Greater New York AFN is a regional chapter of grantmakers who advance equitable wealth building and economic mobility. Members can include private, public, corporate, and community foundations, public-sector funders, and financial institutions who want to help those in New York, Connecticut, New Jersey, and the surrounding regions secure economic stability, for now and for years to come. Greater New York AFN seeks to connect funders and their peers in the nonprofit, public, and private sectors. Together they will be able to share promising programs and smart strategies, gather knowledge to make their grantmaking more effective, and work to increase investments in asset building.
Greater New York AFN was launched in 2016 as a regional affiliate of national AFN by JPMorgan Chase & Co., First Republic Bank, Philanthropy New York, Citi Foundation, Capital One, Ford Foundation, Prudential, MetLife, Cities for Financial Empowerment, Guardian Life Insurance Co., and other national AFN members located in New York. Membership is open to funders who invest in a range of initiatives that build assets for New Yorkers and the surrounding regions, from early childhood education, college access, or workforce development to health, financial education, or micro-enterprise. Today, Greater New York AFN members gather periodically for funders-only sharing of ideas, and to develop plans for increased impact in the region.
Grantmakers from the Greater New York area should contact Leah Mayor if interested in joining this chapter.
How We Work
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Inform: Greater New York AFN members learn from each other and from other organizations as they seek solutions to local challenges in underserved areas and focus on increasing their impact. The chapter hosts funder forums to explore asset-building strategies with both local leaders and national experts that builds knowledge and serves as an information resource to grantmakers and the asset-building field.
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Connect: Greater New York AFN is positioned to highlight promising practices, key issues, and innovations in the field through funder-only dialogues as well as other convenings. Members provide an insightful East Coast voice to develop and expand the networks of funders for peer-to-peer learning, as well as cross-sector and collaborative efforts and inform national conversations.
- Influence: Greater New York AFN engages key stakeholders to grow their knowledge and support. This includes efforts to raise the visibility of asset-building within the broader community of foundations, public-sector funders, and financial institutions on issues such as financial coaching, work and wealth, children’s savings accounts, and closing the wealth gaps.
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Build: Greater New York AFN seeks to build the number of grantmakers and resources focused on strategies and investments for low and moderate income people to build and protect assets increasing economic opportunities and prosperity. AFN staff spend time one-on-one with local grantmakers to learn, share, encourage participation, align strategies, and increase ROI.
Regional Focus Areas
- Closing the racial and gender wealth gaps
- Small business
- Quality jobs and benefits
- Employee Ownership
- Housing and homeownership
- Care economy
Upcoming Events
Contact
Are you a grantmaker in New York, Northern New Jersey, or Connecticut interested in joining this chapter? Contact us to learn more.
Leah Mayor, leah@assetfunders.org
Steering Committee
Social Venture Partners
Fairfield County's Community Foundation
Prudential Financial
Prudential Financial
New York Women’s Foundation
Principal
Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund
““Fairfield County’s Community Foundation is part of a larger tri-state region, and so being part of AFN’s Regional Network is incredibly helpful to us. We have an opportunity to learn from other AFN members, including many working in nearby NYC. As a result of AFN’s facilitation, we are learning about innovative, cutting-edge grantmaking happening in our region and this informs our own regional grantmaking here in southwestern Connecticut. This is so important as we navigate the post-COVID landscape. In addition, I am so impressed with the caliber of my NYC regional colleagues – who I am able to connect with thanks to AFN.”
Karen Brown | Fairfield County’s Community Foundation
““Asset building is a critical key to closing the racial wealth gap. Having a table where we as funders can come together to learn and share about asset building, helps me be more effective in my grant making. AFN serves as that convener that allows me to partake of the rich funder brain trust that exists in the NYC Metro Area.”
Jeanique Riche-Druses | JPMorgan Chase & Co.
Chapter Highlights
CDFI Series
Hosted by Greater New York AFN and open to all, GNY AFN held 3 sessions to examine the practices and federal and local policies that help CDFIs build capacity and support entrepreneurs of color.
March 10, 2022: Building Capacity of CDFIs to Support Entrepreneurs of Color
Speakers shared proven on-the-ground strategies, key learnings, and best practices to build capacity for CDFIs. LEARN MORE
March 29, 2022: Policies that Support a Thriving Small Business Ecosystem: Session 2
We examined the federal, state, and local policies that can help CDFIs build capacity, increase and ease investments, and support entrepreneurs of color to thrive. LEARN MORE
May 3, 2022: Building Capacity of CDFIs & Supporting Entrepreneurs of Color
A funder-Only conversation to discuss gaps and opportunities to support and sustain support for CDFIs and entrepreneurs of color. LEARN MORE
Economics, Equity, and the Case for Supporting the Care Infrastructure
On January 11, 2022, Greater New York AFN and the New York Women’s Foundation checked-in on how the caregiving infrastructure is changing and what opportunities exist for philanthropy to support better care. LEARN MORE
Deepening and Accelerating Racial Equity: Benchmarks, Metrics, and Measurements
On July 20, 2021 Greater New York AFN Members were invited to a discussion about the continued challenges, tested interventions, and promising new insights that are shaping the way we measure racial equity. The program included insights from Prudential on key learnings from their work to measure impact of their racial equity and inclusion commitment, followed by collaborative group conversation and sharing. LEARN MORE
The Small Business Ecosystem
Greater New York AFN recently held two webinars on the small business ecosystem. On May 6, 2021 AFN and Philanthropy New York engaged in an authentic dialogue about why sustained funding of the Small Business Ecosystem is necessary for an equitable and just recovery. They were joined by funders already successful in the space, those who were just getting started, and others who were unsure of where or even why to begin. LEARN MORE. At the June 15 invitation-only event, attendees explored how to support the small business ecosystem in the Greater New York region. LEARN MORE
Strategies for Housing Equity in Greater New York
On April 27, 2021 Asset Funders Network and Philanthropy New York held a discussion on Strategies for Housing Equity in Greater New York. Together we explored: housing within a framework of wealth building, practices and policies that can lead to greater housing access and equity, bright spots in housing programming and policy during and beyond COVID-19, and philanthropy’s role to better activate housing access and equity. LEARN MORE
