Savings

This blog post is part one in a two-part series on building assets and wealth among Native Americans as a means to advance financial stability in low-income communities around the country.  The blogs describe how and why the Northwest Area Foundation (NWAF) supports nonprofits in their efforts to reduce poverty and achieve sustainable prosperity in eight states across the upper Midwest and Pacific Northwest. The blogs are authored by Kevin Walker, CEO and President.

When the mainstream media pay attention to Native American communities at all, they most often tell stories of trauma and tragedy. There is truth in many of those stories, of course, but we at Northwest Area Foundation see a different reality that also is true. When we meet with people on reservations and in urban Indian communities, we see energy and vision. We encounter a passion for self-determination in a rising generation of young leaders. And we see innovative Native organizations building assets for the future. We support Native-led asset and wealth building programs that have potential to nurture thriving economies in Indian Country. Job-building programs and wealth-creation models anchored in Native culture have track records of success that should be more widely known and studied. These approaches could help other Native and non-Native communities in their pursuits of lasting prosperity.

The Asset Building News Week is a weekly Friday feature on The Ladder, the Asset Building Program blog, designed to help readers keep up with news and developments in the asset building field. This week's topics include Hurricane Sandy, inequality, retirement, employment, and financial education.

The Asset Building Program is pleased to announce a call for guest blog contributions. Our blog functions as a repository of information about our research projects and policy proposals, provides timely news analysis and updates from the field of asset building, and regularly features the work of partner organizations.

What topics are eligible for consideration on The Ladder?

We welcome posts that explore a range of topics, including, but not limited to: income and wealth inequality; federal, state and local savings policy; the interplay of homeownership, housing policy, and wealth; savings and credit product design; the role of assets in educational outcomes; public benefits and areas for reform; retirement security and savings; and the intersection of asset issues with race, gender, or other factors.

Who can contribute a guest post?

Those with expertise in relevant fields are welcome to submit a proposal for a guest post. Posts from asset building practitioners or others with “on the ground” experience, as well as posts from advocates, researchers and those with policy-oriented experience are all welcome.

The link between household wealth and youth’s educational outcomes has been confirmed by numerous research studies, finding that youth tend to do better educationally when their households have more wealth (click here and here for more information). A new paper from the Assets and Education Initiative at the University of Kansas School of Social Welfare confirms the relationship between household wealth and math achievement for youth from the U.S. and Ghana. The paper adds a unique contribution to existing research.

Last week, the Asset Building Program released a new paper about recent state-level reforms to asset limits in public assistance programs, in conjunction with our event with the Coalition on Access and Opportunity about removing red tape in the public benefits system. Asset limits have long been in tension with one of the core principles of asset building; that is, that families of all incomes should have the access and ability to save for the future. This new research reveals that many state administrators concur with this assessment—and have also found that eliminating asset tests eases their employees’ work while streamlining benefits access.

In collaboration with the Coalition for Access and Opportunity, the Asset Building Program hosted an event this week entitled: Removing Red Tape: New Strategies for Strengthening the Safety Net. You can watch the event in full or check out the coverage on Twitter. Elizabeth Lower-Basch, with the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP), introduced and moderated the event. Lower-Basch began by providing some context to the conversation, highlighting in particular the role that public benefits have played in recent years as families cope with hardship brought on by the Great Recession. She also acknowledged the need to improve programs, many of which could more effectively promote family stability and a transition to economic self-sufficiency than they currently do. She noted that many benefits are not as accessible as they could be and some families fall through the cracks due to a dizzying and counterproductive maze of applications and eligibility requirements.

The Asset Building News Week is a weekly Friday feature on The Ladder, the Asset Building Program blog, designed to help readers keep up with news and developments in the asset building field. This week's topics include the impact of Hurricane Sandy, inequality, the safety net, and financial products and education.

When it comes to savings for the poor and financial inclusion efforts, India is a dynamic market ripe for innovation and experimentation. Its extensive web of financial service providers as well as the incidence of large-scale exclusion are contradictory features that also make it a market worth examining.

In less than two weeks, our friends at the SEEP Network will be hosting their Annual Conference focused this year on Building Inclusive Markets: Impact Through Financial and Enterprise Solutions. We’re particularly interested in this year’s conference because half of the plenary sessions are focused on savings.