UNC Center for Community Capital senior research associate Lucy Gorham challenged a national audience Sept. 21 to take action to ensure U.S. policies and financial industry practices enable all American families to access economic opportunity and build financial security.
“We are at the core of that sacred effort to transform this country into its best self… The sacred effort that not only steadies the ladder of opportunity but also tests each rung, makes it stronger, and redesigns it when needed, maybe with the help of a little behavioral economics,” Gorham told attendees at CFED’s 2012 Assets Learning Conference in Washington, D.C.
Gorham was among the key speakers who launched the Assets & Opportunity Network, a coalition of advocates, service providers, researchers, financial institutions and policymakers. The network aims to mobilize a national community that will shape more effective asset-building strategies, policies and financial industry practices, based on sound research and best practices.
Gorham serves on the network steering committee.
Gorham’s work at the UNC Center for Community Capital focuses on research and analysis to understand what products, services and public policies hold promise for increasing the economic stability and upward mobility of low- and moderate-wealth families and communities in the United States. She may be reached at (919) 843-3976 or lucy_gorham@unc.edu.
Asset-building is a key area of study for the UNC Center for Community Capital, the leading center for research and policy analysis on the transformative power of capital on households and communities in the United States. Part of the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the center offers research and analysis that helps policymakers, advocates and the private sector find sustainable ways to expand economic opportunity to more people more effectively. For more information, visit www.ccc.unc.edu or call (919) 843-2140.
Topics(s): Financial Capability, Financial Inclusion, Financial Services Industry, Savings & Asset-Building