Shared Prosperity

At Cambridge Community Foundation’s annual dinner on May 8, 2018, long-time resident and WGBH journalist Callie Crossley served as the Master of Ceremonies and introduced Harvard professor Brandon Terry, CCF President Geeta Pradhan, and Chairman of the CCF Board Rick Harriman to a capacity crowd of civically minded residents, who came to support the values of Cambridge and the Foundation. Powerful words were shared, and friendships were formed and renewed. Crossley spoke about how Cambridge, a vibrant and ever-growing community, is becoming increasingly inaccessible for those with less wealth. “We are a city with open arms and offer enviable resources - but the financial challenges of living here continue to grow,” she said, adding that 14% of Cambridge residents and 17% of young people here live in poverty. Reflecting on the 50-year anniversary of Martin Luther King’s untimely slaying on April 4, 1968, Terry discussed the continuing prevalence of glaring racial disparities in economic mobility, as well as ghettoization and racial segregation that plague African American families and communities. “Such enduring inequality represents an assault in the dignity and self-respect of poor people and undermines the very freedoms and civil rights that the Civil Rights Movement fought so valiantly

Conversations on the Edge: Inequality and Wealth Redistribution Thursday March 15, 2018 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM Cambridge Center for Adult Education 56 Brattle Street Cambridge, MA 02138 ATTEND

A new report by the Cambridge Community Foundation draws attention to three powerful trends now shaping our city's future: increasing income inequality, rapidly rising housing costs and persistent educational disparities. Where are these trends taking Cambridge? Can our city-with its booming innovation economy and exceptional community assets-keep its historic commitment to social justice and create a future in which prosperity is shared across the entire community?   Please join us for a community conversation on Wednesday, March 1, 2017 8:00-8:30 a.m. Breakfast and registration 8:30-8:50 a.m. Welcome and a Presentation of the Report Findings 8:50 - 10:10 a.m. A Panel of local Thought Leaders MODERATOR: Marjorie Decker, Massachusetts State Representative, 25th Middlesex District PANELISTS: Randy Albelda, Graduate Program Director and Professor of Economics, College of Liberal Arts: Senior Fellow Center for Social Policy, UMass Boston Moacir Barbosa, Director of Community Engagement, Health Resources in Action Barry Bluestone, Russell B. and Andree Stearns Trustee Professor of Political Economy, School of Public Police and Urban Affairs, Northeastern University Ronald F. Ferguson, Fellow, Malcolm Wiener Center for Social Policy and Faculty Director of the Achievement Gap Initiative, Harvard University 10:10 - 10:50 a.m. Community Table Conversation 10:50 - 11:00 a.m. Highlights and Closing FOR