressing major challenges, including combatting the opioid crisis, leading innovations in community behavioral health, and advancing rural health. Her extensive knowledge has played a crucial role in shaping policy, contributing to White House commissions, and fostering collaborations with health systems, universities, faith communities, and foundations nationwide. Now running for the Texas House of Representatives, Jennie Birkholz seeks to leverage her wealth of experience to drive systemic change in divested communities.

Joshua Hayashi

CEO | Mission Management Company

I am from Honolulu, HI. I am and ordained Minister in the UCC. I am passionate about the church and its role in the neighborhood.

Sara Olsen

Founder | SVT Group

A pioneer in impact management, Sara is the founder of SVT Group, a founding B Corp that for over 2 decades has helped investors, foundations, companies, social enterprises, and nonprofits discover and grow previously unrecognized value. Sara has taught impact management and SROI to thousands of professionals, and is a Trustee of Social Value International, the global network of professionals "working to change the way society accounts for value." She'd like to discuss the systems-level impact you want to see.

Gerald Doyle

Advisor | College for the Neighborhood

Significant initiatives include the Collens and Presidential Scholarship for the Chicago Public Schools and the City Colleges of Chicago (2008), the creation of the Global Leaders Program (2008), the launch of the St Lucian Visionaries project (2010), and the establishment of the IIE Syrian Higher Education Consortium (2012). In 2017, Student Employment Office was named Illinois Tech's "Department of the Year " for the reimagination of its training modules and programming; moreover, Doyle prototyped Illinois Tech’s inaugural work in the areas of Continuous Improvement and formed the Office of Inclusion, Diversity, and Employer Engagement.

Robert Garris

Managing Director for Leadership Development | Trinity Church Wall Street

Rob Garris builds programs to develop new leaders who create positive change at community, national, and global levels. At Johns Hopkins University, Columbia University, the Rockefeller Foundation, Schwarzman Scholars, and now Trinity Church Wall Street, he has focused on expanding access to top-level education and on creating challenging, diverse, intercultural, and results-oriented learning environments that push young leaders to question their assumptions, stay true to their values, and focus on creating positive change in the communities they serve.

Dennis Price

Co-President | ImpactAlpha

Dennis leads product development at media publication ImpactAlpha and helps shape and drive business development and subscription growth. He writes on investing in the inclusive economy and impact in private markets.

Chris Seals

Co-Founder & CEO | Still Austin Whiskey Co

Chris is the cofounder and CEO of Still Austin Whiskey, an whiskey maker located in Austin, Texas.

tyler krupp

Development Lead | Threshold Sacred Development

Social entrepreneur, educator, and community developer. Inspired by folks attempting to cultivate cultures and communities of care. What moves you? What beautiful possibilities might emerge between us?

Tim Freundlich

Founder & Executive Director, Strategic Development | ImpactAssets

Tim is an impact investing innovator. Over the last 25 years, he served 12 at Calvert Impact Capital, helping to build the $500 million Community Investment Note. While there he founded ImpactAssets, now a $3B+ AUM nonprofit impact investment firm that was spun out in 2010. Additionally, he co-founded Good Capital and the SOCAP Conference.

Zoe Schlag

Co-Founder and Managing Partner | Common Trust

Zoe is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Common Trust, a platform that streamlines the process for business owners to exit to their employees through employee ownership trusts. Working hands on with business owners, their teams and capital providers, we design and execute mission-aligned exit strategies enabling shareholders to access liquidity while transitioning businesses to long term ownership structures that benefit workers and their local communities. Zoe is an Executive Fellow at the Rutgers Institute for Employee Ownership and Profit Sharing.

Harvey Fiser

Dean | Millsaps College Else School of Management

Harvey L. Fiser currently serves as the Dean and Professor of Business Law Professor with the Else School of Management. He practiced law as a partner at Adams and Reese, LLP in employment and commercial litigation before joining the faculty at Millsaps in 2003. As a scholar, Fiser publishes in the areas of neuroscience and law, employment law, and family/reproductive rights.

Deborah McKetty

President | SC Community Loan Fund

Deborah has more than 30 years' experience in community economic development as a banker and community development professional. She was the founder and CEO of CommunityWorks, a CDFI loan fund in SC and currently works serves as the President of the SC Community Loan Fund, a statewide $50M CDFI loan fund based in Charleston and serving the state of South Carolina. SCCLF was selected as the CDFI partner with Charleston County for the Just Home project awarded by the MacArthur Foundation and was recently approved for a $5M program related investment to support affordable housing for system impacted citizens returning from the Charleston criminal justice system.

Garrett Vickrey

Senior Pastor | Woodland Church

Garrett Vickrey is the Senior Pastor of Woodland Church in San Antonio, TX, where he has served since 2012.

Margot Brandenburg

Senior Program Officer | Ford Foundation

Margot Brandenburg is a senior program officer on the foundation’s Mission Investments team, focused on building and strengthening the infrastructure of the impact investment market—with an eye to shaping the broader capital markets. She has spent two decades working at the intersection of philanthropy, capital markets, and social and environmental justice.

Patricia Mejia

VP Inclusive Engagement | Spurs Sports & Entertainment

David Palmer

CEO | Kite & Key Partners

David Palmer is a multi-disciplinary strategist, facilitator, convenor, Associate Broker and Realtor based in Detroit, Michigan. He has over 25 years of management and research experience, and earned a Master of Public Administration degree from Eastern Michigan University. He is focused on the areas where workforce, real estate, economic development, and nonprofits intersect to lift up normal humans with improved policy and program outcomes for our communities.

Cindy Willard

Director Capital Activation | Impact Charitable

I believe the power of relationships and the intentionality of capital will create a more equitable world, better aligning finance and opportunity. I have experience as a thought leader in impact investing, philanthropic strategy, and program development designed to create investments that balance finance and impact. At Impact Charitable, we use philanthropic capital and community relationships to make impact-first investments.

Lisa Greenwood

President & CEO | Texas Methodist Foundation and Wesleyan Impact Partners

Rev. Greenwood is the president and chief executive officer of Texas Methodist Foundation. For over 30 years, Rev. Greenwood has been a change-maker within ministry and faith communities, empowering leaders through learning and innovation and promoting congregational growth. She regularly speaks and facilitates national conversations creating cultures of purpose, generosity, and courage in the church. Rev. Greenwood is co-creator and host of the nationally distributed Igniting Imagination podcast.

Alison Lingane

Co-founder | Project Equity

Alison Lingane is co-founder of Project Equity, a national leader in the movement to harness employee ownership to maintain thriving local business communities, honor selling owners’ legacies, and address income and wealth inequality. As Chief Innovation & Investment Officer, she incubates new programs and innovates to expand access to capital for impact first employee ownership, including through Project Equity's Employee Ownership Catalyst Fund. She is currently a Just Economy Institute Fellow and has been selected as an Echoing Green Fellow, an Aspen Institute Job Quality Fellow, an Ashoka Fellow and is a recipient of the Heinz Award for the Economy.

Stephen Reeves

Executive Director | Fellowship Southwest

Stephen Reeves serves as executive director of Fellowship Southwest - a Christian network equipping and encouraging people of faith to practice compassion, pursue justice, and build new connections. He is an attorney and native of Austin Texas. He has spent over twenty years working at the intersection of faith and public policy - teaching and practicing advocacy.

Michele Feltes

One City Momentum Director | One City United

Michele Feltes brings people together with purpose and passion. As a relational router, she leads organizations to become People First Cultures of intention. She's a doer, disruptor, and galvanizer for change.

Wilson Lester

Managing Partner | Partners in Equity

Wilson Lester is the Managing Partner at Partners in Equity, a national investment fund with a strong focus on aiding owner-occupied commercial real estate for BIPOC business owners. As a dedicated leader in community finance and economic development, Wilson's efforts have consistently expanded access to capital and vital resources for BIPOC entrepreneurs.

Graham Palmer

Director of Systems Innovation & Policy | Rural Opportunity Institute

Graham graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill and began his career at Monitor Deloitte consulting for social impact and national security clients before joining ROI in pursuit of a closer connection to decision-making and impact. At ROI, he focuses on identifying and iterating on new ideas for trauma-informed policy and programs with partner organizations. Graham holds an MBA from UPenn’s Wharton School and a Masters of International Relations from Johns Hopkins’ School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS).

Aisha Benson

President & CEO | Nonprofit Finance Fund

Aisha Benson, CEO of Nonprofit Finance Fund, is a community development finance professional and thought leader with 30 years’ experience in banking and CDFIs. She has directly deployed $130MM in New Market Tax Credits (NMTCs) and $300MM of capital to low-income communities and spearheaded the design and implementation of numerous multimillion-dollar capital access, guaranty, and grant programs during her career. Aisha holds leadership positions on several key industry boards, including Opportunity Finance Network (OFN), the Community Advisory Group of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and the Center for Impact Finance at the Carsey School of Public Policy.

Melissa Wiginton

Austin Seminary

Melissa Wiginton serves as Vice President for Strategic Planning and Mission at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary. Her work takes her to intersections of innovation, tradition, and vocation of individuals and the church.

Mario Alfaro

Program Director | Center for Public Justice

Mario Alfaro directs Equipping Ministries fellowship program, which equips grassroots Hispanic-led faith-based organizations to align their faith with organizational practices, their relationship with the public, and their public policy engagement. He has 20 years of experience working with leaders of faith-based organizations to help them impact their communities.

Myeisha Wright

Myeisha Wright | LocalCode Kansas City

Myeisha Wright is a dedicated real estate professional driven by the need for quality affordable housing and community improvement. Serving as a managing Broker at The Real Estate House of Kansas City, she oversees 15 agents and co-owns TREH KC Property Management Group. Myeisha, a Housing Credit Certified Professional, has a strong leadership background in property management, broker services, and real estate development, contributing significantly to her community while maintaining strong family ties in Kansas City.

Ashley Goff

Rev. | Arlington Presbyterian Church

Collete English Dixon

Executive Director | Marshall Bennett Institue of RE/Roosevelt University

Collete English Dixon has more than 30 years of experience in investment management with a focus on commercial real estate investing. Prior to her current role at Roosevelt University, she was Executive Director - Transactions for PGIM Real Estate (formerly known as PREI), a business unit of Prudential Financial, and co-leader of PREI’s national investment dispositions program. Collete’s experience also includes commercial property development and asset management.

Jim Wehner

President | Focused Community Strategies

Having spent more than 20 years in place-based community development, Jim has deep expertise in mixed-income housing, neighborhood-based economic development, and holistic neighborhood development. Jim has led and participated in multiple workshops on Reimagining Charity, Inclusive Mixed-Income Housing, and Neighborhood Dynamics of Redevelopment.

Lindsay Smalling

Head of Sales | 60 Decibels

Lindsay is Head of Sales at 60 Decibels, a tech-enabled impact measurement company that brings speed and repeatability to social impact measurement and customer insights. Prior to 60 Decibels, she was CEO of SOCAP, and held previous roles at ImpactAssets, Entrepreneurs Foundation, Wellington Management and Lord Abbett. Lindsay graduated from Pomona College and has an MBA from Columbia Business School.

Adriana Abizadeh

Executive Director | Kensington Corridor Trust

Adriana Abizadeh is the executive director of Philadelphia-based Kensington Corridor Trust (KCT). The mission, duty, and purpose of the KCT is to utilize collective ownership to direct investments on the corridor that preserve culture and affordability while building neighborhood power and wealth in Kensington. Adriana is also a policy fellow at Princeton University and Rutgers University.

Carol Naughton

President and Chief Executive Officer | Purpose Built Communities Foundation

Carol Redmond Naughton is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Purpose Built Communities Foundation. Purpose Built supports local leaders who are implementing resident-centered, holistic, and cross-sectoral neighborhood revitalization initiatives that create pathways to prosperity for all neighbors. Carol sets the strategic vision for the organization with a focus on the growth, development, and impact of Purpose Built, its Network, and the communities it serves. Carol has been with the organization since its inception in 2009 and became President and Chief Executive Officer in 2020.

David Erickson Ph.D.

SVP and Head of Community Development | Federal Reserve Bank of New York
David Erickson is senior vice president at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York where he has convened thousands of experts to be speakers at conferences and authors in a series of books on how community development finance can work with other social investors to create more opportunities in low-income communities. Key to this strategy is to create new alliances with sectors that previously did not work with community and economic development efforts: health, climate adaptation, household financial wellbeing, art and artists, faith communities, and others. He is the author of Housing Policy Revolution: Networks and Neighborhoods and more recently, The Fifth Freedom: Guaranteeing an Opportunity-Rich Childhood for All.

Patton Dodd

Executive Director of Storytelling and Communications | H. E. Butt Foundation

Patton Dodd is executive director of storytelling and communications at the H. E. Butt Foundation. He co-leads Know Your Neighbor, a program that uses stories to bridge San Antonio's economic divides.

Derek Peebles

Senior Director, Inclusive Economy | American Sustainable Business Network

Derek Peebles, a leader in community economic development, has spent 15 years fostering sustainable economic growth by uniting local businesses, residents, and institutions, and harnessing diverse capital sources. As the Senior Director of Inclusive Economy at the American Sustainable Business Network, he focuses on climate and economic justice, advocating for policy changes and bolstering local economies through restorative investments. Previously, he led the American Independent Business Alliance, aiding over 60 independent business alliances nationwide to support local business districts and entrepreneurs, and he is also the founder of the Common Good Alliance in Cincinnati, OH.

Shannon Hopkins

Co-founder, lead cultivator | RootedGood

Shannon Hopkins is a connector and a catalyst and one of the co-founders of RootedGood. Her passion for community and individual transformation has launched or influenced the formation of sixteen campaigns, projects, and organizations — and trained over 200 social entrepreneurs.

Patrick Duggan

Executive Director | UCC Church Building & Loan Fund

The Reverend Doctor Patrick Garnet Duggan has served as Executive Director of the UCC Church Building and Loan Fund (CB&LF) since 2012. Founded in 1853, CB&LF is the first national church building society in the United States. The Fund helps UCC and other Christian churches in the US to finance and redevelop their real estate for greater missional impact.

Levar Martin

Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer | NALCAB - National Association For Latino Community Asset Builders

As a member of NALCAB’s executive leadership team, Levar Martin serves as Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer, responsible for overseeing and integrating NALCAB’s national grantmaking, technical assistance and capacity-building work in the program areas of Equitable Neighborhood Development, Small Business Investment, Family Financial Capability and CDFI/Lending. He also leads NALCAB’s national Rural Capacity Building (RCB) program and rural Revolving Loan Fund, as well as the annual National Training Institute and Leadership Development initiatives, including the Pete Garcia Fellowship program.

Aaron Kuecker

President | Trinity Christian College

Aaron Kuecker serves as President at Trinity Christian College, a small liberal arts college on the southwest side of Chicago. Trinity has undertaken a series of unique, institution-wide initiatives that are engaging its Greater Chicago ecosystem in ways that are uncovering how neighborhood collaboration can solve systemic problems on a local level. Specifically, Trinity is developing upstream solutions to the problems of student loan debt and student well-being that are simultaneously providing mutual benefit to both entrepreneurs from underinvested neighborhoods and larger, more established companies.

Amy Brakeman

Impact Investor | Unlock Ownership, Pluralize Capital

Julie Menter

Program Director, Transformative Financing Structures | Transform Finance

Julie is the Program Director for Transformative Financing Structures at Transform Finance where she leads research and education work to grow the adoption of corporate structures and investment terms that foster a more just economy. She was previously the Managing Director and Chief Investment Officer at New Media Ventures, where she built a best-in-class portfolio of for-profit and nonprofit startups working to strengthen our democracy. She lives in beautiful Oakland, California and loves imagining a better world by reading science-fiction, and nurturing life in her garden.

Meagan Longley

VP, Community Impact | Austin Community Foundation

Meagan Anderson Longley is the Vice President of Community Impact at the Austin Community Foundation. In this role, she is responsible for vision and oversight of all programmatic elements of the foundation. This includes building and managing all community-facing initiatives and programs, coordinating the Foundation’s philanthropic engagement in the community, and overseeing the Foundation’s use of data.

Henry Cisneros

Chairman | American Triple I

Mark Sampson

Co-founder and Lead Learner | RootedGood

Mark Sampson is a co-founder of RootedGood, with a doctorate in Theology and Economics from King’s College London. He lives on a small farm in Michigan with his wife Katie, and children Ember, Lucas and Elora.

Drew Tulchin

Advisor | New Way Homes

Drew Tulchin's work has generated more than $300 million for triple bottom line efforts. And, his Angel investing in start-ups has created 100s of jobs. He has contributed to 100+ triple bottom line and socially entrepreneurial business plans. He was Director of a U.S. microfinance organization, the CDFI called ECDC/Enterprise Development Group, serving immigrants and low-income people in Greater Washington, DC.

Blair Evans

Executive Director | Incite Focus

Experienced practitioner in Digital Fabrication, Natural Systems and local startup development. Applying that background along with current involvement with municipal government and community place-making to create community driven resilient hubs. This is creating pathways for community members to create prosperity in a self-determined manner.

Luke Lingle

Executive Pastor | Central UMC Asheville

Rev. Luke Lingle, an ordained UMC pastor, currently serving as the Executive Pastor at Central UMC in Asheville NC and as an Agent of Thriving at Duke Divinity School’s Ormond Center. Luke’s areas of theological study include the intersection of economic and community development and the role of leadership development in local communities. He uses his education, training, and experience in the local church to help other practitioners follow their call.

Onelia Macchia Anzola

Executive Director | Avanzando Juntos

Onelia’s journey begins with the American Dream. As an immigrant herself, she understands the challenges that are inherent in finding footing in a new and different culture and what it takes to succeed at every turn. Today, Onelia shares the dream with our Tulsa community. As Executive Director of Avanzando Juntos, she knows the powerful pull of opportunity and the thirst many immigrants have to own a business. Avanzando Juntos helps immigrant entrepreneurs gain access to capital and remove the barriers to success. As Executive Director, Onelia is working diligently on creating and designing programs that are culturally relevant for Latino entrepreneurs in underserved communities, making sure these small business owners have the tools and resources they need to reach their full potential – and achieve their American Dream. Onelia comes to this work with a deep passion for service. She worked as a Director of Family Service at Tulsa Educare. She also served as a Communities In Schools of Mid-America Lead Site Coordinator at Kendall Whittier and Sequoyah Elementary schools and work as Family Support at Family and Children Services.

Havell Rodrigues

CEO/Co-Founder | New Majority Capital

Havell Rodrigues is the Founding Partner at New Majority Capital, a certified B Corp impact firm focused on closing the wealth gap using Entrepreneurship through Acquisition as a vehicle. The firm provides technical assistance and manages innovative impact funds that aim to remove barriers to knowledge and access to non extractive capital to underrepresented entrepreneurs. He is a former fintech entrepreneur and hedge fund-of-fund manager. He has an MBA from Babson College and is a CAIA charterholder.

Jeremiah Robinson

Entrepreneur in Residence | Mountain BizWorks

Jeremiah Robinson is a passionate advocate for equitable access to financial, human, and social capital. As the Entrepreneur in Residence at Mountain BizWorks, he launched the Catalyst Fund to support underrepresented entrepreneurs and increase equity within the startup landscape. Drawing from his own experiences as an entrepreneur, Jeremiah is committed to helping fellow entrepreneurs of color build successful businesses, grow with confidence and strengthen the local economy.

Coté Soerens

Co-founding Director | Center for Transformative Neighborhoods

Social innovator activating the common good in the areas of the built environment, civic engagement, and economic development at the neighborhood level. I help groups find and align their transformational strategy using visual thinking. Avanzando Juntos helps immigrant entrepreneurs gain access to capital and remove the barriers to success. As Executive Director, Onelia is working diligently on creating and designing programs that are culturally relevant for Latino entrepreneurs in underserved communities, making sure these small business owners have the tools and resources they need to reach their full potential – and achieve their American Dream. Onelia comes to this work with a deep passion for service. She worked as a Director of Family Service at Tulsa Educare. She also served as a Communities In Schools of Mid-America Lead Site Coordinator at Kendall Whittier and Sequoyah Elementary schools and work as Family Support at Family and Children Services.

Joel Skene

Owner of The Skene Agency | The Mindful Marketplace Show

After studying Community Development and serving in the Peace Corps, Joel Skene spent his first career fighting homelessness and food insecurity in Metro Detroit MI. After moving to Asheville NC and finding himself in the Life Insurance business, he built a multi-million dollar agency and earned several awards for outstanding leadership. Now, Joel is the host of The Mindful Marketplace show on BizRadio.US, an offical partner of Neighborhood Economics, and The Skene Agency is committed to protecting and accelerating The Solidarity Economy

Garrett Vickrey

Senior Pastor | Woodland Church

Garrett Vickrey is the Senior Pastor of Woodland Church in San Antonio, TX, where he has served since 2012.

Kate Toth

Executive Director | Bricks and Mortals

Kate Toth is Executive Director of Bricks and Mortals, which has the mission of providing creative, sustaining solutions to help houses of worship thrive amidst the costly and challenging landscape of operating in New York City. With a background in advocacy, program development and fundraising, Kate has more than 15 years supporting and empowering vulnerable communities. Kate has worked as an LGBT Liaison, run field campaigns across the Northeast, and in supportive housing. She holds an BA from New York University and an MSc from the London School of Economics and Political Science. Kate was a Fellow in the NYU Wagner FELPS program and is a New York Community Trust Leadership Fellow and an Urban Design Forum Fellow. She's proud to be a born and bred New Yorker.Onelia comes to this work with a deep passion for service. She worked as a Director of Family Service at Tulsa Educare. She also served as a Communities In Schools of Mid-America Lead Site Coordinator at Kendall Whittier and Sequoyah Elementary schools and work as Family Support at Family and Children Services.

Blythe Taylor

President, Co-Founder | College for the Neighborhood

Rev. Ms. Blythe Taylor is a native North Carolinian, a former Baptist minister, life coach, spiritual director, and educator who longs to see students and communities thrive. She holds degrees in communication from Meredith College, and Gonzaga University, and a Master of Divinity from The Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond. In the fall of 2024, she will begin a Doctor of Ministry degree at Claremont School of Theology.

Dianne Garcia

Pastor | Roca de Refugio

Dianne Garcia is the founding pastor of the Iglesia Cristiana Roca de Refugio, an immigrant church that nurtures the hope and promise that immigrant families bring to San Antonio. She has worked previously as an Associate Pastor, intern counselor, gardener, teacher, and day camp director. She holds a bachelor's from MIT and a graduate degree in education from Harvard.

Emma González Roberts

Chief Operating Officer | TREND Community Development Corporation

Emma Gonzalez Roberts is a community development practitioner with ten years of experience managing programs, teams, and operations. She is Chief Operating Officer at TREND Community Development Corporation, a non-profit committed to strengthening urban neighborhoods through inclusive economic development. Emma earned an MA in City Planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a BA from the University of Chicago. Along with his writing for the Strong Towns website, Marohn is the author of Strong Towns: A Bottom-Up Revolution to Rebuild American Prosperity (Wiley, 2019) and Confessions of a Recovering Engineer: Transportation for a Strong Town (Wiley, 2021), and is a co-author of Escaping the Housing Trap: The Strong Towns Response to the Housing Crisis (Wiley, 2024).

Chuck Mahron

President | Strong Towns
Charles Marohn, known as “Chuck” to friends and colleagues, is the founder and president of Strong Towns. He is a civil engineer and a land use planner with decades of experience, holding a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering and a Master of Urban and Regional Planning, both from the University of Minnesota.

Douglas Jutte

Founder | Build Healthy Places Network

Douglas Jutte, MD, MPH is the founder and past executive director of the Build Healthy Places Network, a national organization working to transform the way organizations partner across the sectors of health, community development, and finance to more effectively reduce poverty, advance racial equity, and improve health. Currently based at the Public Health Institute, Dr. Jutte is a Board of Trustees member for both Mercy Housing, the nation's largest nonprofit affordable housing developer, and Purpose Built Communities, a network of community-led revitalization efforts focused simultaneously on housing, education, wellbeing, and economic mobility. Dr. Jutte's past work was as a pediatrician in low-income communities and a neonatal hospitalist, and as a professor and health disparities researcher at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Public Health.

Sibley Simon

President | New Way Homes

Sibley is a former technology entrepreneur who is President and the founder of New Way Homes and a Principal of Workbench. New Way Homes is a non-profit that operates an impact investment fund to create more affordable housing with less public funding, often in partnership with churches. Workbench is a development-design-build company specializing in infill multifamily housing.

Allison Clark

Associate Director, Impact Investments | John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation

As a member of the Impact Investing team, Allison helps to source, underwrite, and manage Program-related Investments that are part of the Foundation’s $500 million portfolio. She currently co-leads the Foundation’s Just Home Project, a demonstration project that supports innovation in new housing models to help disrupt the cycle of housing instability and jail involvement. In addition, she also serves as a core member of the Chicago Commitment team, where she leads impact investing efforts to advance both the Vital Communities and Culture, Equity, and the Arts programs.

Stephanie McHenry

CEO | The Democracy Collaborative

Stephanie McHenry is the CEO of The Democracy Collaborative, a think/do tank focused on democratic and equitable forms of the economy (https://democracycollaborative.org). Ms. McHenry formerly held leadership positions at ShoreBank, the nation's first Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), and at Cleveland State University, an anchor institution in downtown Cleveland, OH. She holds a BA in Economics from Dartmouth College.

Kristen Barker

Co-Director | Co-op Cincy

Kristen Barker is a social entrepreneur and Co-Founder of Co-op Cincy, a non-profit whose mission is to create an economy that works for all by developing and supporting an interconnected network of worker-own cooperatives. Kristen coaches co-ops in participatory and open book management, co-facilitates Co-op U bootcamp and Cooperative Management cohorts, and supports existing business owners to sell to their employees. Kristen serves on the board and credit committee of Seed Commons, a financial cooperative that offers loans in the cooperative space.

Steve Wanta

CEO | JUST Community

Co-founder and CEO of JUST. Our vision is a just Texas. We invest in ambitious Black and Brown female entrepreneurs based on trust, not credit scores. We believe new, more, and better opportunities to build wealth will lead to community transformation.

Delilah Rothenberg

Co-founder & Executive Director | Predistribution Initiative

Delilah Rothenberg is a Co-Founding Partner and the Executive Director of the Predistribution Initiative (PDI), a non-profit which works with institutional investors and their stakeholders on strategies to share more wealth and influence with workers and communities. Delilah brings nearly two decades of experience in finance across asset classes – particularly private capital markets – having worked with private equity investors, lenders, and project developers on financing, ESG (environmental, social, and governance) integration, and impact strategy for over 12 years. Prior to private capital markets, Delilah worked in sell side equities with Bear Stearns and investment research with Gerson Lehrman Group (GLG).

Ida Rademacher

Vice President & Co-Executive Director, Financial Security Program | Aspen Institute

Ida Rademacher is a vice president at the Aspen Institute, where she is co-executive director of the Financial Security Program and launched and leads the Aspen Partnership for an Inclusive Economy. A leading voice on Americans’ financial health, her efforts have resulted in initiatives and events including the Expanding Prosperity Impact Collaborative and Global Inclusive Growth Summit. She is the co-editor of a book of essays, The Future of Building Wealth. Rademacher has testified before Congress and contributes to news and commentary on economic policy and consumer finance topics in national media outlets.

Lance Gilliam

Managing Partner | Concentric Community Advisors

Lance Gilliam is the Managing Partner of Concentric Community Advisors, a Houston, Texas-based advisory and consulting firm whose scope of services is focused on socially equitable investments, especially early childhood education, equitable food access, and affordable housing. His community service includes having served as chair of both the Coalition for the Homeless Houston / Harris County’s Board of Directors and Houston Housing Authority’s Board of Commissioners. After a brief stint as a Ph.D. student, he is now a Senior Fellow at the University of Texas’ LBJ School of Public Affairs’ Urban Lab.

David Robinson Jr.

Development Manager | Weston Urban

David serves as Development Manager at Weston Urban, where he is focused on real estate development in downtown San Antonio, TX. He joined Weston Urban from Blueprint Local, a firm investing in real estate development to promote long-term, inclusive economic growth. David was born and raised in San Antonio and a graduate from the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Texas at San Antonio.

Sidney Williams Jr

CEO | Crossing Capital Group

Dr. Williams’ scholarship is focused primarily on an interdisciplinary approach to storytelling, bridging social capital and place-based investing. Dr. Williams currently serves as an independent director for a publicly traded bank (NASDAQ: VLY) as well as advises non-profit organizations, privately held middle-market companies and start-up ventures primarily in the technology sector. His board expertise includes corporate social responsibility (ESG), audit and investments. He is a highly sought after speaker for a diverse array of audiences.

Tyler Norris

Visiting Scholar | Federal Reserve Bank of NY

Tyler Norris, MDiv, is a social entrepreneur and trusted advisor to philanthropies, partnerships and government agencies working to improve the well-being of people and place. For over four decades, he has shaped health and development initiatives in hundreds of communities in the U.S. and around the world and built over a dozen business and social ventures. Tyler is co-founder and senior advisor to the CEO Alliance for Mental Health; a visiting scholar at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York; and a board member for Mindful Philanthropy, the National Academies of Sciences’ Child Well Being Forum, Naropa University (board chair 2020-2023), and the Global Flourishing Study.

Joe Daniels

Lead Pastor/Managing Partner | The Emory Fellowship/The Ananias Group

Dr. Joseph W. Daniels, Jr. is the lead pastor of The Emory Fellowship in Washington, D.C. He serves as the managing partner of The Ananias Group, a consulting firm dedicated to the revitalization and transformation of community, churches and civic organizations. Over his 32-year pastoral career, Joe has activated the Emory congregation and other churches to provide critical mass, fully affordable housing opportunities in the District of Columbia.

Ross Baird

CEO | Blueprint Local

Ross is the CEO and founder of Blueprint Local, which has invested over $200M in the revitalization of American communities over the past 5 years. Prior to founding Blueprint, he is also the co-founder of Village Capital, one of the most active impact investment firms worldwide, supporting over 1,000 entrepreneurs generating impact in over 100 countries. He is the author of the best-selling book, The Innovation Blind Spot, and is a graduate of the University of Virginia and the University of Oxford.

Sarah Woolsey

Executive Director | Impact Guild

Sarah Woolsey is the founder and executive director of The Impact Guild - a design lab cultivating a community of changemakers and social entrepreneurs and equipping them as problem-solvers in our communities and Good Acres - a San Antonio focused network helping churches activate their property for their neighborhoods. Launching and operating a social enterprise for 7 years fueled Sarah's passion for social innovation and community-based enterprises in which creative business solutions help meet the needs of people and communities. Sarah is fueled by a desire to see creativity, justice and love alive in very tangible ways in the buildings, businesses and people of the neighborhoods of San Antonio.

Kristi Hendrix

Executive Director | Midtown Partners

Dr. Kristi Hendrix serves as the Executive Director of Midtown Partners, a community development corporation located in Jackson, MS. She is a seasoned leader in community development with over thirty years of experience in family and community development. Under her leadership, Midtown Partners has spearheaded numerous impactful initiatives including the establishment of two Creative Economy incubators, the development of the Prosperity Center of Greater Jackson and has served as co-developer in over $20 million dollars in affordable housing development within the Midtown neighborhood.

Janie Barrera

Founder | LiftFund

Ms. Janie Barrera is Founder of LiftFund. Ms. Barrera started LiftFund in 1994 with only three employees. To date, LiftFund has over one-hundred employees and has grown to become one of the largest micro and small business lender in the United States. Since its inception, it has disbursed more than 24,000 loans totaling more than $425 million – with an impressive 96 percent repayment rate.

Kenneth Kemp

Antioch Missionary Baptist Church

Dr. Kenneth Kemp is the senior pastor of the Antioch Missionary Baptist Church of San Antonio. He is also a retired Colonel of the US Army Medical Corps and a practicing physician certified in the areas of internal medicine, pulmonary medicine, and critical care medicine. The author of several publications and a member of several boards and commissions, Dr. Kemp has a deep and abiding love for God and the community.

Melissa Devereaux

VP, Network Engagement and Resources | Purpose Built Communities

As Purpose Built's Vice President for Network Engagement and Resources, Melissa brings over 25 years of experience in nonprofit management, development, and volunteer/partner engagement to her work developing innovative partnerships, resources, and products that increase the value of Purpose Built Network Membership and accelerate model implementation. Prior to joining Purpose Built, Melissa served in a range of leadership roles in local nonprofit, civic, and faith-based organizations including The Georgia Justice Project and Hands On Atlanta.

Avi Telyas

Founder | Makerhoods

Avi Telyas founded Makerhoods in 2014 to develop affordable live/work communities for underrepresented entrepreneurs. The mixed-use projects dramatically lowers occupancy costs and provides a suite of wraparound services to maximize commercial success and realize the Makerhoods mission of enabling self-sufficiency through self-employment.

Damien Goodmon

CEO | Downtown Crenshaw / Liberty Ecosystem

Damien Goodmon is a nonprofit executive who has led some of the Crenshaw and Black Los Angeles' most impactful community advocacy campaigns. As the CEO of Downtown Crenshaw Rising, he led the most successful capital raise for a community-owned real estate project in American history - $34 million in philanthropy and $90 million in commitments from impact investors/debt partners toward the attempt to acquire the 40-acre Crenshaw Mall. He is the architect and director of the Liberty Ecosystem, which has been lauded as a high-impact scalable model for equitable community development. A graduate of L.A. Loyola High School, he has studied at the University of Washington and Harvard University programs.

Kevin Jones

Co-Founder | Neighborhood Economics
Kevin Jones created one of the first impact investing VC funds and co-founded SOCAP, realizing that the ecosystem needed to change for impact investing to succeed. Now, he and Rosa Lee have launched F+F and NE.

Rev. Leroy Barber

Faith + Finance Director | Neighborhood Economics

Rev. Leroy Barber is the Director of Innovation for an Engaged Church serving the Greater NW area of the United Methodist Church. He is the Co-Founder of the Voices Project, inviting voices of color, particularly Black voices, to connect to history, share wisdom, collaborate as bridge builders, encourage intergenerational ties and to affect culture in their communities from a larger platform.

Paula Garrett

Director of Communications | Neighborhood Economics

Paula Garrett chairs the English Department at Warren Wilson College. She teaches American literature and started the Queer Studies program. She has been a writing professional for more than 30 years and serves as Director of Communications for Neighborhood Economics.

Rosa Lee Harden

Executive Producer | Neighborhood Economics

The Rev. Canon Rosa Lee Harden served Holy Innocents in San Francisco and as Canon for Money and Meaning at All Soul’s Cathedral in Asheville. In 2008, she co-founded SOCAP. She is executive producer of NE and F+F.

Tim Soerens

Co-founding Director | Parish Collective

Tim Soerens is the co-founding director of the Parish Collective, a growing network and global movement of Christians reimagining what it means to be the Church in, with, and for the neighborhood.

Taylor Toynes

Chief Executive Officer | For Oak Cliff

Taylor Toynes is the founder and CEO of For Oak Cliff. Their mission is to liberate Oak Cliff from systemic oppression through a culture of education while increasing social mobility and social capital. Working as a community organizer in the South Oak Cliff neighborhood of Dallas, Taylor Toynes has been on a mission in his community. After graduating with his master’s degree in education from Southern Methodist University, Toynes returned to the neighborhood he grew up in with the singular focus of working to overturn the decades of racism and systemic oppression that have limited the opportunities for its residents, especially youth and children. He brought this passion and commitment to his students at W.W. Bushman Elementary School where he taught. Shortly after he launched the first annual Back To School Festival, a vessel to equip the community and students with the necessary supplies and resources for the new school year. Since its inception For Oak Cliff has grown and gained full support from the community and has established itself as a place-based movement for the people. In 2022 For Oak Cliff closed on it's new property the FOC Community Campus formerly known as Moorland YMCA. Now For Oak Cliff has a 10-acre property with a 20,000-square-foot facility. For his leadership, he has received awards from the United Nations, the NAACP, and Southern Methodist University and was named an Echoing Green Fellow in 2020.

Olivia Travieso, MPAff

Partner, Co-Founder | OCI Group

Olivia Travieso is a Partner and Co-founder of two majority Latina-owned firms: OCI Group, a social-purpose consulting firm focused on government relations and public affairs, and OCI Development, a real estate development company with a commitment to generating positive social impact through affordable housing. The two firms are based in her hometown, San Antonio, TX, but their clients and projects have spanned Texas, the U.S., and Mexico. Currently, Olivia serves on the Executive Committee for ESTAR West, a collaborative initiative that is working to see San Antonio’s Westside entrepreneurs and small businesses thriving alongside neighborhood residents in a way that balances economic advancement and progress with preservation and celebration of this historic community. Working as a community organizer in the South Oak Cliff neighborhood of Dallas, Taylor Toynes has been on a mission in his community. After graduating with his master’s degree in education from Southern Methodist University, Toynes returned to the neighborhood he grew up in with the singular focus of working to overturn the decades of racism and systemic oppression that have limited the opportunities for its residents, especially youth and children. He brought this passion and commitment to his students at W.W. Bushman Elementary School where he taught. Shortly after he launched the first annual Back To School Festival, a vessel to equip the community and students with the necessary supplies and resources for the new school year. Since its inception For Oak Cliff has grown and gained full support from the community and has established itself as a place-based movement for the people. In 2022 For Oak Cliff closed on it's new property the FOC Community Campus formerly known as Moorland YMCA. Now For Oak Cliff has a 10-acre property with a 20,000-square-foot facility. For his leadership, he has received awards from the United Nations, the NAACP, and Southern Methodist University and was named an Echoing Green Fellow in 2020.