2023 FIR Summary

Now in its 25th year, the Financial Innovations Roundtable (FIR), located at the Carsey School of Public Policy at the University of New Hampshire, has worked to address problems related to access to capital for low- and moderate-income consumers and communities. The FIR works with a range of financial institutions, government agencies, foundations, and trade associations to access their expertise for problem-solving discussions.

This year’s FIR (June 15–16, 2023) was hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and explored the connections among climate, equity, and the social drivers of health. The overlapping disasters of the COVID-19 pandemic, racial injustice, and the climate crisis call for integrated solutions and investments that address the complexity of interconnected burdens on disadvantaged communities. Innovative partnerships and investments at the intersection of climate, health, and community development hold promise for prosperity, wellbeing, and resilience for these communities. Through the Roundtable, we strove to better align those interests by bringing together key players from both the health and climate/environment sides to look at ways they might sharpen their investment strategies to more clearly achieve positive health, equity, and environmental outcomes.

The event had 110 participants from a variety of sectors including community financial institutions, healthcare organizations, government agencies, banks, and impact investment professionals.