Dismantling Invisible Barriers to Capital
Thursday, April 12, 2018
Session Description
Research shows that when talented individuals lack “invisible capital”—the right pedigree, the right passport, the right skin color, the right gender—the attention and investment needed to truly effect change can remain elusive. In this session, we’ll hear from leaders in finance, philanthropy, and venture capital and learn how they work to dismantle inequity in access to capital to enable the breakthroughs that hide in plain sight.
Time & Location
Time:
10:00 AM - 11:15 AM, Thursday, April 12, 2018
BST
Location:
Pyramid Room (TBEC)
Speakers
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Speaker
Vedika Bhandarkar serves as Water.org's senior leader in India, overseeing the organization's strategy, growth and water and sanitation program expansion in the country. She and her team continue to scale WaterCredit in in the country through direct partnerships with financial and non-financial organizations, collaboration with enabling partners and engagement with the Government's Swachh Bharat Mission. Water.org has been working in India for more than 10 years with offices in Chennai and Delhi. Working with the implementing partners, Water.org has helped reach more than 5.8 million people in the country with access to water and/or sanitation.
Vedika brings more than 25 years of experience building teams and businesses with Indian and international financial institutions. Prior to joining Water.org in January 2016, Vedika served as Vice Chairman and Managing Director at Credit Suisse Securities (India) Private Limited from 2010-2015. Previously, she served as the Managing Director & Head of Investment Banking at J.P. Morgan, where she worked from 1998-2010. She began her career at ICICI Bank.
Since early 2015, Vedika has dedicated her time to corporate boards and social enterprise, serving as independent director on several corporate boards, and as a volunteer, fundraiser and board member of the Jai Vakeel Foundation, an institution focused on children and adults with intellectual disability.
She is based in Mumbai with her family.
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Speaker
Partner, New Profit
Marco A. Davis is a Partner at New Profit, a pioneering nonprofit national venture philanthropy fund. In this role, he serves as Organizational Lead on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and he manages the Proximity accelerator, engaging innovative social entrepreneurs of color.
Before joining New Profit, Mr. Davis served under President Barack Obama as Deputy Director and Acting Executive Director of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics, which included leading engagement with the Hispanic community on the President’s My Brother’s Keeper (MBK) Initiative. He also served as Director of Public Engagement for the Corporation for National and Community Service. Previously, he was Director of Global Fellowship and Regional Manager for Latin America at Ashoka’s Youth Venture. Earlier in his career, he was Director of Leadership Development at UnidosUS (formerly the National Council of La Raza).
Mr. Davis is a frequent speaker on the Latino community and education in the United States. He serves on the board of directors at Educators for Excellence and Education Leaders of Color (EdLoC). He has been awarded the Hispanics in Philanthropy NGen Fellowship and the Presidio Institute Cross Sector Leadership Fellowship. In spring 2017, he was named a Pahara-Aspen Fellow.
Mr. Davis received a B.A. in History and Latin American Studies from Yale University, and is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. Originally from the New York City area, he lives in the District of Columbia with his wife and daughter.
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Speaker
Chief of Staff, B Team
Charlotte is an experienced development professional, and has worked to foster cross-sector partnerships and solutions to some of the world's greatest challenges—in roles focused on private sector engagement and activation, global development, strengthening the disability sector, and youth engagement. In her current role, Charlotte oversees The B Team's fundraising and learning practice, and as one of the founding staff team has helped shape The B Team's operational, cultural and movement building efforts over the years. Charlotte is from Aotearoa New Zealand, and currently lives in New York City with her family. She is a trained outdoor instructor, and studied Ethics and Politics at Auckland University.
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Speaker
President, Echoing Green
Cheryl L. Dorsey is the Chief Executive Officer of Echoing Green, a global nonprofit that supports emerging social entrepreneurs and invests deeply in their ideas and leadership. A social entrepreneur herself, Cheryl received an Echoing Green Fellowship in 1992 to launch The Family Van, a community-based mobile health unit in Boston. Cheryl has served in two presidential administrations and currently serves on several boards including The Bridgespan Group and Skoll Foundation. She has received numerous awards, including the Pfizer Roerig History of Medicine Award, the Robert Kennedy Distinguished Public Service Award, and the Manual C. Carballo Memorial Prize. Cheryl has been named one of "America's Best Leaders" by US News & World Report and the Center for Public Leadership at Harvard Kennedy School and one of The Nonprofit Times' "Power and Influence Top 50." She has a medical degree from Harvard Medical School and her master's in public policy from Harvard Kennedy School.
