Connecticut Networking Night | Addressing Our Growing Economic Divide

Addressing Our Growing Economic Divide: Building Generational Wealth with Mission-Driven Capital and Entrepreneurial Assistance

Across Connecticut and beyond, a growing number of initiatives are rethinking how capital can be deployed to address persistent economic inequality and expand access to opportunity. From mission-driven investment strategies to community-based entrepreneurial support, these efforts are demonstrating how financial and social capital can work together to create more inclusive pathways to generational wealth.

Yale alumni are invited to an evening of conversation with leaders from across the Yale and New Haven community to examine how mission-driven capital and entrepreneurial assistance are being deployed to close economic divides and expand pathways to generational wealth. The discussion will highlight real-world approaches currently underway in and around New Haven and the broader region, offering insights into how investors, financial institutions, and community organizations are working together to support under-resourced entrepreneurs and strengthen local economic ecosystems.

This discussion will be moderated by Judy Chevalier, William S. Beinecke Professor of Finance and Economics and Faculty Director for the Program on Social Enterprise, Innovation, and Impact at the Yale School of Management.

Following the panel, guests are invited to continue the conversation at a networking reception, generously hosted by The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven. 

Panelists:

• Anna Blanding SOM ’09, Chief Investment Officer, ConnCORP, New Haven, CT  
• Drew Alden, Chief Investment Officer, The Community Foundation (TCF); and President and CEO, TCF Mission Investments, New Haven, CT
• Demetris Giannoulias, YC ’94, CEO, Spring Bank, Bronx, NY
• Joe Williams, Managing Director. The Community Foundation Mission Investments Company, New Haven, CT