TUESDAY, MARCH 5 (Pre-Conference)
MORNING
7:30 AM MST | Registration opens
Location: Mezzanine
7:30 AM – 8:30 AM MST | Practitioners Institute Breakfast
Room: Central City
7:45 AM – 8:45 AM MST | Learners Institute Breakfast
Room: Grand Ballroom
8:45 AM - 12:00 PM MST | Practitioners Institute: The Future Is Transparent
Open to all Confluence Practitioner Member delegates. Pre-registration is required, and registration will be checked at the door.
Room: Central City
The Practitioners Institute is the flagship event at the Annual Practitioners Gathering. It is a three-hour strategic discussion for Confluence Practitioner Members to explore pressing social and environmental concerns and their impact on investor portfolios. The Practitioners Institute is a powerful space where members have shared emerging strategies or levied historic investor calls to action.
8:45 AM - 9:00 AM MST | Welcome Remarks
Transparency is the future. As our lives become increasingly intertwined with technology, transparency has also increased. Ever more information, previously kept out of the public eye, has become available. However surprisingly, distrust and social polarization, rather than public engagement and greater democratic participation, are on the rise. At this year’s Practitioners Institute, we will explore the importance of transparency in building public trust through ethical investing, a fair and free press, strengthening democracy, and portfolio reporting. Join us to learn more about what you can do in the years ahead.
Speaker:
Dana Lanza, President and CEO, Confluence Philanthropy
9:00-9:30 AM MST | Keynote: Trust is the Ultimate Currency – The 2024 Edelman Trust Barometer
Trust defines an organization’s license to operate, lead, and succeed – but today, it remains in short supply. The latest Edelman Trust Barometer, which surveyed over 32,000 individuals from 28 countries, has found that globally, government is seen as far less competent than business. Over two-thirds of respondents worried that they were being deliberately misled by government leaders, business leaders, and media spokespeople. Non-profit organizations now only earn 50% of the public’s trust. Join us to delve into this report and explore why transparency is so important in creating public trust.
Speaker:
• Kevval Hanna, Senior Vice President, Social Impact and Sustainability, Edelman Trust Institute
9:30-10:00 AM MST | Riverside Chat: Toward Ethical Investing
In 1984, Amy Domini and Peter Kinder authored Ethical Investing, outlining the practice of using ethical principles as the primary filter for investment selection. Ethical investing empowers individuals to allocate capital to companies whose practices and values align with their personal beliefs. Since the publication of this groundbreaking work, its concepts have evolved into the foundation of socially responsible and ESG investing practices — tools that provide greater corporate transparency and offer investors stronger selection criteria. However, it could be argued that investors still have a considerable distance to cover in fully centering ethical considerations. In this reflective opening discussion, Greg Ratliff, Confluence Board Chair, and a Board Member of Domini Investments, will interview Amy about her pioneering vision and discuss how, 40 years later, we might finally find our way there.
Speakers:
Amy Domini, Founder and Chair, Domini Impact Investments
Greg Ratliff, Vice President, Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors and Confluence Board Chair
10:00-10:30 AM MST | Keynote: Democracy Now! Media & Public Trust
Denis Moynihan is the co-founder of the independent news program Democracy Now!, which launched in 1996. Since 2002, he has participated in the organization’s worldwide distribution, infrastructure development, and live broadcasts from many continents. He is a bestselling author and a syndicated columnist with King Features. He also founded the community radio station KFFR 88.3 FM in Winter Park, Colorado. Denis will share perspectives on how the media shapes public trust, ultimately catalyzing social movements – and why local journalism and community radio are now as important as ever.
Speaker:
Denis Moynihan, Co-Founder and Special Projects Manager, Democracy Now!
10:30-11:00 AM MST | Riverside Chat: The Importance of Transparency & Ethics for a Healthy Democracy
Stacey Abrams is a political leader, voting rights activist, and New York Times bestselling author. After serving for eleven years in the Georgia House of Representatives, Stacey became the Democratic nominee for governor of Georgia in 2018, winning what was, at the time, more votes than any other Democrat in the state’s history. Stacey is not only the first black woman to become the gubernatorial nominee for a major party in the United States but also the first black woman and first Georgian to deliver a Response to the State of the Union. To fight voter suppression, she launched Fair Fight, which promotes fair elections around the country, encourages voter participation in elections, and educates voters about elections and their voting rights. Stacey joins us virtually to share her vision for building transparency in democracy in the lead-up to the next Presidential election.
Speakers:
Stacey Abrams, Political Leader, Entrepreneur, and Marguerite Casey Foundation Trustee (joining virtually)
Carmen Rojas, President & CEO, Marguerite Casey Foundation (moderator)
11:00 AM - 11:15 AM MST | Coffee Break
11:15 AM-12:00 PM MST | Plenary: The Emperor’s Robe: Transparency and Portfolio Reporting
For over 15 years, there has been significant talk, networking, and conferences about values investing. At the end of the day, has values investing made a meaningful difference on the environmental, social, and governance challenges we face? We will hear from a panel of investment advisors about why transparency is so important to answering this question, and how greater transparency safeguards ESG and values driven investors. Ultimately, would greater transparency build public trust in the NGO and philanthropy sectors, alongside business?
Speakers:
Bruce Campbell, Chief Happiness Officer, Blue Dot Advocates
Dana Lanza, President and CEO, Confluence Philanthropy (moderator)
Marina Severinovsky, Head of Sustainability, Americas, Schroders
Akasha Absher, Co-President and Head of Impact Investing, Syntrinsic
9:00 AM - 12:00 PM MST | Learners Institute
Open to all registered delegates. Pre-registration required.
9:00 AM - 9:55 AM MST | Unlocking Foundation Endowments for Mission & Returns
Organized with Social Finance
Room: Promenade
U.S. private foundations and family offices hold $3.1 trillion in assets. Although these organizations aren't required to align their endowment investment portfolios with their mission, they’re increasingly leveraging values-aligned investments while generating competitive returns. Yet persistent barriers to mission-related investments remain. Will values aligned investing compromise financial returns? Are there enough deals out there? Why bother in the first place? Join us for a discussion about the key motivations, challenges, and opportunities to shift more assets toward mission. It will leave attendees with inspiration and action steps to reimagine the impact their organization can make.
Speakers:
Desiree Flores, Executive Director, General Service Foundation
Mike Silvestri, Director, Social Finance (moderator)
Rochelle Witharana, CFO, California Wellness Foundation, and Confluence Board Member
10:05 AM - 10:55 AM MST | Harnessing Shareholder Engagement to Promote Our Values
Organized with the Woodcock Foundation and As You Sow
Room: Promenade
Shareholder engagement is perhaps the most underutilized low-hanging fruit in the investor toolkit. In this session, we will unpack shareholder engagement and the catalytic role foundations can play in the shareholder ecosystem, grounded in real examples. We will explore the impact that shareholder engagement can have across several issues, with a focus on democracy. Proxy voting and shareholder activism are fundamentally democratic in nature with parallels to voting and issue activism in the political system. The session will include inspiring stories, including engagement on campaign finance expenditures that have promoted transparency and shifted corporate behavior.
Speakers:
Andrew Behar, CEO, As You Sow
Stacey Faella, Executive Director, Woodcock Foundation (moderator)
John Powers, President, Prentice Foundation
10:55 AM - 11:10 AM MST | Coffee Break
11:10 AM - 12:00 PM MST | Concurrent Sessions (choose one)
Reimagining the “How” of Investing: A Toolkit for Participatory Investing
Organized with World Education Services (WES)
Room: Lodo
Investment decisions are regularly being made behind closed doors, often by individuals who have no relevant lived experience. Increasingly, funders are recognizing their duty to better serve communities by incorporating community input and sharing decision-making power around the allocation of capital. This action-oriented discussion will explore toolkits that serve as guides to integrating community voice and decision-making power into an institution’s investment functions.
Speakers:
Donna Daniels, Senior Fellow, Partners for Rural Transformation/Heron Foundation
Smitha Das, Senior Director, Investments, World Education Services (WES) (moderator)
Scaling Sustainable Climate Finance
Organized with Apparel Impact Institute
Room: Promenade
Despite the trillions of dollars many institutions have set aside to address climate, deployment opportunities that align with traditional underwriting criteria remain scarce. In this session, groups will examine philanthropy's role in creating and deploying innovative blended capital solutions, including first loss funds, lower interest rates, aggregating smaller investments into larger check sizes, and other risk mitigation measures, such as volume guarantees and concessionary capital. We will discuss the critical need for philanthropy to go beyond grants to move sustainable finance goals more rapidly and transition global supply chains, which are the biggest global contributors to CO2 emissions.
Speakers:
Erin Kilmer-Neel, Executive Director & Chief Impact Officer, Beneficial State Foundation
Lewis Perkins, President, Apparel Impact Institute (moderator)
Sunit Shah, Director, Innovative Finance, The Rockefeller Foundation
AFTERNOON
12:15 PM - 4:30 PM MST | Field Trips
Advance registration is required and space is limited. Choose from four off-site field trips at conference registration.
Art, Creativity, Water, Community and Development
Organized with the Bonfils-Stanton Foundation & Community Capital Management
Art plays a critical role in science and social change work, explaining where we came from, engaging the community, helping us understand things, and facilitating societal transformation. This tour will introduce participants to two relatively new multi-partner community-driven collaborations where art has played an integral role. The Hydro building of Colorado State University Spur campus uses art to advance education, research, and public engagement on global and local water issues. The ArtPlace studios of Redline Contemporary Arts Center and Buell project located in the historic, diverse, and rapidly gentrifying Five Points neighborhood of Denver provides a creative hub, permanently affordable condos, and creative commercial space in one of the most rapidly gentrifying areas in Denver. Investors will leave with a greater understanding of how art can support equitable community development, address climate change, and more.
Speakers:
Stefka Czarnecki Fanchi, President and CEO, Elevation Community Land Trust (ECLT)
Nick Flores, Managing Director Impact Investments, Client Advisors, Caprock
Tom Ferguson, Founder and Managing Partner, Burnt Island Ventures
Anthony Grimes, Director of Communications, Bonfils-Stanton Foundation
Kristin Kirkpatrick, Managing Director for Partnerships and Advancement, CSU Spur
Louise Martorano, Executive Director, RedLine Contemporary Art Center
The Role of Affordable Housing in the Restoration and Repair of People and Places
Organized with Gary Community Ventures & Syntrinsic Investment Counsel
Colorado is a hotbed of housing innovation. This field trip will provide participants with insight into some of the most pioneering housing ideas being piloted and scaled in the state, particularly in the Denver metro area. We will visit an affordable housing development that doesn't just help renters afford housing, but also to build wealth in the process. We will also learn about the place-based values-aligned investing fund behind this initiative, the Colorado Housing Accelerator Initiative (CHAI). This will be followed by a panel discussion with Black homeowners who are part of the Dearfield Fund for Black Wealth, a trailblazing race-focused homeownership fund focused on bridging the racial wealth gap. These conversations will foreground Colorado's vibrant Black history and how housing discrimination has perpetuated the racial wealth gap.
Speakers:
Ed Briscoe, Managing Director, Weave Social Finance
Amy Case-Miranda, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Foothills Regional Housing
David Foust, Commercial Loan Officer III, Colorado Housing & Finance Authority (CHFA)
Kenneth Kirwin, CFO, Colorado Gives Foundation
Abby Murray, Co-Founder & Principal, Colorado Housing Accelerator Initiative (CHAI)
Aisha T. Weeks, Managing Director, The Dearfield Fund for Black Wealth
Supporting Local Media for a Healthier Civic Information Ecosystem
Organized with the Gates Family Foundation
Independent local journalism plays a unique role in U.S. democracy, helping to populate our public squares with daily coverage of public meetings and events. It also provides in-depth analysis of important issues – climate change, affordable health care, racial and social inequities, and more – and engages in watchdog investigations. This field trip to the Buell Public Media Center will expose participants to local examples of foundations that have made unprecedented investments in local journalism. It will explore the ways that philanthropy continues to invest in models and solutions to sustain, revitalize, and reimagine its support for independent local media – a sector that is crucial to a healthy democratic ecosystem.
Speakers:
Melissa Davis, Vice President – Strategic Communications & Informed Communities, Gates Family Foundation
Amanda Mountain, President & CEO, Rocky Mountain Public Media
Amalie Nash, Senior Advisor, National Trust for Local News
Larry Ryckman, Editor & Co-Founder, The Colorado Sun
Johanna Ulloa, Advocacy Program Manager, The Colorado Trust
How Innovative Climate Solutions Can Support All Communities
Organized with Holland Consulting
The National Renewable Energy Lab incubates cutting-edge climate solutions, which can help meet the quickly narrowing window of limiting warming to 1.5oC. This field trip will visit NREL to see some of its latest innovations that need to be scaled. It will also engage participants in discussion on ways to move those technologies into the real world in ways that don’t recreate the mistakes of the past, creating greater inequity in our society, and building funding resilience for scaling innovation in a changing world.
Speaker:
Bill Farris, Associate Laboratory Director for Innovation, Partnering, and Outreach, National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL)
Wendolyn Holland, Director, Holland Consulting
Ken Vaughn, Director of Impact Investments, VertueLab
EVENING
Travel to Reception Venue
Location: History Colorado
6:00 PM - 7:00 PM MST | Newcomers Reception
Reception for new members – but all Gathering attendees are encouraged to attend!
Location: History Colorado
7:00 PM - 9:00 PM MST | Welcome Reception
Registered delegates & invited guests only.