New York: The Evidence Base for Asset Building: Moving Families Toward Economic Security

Asset Building strategies shift the focus from a deficit model to one that helps people build financial security and opportunity. Funders across sectors have invested in asset-building strategies as a means for greater impact and financial security for America’s vulnerable families. The asset building frame is inspirational, but does it actually work?

Expert Dr. Tom Shapiro, from Brandeis University IASP, and funder peers met to discuss the asset building framework. Together, we explored what we know about how asset building programs and policies boost economic security and provide better economic chances for vulnerable families. We also discussed place-based, grantmaking strategies for New York asset funders, and heard about how asset building strategies bring the promise of greater shared prosperity and models that help individuals and families do more than make ends meet. This evidence-based conversation was about how credit building, homeownership, access to affordable education, creating opportunities to take risk for better employment and entrepreneurship, retirement savings, and neighborhood economic empowerment are all strategies that have promoted assets in ways that stabilize families, increase agency and strengthen communities.

Explore

• The evidence base for asset building approaches to economic security
• What’s worked with different asset building approaches
• How different foundations are addressing financial security via asset based approaches

Speaker

• Dr. Tom Shapiro, Professor of Law and Social Policy and Director, Institute on Assets and Social Policy, Brandeis University