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2023 Annual Convening Experience
@ Caribe Hilton, San Juan PR | 2nd floor, Flamingo Room
Welcome to our 2023 Annual Convening!
We have gone through significant transformations together. We have taken responsibility as a collective to make meaningful connections, be accountable to each other, generate authentic ideas and have strategic conversations that leverage our impact.
After all the turbulence we have gone through collectively, in 2019 the focus was on disaster recovery. In 2020, we deepened on equity, diversity, inclusion (EDI) and began to remember our interconnectedness to create a more equitable world. 2021 was the year of recognizing that while we may be different, we all share the purpose of leading social change. In 2022, we accepted the challenge and responsibility to actively lean In and co-create together the present and future of the social sector in Puerto Rico. This year, 2023, we took a step back, but only to move forward! We delved into how we have evolved throughout our history, which led us to expand our visions, foster informed decision making, and align ourselves to take collective action toward the future.
This year we designed an experience to deepen strategic conversations about how equity is being mobilized. We are ready! We have transitioned together and experienced the new changes coming to the social sector, our narrative has transformed over the years and our vision has evolved stronger. By expanding and aligning collective action, we will be able to address complex challenges and amplify our impact.
Wednesday, October 18
During the first day, we delve into the historical context of the impact of natural disasters in Puerto Rico in terms of: population density, public policies, access to information, governance transparency and fundamental services such as housing, power energy, agriculture and food security. We go backwards, but only to move forward! This knowledge is fundamental, to analyze critically and to contrast data on the composition, characteristics and continuously evolving trends within Puerto Rico over the past decade.
As we have these broad conversations that move our perspectives we must ask ourselves: How are we expanding our ways of thinking to make informed and innovative decisions? How are we responding to the changes ahead for Puerto Rico?
8:30am - 9:00am Registration & Breakfast
9:00am - 9:30am Welcome to our annual convening
Honoring the space that’s welcoming us on these days.
9:30am - 11:00am Commonwealth of Calamity: Learning from Puerto Rico’s Disaster History
Brief:
Disasters are moments in which power is contested by individuals, communities, and the state. Individuals negotiate for better relief efforts, communities galvanize or come undone, and the state chooses how or if it should respond at all in the aftermath. Economic, social, and political motives often drive the varied responses to catastrophe. This session discusses Puerto Rico’s disaster history and its effect on relations with the U.S. The themes of colonization, debt, and local relief will be highlighted to offer some solutions on how Puerto Rico can better handle disaster relief in the future. By examining key disasters throughout the twentieth and twenty-first centuries as case studies, this session showcases how learning from history can inform better practices of present-day collective action.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
Puerto Rico has been pounded by natural disasters in the past few years: hurricanes, earthquakes, floods and landslides. These catastrophes have taken a heavy toll on Puerto Rico’s socio-economic development. Before all these natural disasters devastated the island, Puerto Rico was already struggling to recover from the economic recession of the last decade and an overwhelming public debt.
While we have been pushed to respond to these realities and advance Puerto Rico’s recovery from the front lines, we are currently at a turning point where we must pause to analyze how the last 20 years of history will transform the decisions of Puerto Rico’s present and future. Transition is inevitable and the narrative shift has taken place. Our speaker walks us through data that expands our knowledge and amplifies our vision!
KEY INSIGHTS
- Disasters are inherently political. The disaster is an analytical construct that unfolds over time, not an isolated event. Viewing hurricanes in this way to underlay structural disaster.
- We need to explore the role of history in disaster and how it changes the conversation
- We go through a major hurricane every two and a half years, this requires change in policy and the entire mindset. This reality needs to be addressed from the system.
- There is no such thing as a natural disaster. It happens because of lack of: Infrastructure, Climate change, Housing conditions, Political conditions,
- The colonization of Puerto Rico has played an important role in disaster management since the first colonization by Spain. This unilaterally changed Puerto Rico’s economy.
- Due to the status quo since the conception of the Commonwealth, Puerto Rico has lost autonomy. The structure did not provide for citizen involvement.
- Throughout the history of Puerto Rico’s economic development, industrialization destroyed the massive local agricultural industry. Agriculture was never a priority in economic development throughout history.
- Decisions made in the past have repercussions in the lack of autonomy in the recovery process, in the poor housing conditions, in people leaving Puerto Rico to seek refuge in other places.
SPEAKER
Ian Seavey Predoctoral Fellow in International Security Studies at Yale University’s Jackson School of Global Affairs
11:00am - 12:30pm Sociodemographic Context of Puerto Rico and its Municipalities: where are we?
Brief:
Understanding socio demographic data is fundamental for informed decision-making, effective policy formulation, equitable resource distribution, and the overall development and well-being of a country’s population.
The panorama of population traits in Puerto Rico and its municipalities will be shared, as well as the changes in recent decades. Additionally, the geographic distribution of various traits across the jurisdiction and demographic prospects in the near future will be shown.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
Demographic data tell us more than just a person’s gender and geographic location. Demographic data allows us to access detailed information about the social, economic and living characteristics of communities. Demographic data can also shed light on unique qualities that could help us go deeper into our community programs and how to transform our grantmaking practice. Demographic data can also give us insight into whether a strategy or policy has really made a difference.
During this session we break down why socio-demographic information is useful for the philanthropic landscape and help us to analyze context and guide us to anticipate the future and make informed decisions. As changemakers investing in the socioeconomic realities of Puerto Rico, understanding the context of the social sector and the communities we serve ensures that we can move ever closer to equitable and relevant philanthropic practices.
KEY INSIGHTS
- Understanding how past decisions affected economic planning and decision making guides us to make more informed decisions for the future.
- The population was constantly growing over the past decades, therefore the decisions of municipalities were “do more because there would be more of us”.
- However, as time went by, the equations did not match the socio-demographic growth.
- It was necessary to change the planning mentality for a Puerto Rico that we had not seen before.
- The population has decreased 605 thousand less people since 2020. This gives us an idea of how we should be planning for the future.
- The maps are a communication tool and a guide to make informed decisions.
- The decline in the population of children has affected the education system and how they provide services based on enrollment.
- Socio-demographic data gives us a different perspective on how we are going to address the population change that has aggressively transitioned to being old (compared to the US which has increased approximately 9%, Puerto Rico is increasing by 39%).
- The opportunities and challenges revealed by these data are to improve access to care and health for the elderly, to make infrastructures responsive to functional diversity, to reveal the changes that need to be made to address the new educational reality and to address the gaps in the community.
SPEAKER
Alberto Velázquez Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics
12:30pm - 1:30pm Lunch
1:30pm - 3:00pm Agriculture in Puerto Rico: a Statistical Perspective
Brief:
This presentation offers statistics on Puerto Rico’s agriculture and food security, aligning with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals to end hunger and promote food security. It explores the historical significance of agriculture in human cultures and delves into Puerto Rico’s agricultural legacy, as well as the contemporary challenges it faces. Additionally, we will discuss research on agricultural reforms in past centuries in PR, culminating in an interactive question and answer session.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS:
We learned more about the impact of natural disasters and the fiscal crisis in Puerto Rico, we delved into the impact it has had on socio-demographic development on the island and for this session we delved into the direct impact it has on fundamental services such as food sovereignty.
Since the last Census of Agriculture in 2012 the number of farms and the amount of land in farms in Puerto Rico experienced a large decrease. Due to the conditions caused by the hurricanes, the agroecological movement has focused on disaster recovery. As well, communities experienced a severe lack of access to services that affected food security across the island. Our speaker breaks down the latest data related to the agricultural workforce, the amount of acreage available, the impact of this sector on socio-economic development, and gives us an idea of how we can align collective efforts to impact this decreasing sector.
KEY INSIGHTS:
- Agriculture is the most important activity for every human being.
- A large percentage of Puerto Rico’s foods is imported and this places us in a situation of food insecurity.
- 1 in 3 suffers from food insecurity, and reported that in order to survive they had to stop eating one of their meals.
- The current salary/income does not ensure the subsistence of farmers, which leads to the fact that it would be a complementary activity.
- Agricultural reform – Beginning of a more active role in public policies and incentives for manufacturing industries to come, and access begins to increase.
- The importance of that land law and its changes…how this affects who can harvest and how and in turn who owns land.
- “We need more philanthropy and allies supporting agriculture and it is one of those areas that if we come together we can make a bigger impact.” (Charlotte, Hispanic Federation).
- Agriculture is where I have found the leaders of the future, it’s where we get more of the diaspora coming back and leadership growth (Kinyta, Peter Alfond).
- Agriculture is a way to advance educational, financial and personal health but also to have a better health system as individuals and as a community.
- “These sectors need money but also hands, connections, allies and collaborations. It requires an integration of the private sector, government flexibility requirements and limiting regulations.”
- “Interesting changes are taking place and we are seeing how collaboration in different sectors is giving good results.“
- “As long as we don’t have lands, how can we cultivate? So we have to talk about land tenure. This is part of colonization, the fertile land is given to solar panels so we do not have clear strategies to address these problems”
SPEAKER
Dr. Francisco Pesante Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics
3:00pm - 4:15pm Housing Sector: characteristics of the economy and post-disaster context
Brief:
We will delve into the current post-disaster landscape, with a focus on key information sources. This exploration will encompass an overview of the economic and housing sectors’ essential attributes within this context. Additionally, we will examine pertinent variables of interest and sources of data, culminating in an interactive question and answer session.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS:
Continuing with the impact that the disasters in Puerto Rico have had on essential services, we jump to analyze the current condition of adequate and affordable housing services in Puerto Rico. In this section, we expand on the access and distribution of recovery funds focused on housing, the rehabilitation of properties on the island and the impact on the most vulnerable populations, the communities most impacted by the disasters, the environmental degradation and the increase of the diaspora in Puerto Rico.
KEY INSIGHTS:
- Housing is seen from two pillars:
- Housing to generate profit, as an investment instrument
- Housing as a unit of social reproduction
- Housing is a human right
- The provision of housing is more than construction, it is a political issue, the power dynamics that are articulated in society. Housing as a construction project and as a political proposal that must be addressed.
- It is a mistake to try to understand or solve housing issues by focusing exclusively on the vacancy sector.
- Affordability is a way to measure and understand the housing issues, how much a family spends on housing as a percentage of their income. If we talk about affordability, conditions are quite precarious in PR.
- With the drop in housing construction, it has made it less affordable. However, the data does not point to the fact that the problem will be solved by building, of course we have to build but the question is where and for whom?
- There is substantial federal money available that has not yet manifested in Puerto Rican reality.
- From the 1 million units that reported damage, only 32% (only 151,000) were officially inspected.
- 90% of the contracts for reconstruction are awarded to U.S. companies. If we are thinking about increasing revenues, using the reconstruction funds as a catalyst we have to change these statistics for local companies to receive these funds.
SPEAKER
Deepak Lamba-Nieves Center for a New Economy
4:15pm - 5:00pm Unpacking the Short-Term Rental Dilemma
Brief:
In this presentation, we’ll explore the findings of a study on short-term rentals in Puerto Rico, focusing on their significant impact on the economy, communities, and individuals.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS:
Puerto Rico has had a substantial increase in the provision of short-term and vacational rentals, although this has been profitable for many people (not necessarily Puerto Ricans), in this session we discuss the impact that these rentals have on community development. We question how the landscape would look considering the voice and input of the communities that are affected by these rentals, who really benefit from this trending practice and how do we ensure that we do not support practices that continue to displace the locals and encourage colonization.
KEY INSIGHTS:
- The communities are requesting regulations on the maximum number of properties a person can own and rent controls so that locals can have the ability to remain in their communities.
- The lack of community-friendly regulations and policies is what worsens the situation and continues to make it unaffordable.
93% of units dedicated to short-term rental are full houses or apartments - The highest density of short-term rentals is in Culebra
Puerto Rico’s regulations are not oriented to protect housing
Short-term rentals promote destitution and communities poor quality of life - Most owners do not live in the communities where they rent, they are members of the diaposora, beneficiaries of 20 law and therefore they do not understand their context.
SPEAKERS
Charlotte Gossett Navarro Hispanic Federation
Dulce del Rio-Pineda Mujeres de Islas
Mariana Reyes Taller Comunidad La Goyco
Lyvia N. Rodríguez del Valle El Enjambre
5:00am - 6:30am Networking & Cocktails
Thursday, October 19
On our first day, we immersed ourselves in data and information to expand our perspectives and critically analyze our efforts, especially our collective ones. On this second day, we will keep in mind, how can we expand to align our actions with other sectors? We continue to engage in strategic conversations, exploring alignments, and collaborations that will strengthen the purpose of the philanthropic ecosystem in the development of Puerto Rico.
For this second day, we must ask ourselves: How do we envision or imagine Philanthropy expanding efforts with the collective?; What are our organizations doing to expand collective efforts that advance equity?
8:00am - 9:00am Peer Learning: Centering Equity in our Communities
Breakfast Co-hosted with Magic Cabinet where they will share their practices through a Peer Learning Session: Centering Equity and Communities. We are thrilled to hear more about our new member in order to keep building meaningful connections between our ecosystem!
9:30am - 11:00am Puerto Rico in the 2020 Census: Ethnicity and Race Reporting
Brief:
We continue to delve in the census data which helps identify disparities and inequalities in society based on factors like age, gender, ethnicity, income, and education. This knowledge is crucial for promoting social inclusion and advocating for policies that promote equality.
The release of 2020 Census redistricting data provides a new snapshot of the racial and ethnic composition of the country as a result of improvements in the design of the race and ethnicity questions, processing and coding. The improvements and changes enabled a more thorough and accurate depiction of how people self-identify, yielding a more accurate portrait of how people report their Hispanic origin and race within the context of a two-question format.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS:
Data is relevant as long as we can interpret and implement it! During the first day we were breaking down the impact of disasters and the crisis in the socio-demographic context of Puerto Rico. For this session, we dig into similar data from a different perspective as we explore how it affects the advancement of equity and systemic change.
KEY INSIGHTS:
- Socio-demographic data has been drastically affected by recent hurricanes, and the pandemic.
- The content and questions asked in the census from 2010 to 2020 have changed and evolved over the last decade to include other races, ethnicities, etc.
- People began to respond longer and more fully because there was greater identification in the census questions and content.
- Different answers in 2020 and how they identify themselves, that is why the census changes so much.
- When people mark “Puerto Rican” as “race”, it has to be coded as “some other race” and this can cause a gap when producing estimates.
- The data is important if we can contextualize them, for example in political terms and how people relate and identify with certain terms
- “The term “Afro-descendiente” is a different individual campaign than the term “Afro-Latino.”
- How the question has been worded is impacted by where the person is living, how they interpret these terms from the socio demographic context. All of this impacts the responses that are received and therefore how these results are estimated.
- We have to look at Puerto Rico by regions, municipalities, communities and populations; it cannot be agglomerated as a whole. This way we can have more accurate information.
SPEAKERS
Merarys Rios-Vargas U.S. Census Bureau
Rachel Marks U.S. Census Bureau
11:00am - 12:00pm Pathways to leveraging the federal tax credits for solar in Puerto Rico
Brief:
Having philanthropic discussions about solar solutions holds immense value as it addresses critical global challenges related to energy access, climate change, and social equity. Given the opportunity of the $1 billion Puerto Rico Energy Resilience Fund it is time we have a conversation of to discussion how philanthropy can be a catalytic for these funds to promote sustainable energy access, foster innovation, improve health and well-being, and ultimately contribute to a more sustainable and equitable Puerto Rico.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
Focusing the conversation on aligning collective action across sectors to advance equity, in this session we discussed the solar landscape, the incentives available, how they apply to the communities we serve, and the imminent need to join efforts with other sectors to know more about these funds. This discussion was to encourage discussion towards the solar sector, generate new ideas as a collective and formulate strategies together. This session gives us a critical analysis of different models of how to use public funds as a way to support communities and advance equity.
KEY INSIGHTS
- Philanthropy can contribute in workforce training for community residents
- Building alliances with NGOs and local governments
- We must build a sustainable structure within the community so that the transformation can be sustained over time and it can be relevant for communities.
- We have to create projects that promote communities to become independent.
- We have to transition from thought leadership to action leadership.
- The solar system has now become more important and relevant in the wake of the hurricanes in Puerto Rico; specially in communities that live in multi-family buildings because they do not have the same access to solar.
- “How do we tell a family with challenges and income disparities like more than the average in Puerto Rico to invest 70% in structure to have some energy resilience?”
SPEAKERS
Joe Evans Kresge Foundation
Jorge Gaskins Barrio Eléctrico
Carlos Vázquez ConSOLcio
12:00pm - 1:00pm Lunch
Optional Session
12:00pm - 1:00pm Optional Session: Filantropía Puerto Rico's Annual Meeting
Brief:
In this session, we will give you an overview of FiPR’s key accomplishments and efforts to continue building impactful social investment.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
As the main connector of the philanthropic ecosystem, we have been doing the hard work of actively listening to the voices of our members, grantmakers, trustees, partners and those who want to invest capital in Puerto Rico’s social development. Our focus has been to ensure that we all mobilize systemic change and advance equity. Filantropía Puerto Rico aims to be of value to its membership and to be able to sustain spaces where the philanthropic ecosystem can amplify their impact. Our intention is to encourage philanthropic entities to commit themselves to Puerto Rico in the long term.
Through this session, we broke down our strategic planning framework for the next years (2023-2027), how we continue to serve philanthropy by creating and sustaining infrastructures to amplify the voices of the philanthropic ecosystem, building capacity, creating meaningful connections and leveraging their investments. Furthermore, we explored how we expand that philanthropy through our initiatives using philanthropic practices based on trust, raising awareness about the strengths, innovations and needs of Puerto Rico. As well as generate and curate data on how philanthropy can address challenges and opportunities in Puerto Rico for strategic philanthropy. We work to attract resources for equity and justice to Puerto Rico and we collaborate with other stakeholders to achieve objectives that advance systemic change and equity.
KEY INSIGHTS
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Speakers:
Glenisse Pagán Filantropía Puerto Rico
Anja Paonessa Filantropía Puerto Rico
1:00pm - 2:30pm Billions: The power of catalytic capital
Brief:
Puerto Rico’s challenges require an integrated approach if we want to solve the inequities. Blended capital is the strategic integration or blending of different forms of capital, typically from public, private, and philanthropic sources, to achieve social and environmental impact alongside financial returns. It will be a rich discussion to understand a method of financing that seeks to address complex challenges and drive sustainable development by leveraging diverse types of funding.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
To align collective actions we must understand in detail how blended capital works and how we can apply it to address complex challenges. The philanthropic ecosystem in Puerto Rico has responded to critical periods at the front line, sustaining the social sector and promoting initiatives that often result in public policies and legislative measures. Given the drastic changes ahead, during this session we discussed the importance of leveraging public, private and philanthropic funds to mobilize that capital in sectors of utmost importance and growth such as agriculture, solar landscape, climate change, disaster preparedness and the sustainable development of Puerto Rico. We also discussed blended capital as more than an instrument, but an investment structure that allows multiple investors to participate in advancing equity and systemic change.
KEY INSIGHTS
- We need to make a paradigm shift; it invites us to step back and look at the problem from the outside to have a different effect on what we build.
- The word “business” has changed. For the first time we are talking about economic performance and social impact.
- If we are going to talk about equity and poverty we have to maximize the full spectrum of funding.
- The influence we have is what is changing the world.
- How can we get the most out of what little we have, by being catalytic agents!
- We have to change the mindset, the important thing is where the capital is and how we can put it to work for communities
- Catalytic capital is defined as capital that accepts disproportionate risk or concessionary returns to generate positive impact and enable third party investment that otherwise would not be possible, has been at the forefront of this push.
SPEAKER
Eduardo Carrera Platform for Social Impact
2:30pm - 4:00pm Puerto Rico Economic Situation: What does the data show us?
Brief:
Puerto Rico economic trajectory has been erratic. As in previous periods, the economy is now growing but significant challenges remain: poverty has increased, and the likelihood of future growth is not promising. I will discuss data on the demographic dynamics, employment, poverty, and inflation, among other economic aspects.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
How can philanthropy in Puerto Rico can combine efforts to ensure relevance and permanence through the impact of our projects? We are experiencing a critical turning point, where the landscape of all sectors needs to shift in order to address the realities that lie ahead. In this last session, we bring together what we have discussed in these two days: the history of Puerto Rico and the current data after the disasters that have affected the island, thus being able to make informed and wise decisions for the future. The data shows us a path for strategies, elevates our perspectives on social issues that have confronted Puerto Rico for decades, and brings us back to what we will do with this information to ensure that we redirect our collective actions in the same direction.
KEY INSIGHTS
- Growth will not be sustainable if we do not create a socio-economic model for Puerto Rico.
- Puerto Rico has lost 11.8% of its inhabitants between 2010 and 2020. The municipalities that have lost the most have in common those affected by earthquakes, floods zones and gentrification.
- There is an imbalance between the demand for housing and what is available.
- Unemployment rate in Puerto Rico has never been at 6%
- A survey between 2020-2021 shows that after the pandemic with the Program Unemployment Assistance (PUA) entrepreneurship began to increase.
- In order to have real socio-economic growth, we must develop all the sectors.
- The municipalities that have not lost much population have been because the locals have been replaced by Act 20, people outside of Puerto Rico, from the diaspora, which has caused gentrification. We would have to analyze that impact in a different way.
- The unfortunate thing that the economy is currently growing is that it has given the government a false illusion of growth, when in reality there is a lot of planning that is needed for this to be sustainable. We need to establish an economic development project that includes everyone and is sustainable.
- We cannot only talk about increasing the minimum salary, but also about reducing the cost of living.
SPEAKER
José Caraballo Cueto, PhD University of Puerto Rico at Río Piedras
4:30pm - 7:30pm Junte social! at MADMi
We invite you to join us for a special celebration of the social sector as the conclusion of our 6th Annual Convening – Expand to Align Collective Action.
We want to recognize and celebrate the collective achievements we have reached together in advancing equity for our communities and our Puerto Rico.
Join us at MADMi for an evening of celebration where we will have a community expo, music, cocktails, and more.
- When planning your visit to the Junte social, if you’re using Uber, simply search for “MADMi (Museo de Arte y Diseño De Miramar)” as your destination. For those opting for personal navigation, you can use Google Maps or Waze for the most accurate directions.
- Available FREE vallet parking at the MADMi. You can tip the parking staff if you like 🙂
Ian Seavey
Yale University’s Jackson School of Global Affairs
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Ian Seavey
Predoctoral Fellow in International Security Studies at Yale University’s Jackson School of Global Affairs and PhD candidate in the department of history at Texas A&M University
His research examines U.S. empire in the Caribbean through the lens of disaster relief, environmental policy, and rum production. His dissertation and subsequent book manuscript, “Colonial Calamities: The Politics of U.S. Disaster Relief in Puerto Rico, 1898-1979,” tells the story of how evolving ideas about disaster relief fundamentally shaped and continue to shape the colonial relationship between the Puerto Rico and the United States. He has published articles in a variety of venues including the Journal of Advanced Military Studies, AHA Perspectives, and the Journal of Environmental Hazards. His research has been funded by the Harry S. Truman Library Institute, the Albritton Center for Grand Strategy, and Yale’s Brady-Johnson Program in Grand Strategy. In his free time, he enjoys playing guitar in various heavy metal bands.
Alberto Velázquez
Puerto Rico Department of Statistics
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Alberto Velázquez
Senior Project Manager, Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics
Alberto Velázquez Estrada is a member of the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics team, serving as Senior Project Manager. Since 2013, he has been coordinating projects such as the State Data Center Program - Census Data and Information Centers chapter for Puerto Rico, the Migrant Profile, and representing Puerto Rico in the Federal State Cooperative for Population Estimates of the U.S. Census Bureau, among other demographic and geographic projects. He earned a bachelor's degree in Social Sciences with a concentration in Geography from the Río Piedras Campus of the University of Puerto Rico and a master's degree in Demography from the Graduate School of Public Health at the Medical Sciences Campus of the same institution. Upon completing his graduate studies, he worked as an intern at the Demographic Surveys Division of the U.S. Census Bureau and as a coordinator and data analyst in the Ryan White Program at the Department of Health of Puerto Rico.
Dr. Francisco Pesante González
Puerto Rico Department of Statistics
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Dr. Francisco Pesante González.
Project manager and coordinator of the Academies and Workshops Program, Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics
Dr. Francisco Pesante González is a project manager and coordinator of the Academies and Workshops Program at the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics. He has worked at this agency for the past 13 years and has co-authored publications such as the Interactive Profile of Child Abuse, the Human Development Report, and the 2015 Food Security Report in Puerto Rico, among others. Prior to this role, he was an Analyst in Management and Planning at the Department of Justice. He completed a doctorate in history, specializing in the topic of agrarian public policies in 20th-century Puerto Rico.
Deepak Lamba-Nieves
Center for a New Economy
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Deepak Lamba-Nieves
Director of Research, Center for a New Economy
Deepak Lamba-Nieves is the Director of Research and holds the Churchill G. Carey, Jr. Chair of Economic Development Research at the Center for a New Economy (CNE). He also teaches at the Graduate School of Planning at the University of Puerto Rico. Deepak has been researching the socioeconomic perspectives and development trajectories of Puerto Rico for two decades. Currently, he is working on research projects focused on post-disaster reconstruction as part of the CNE's Blueprint Initiative, a collective effort aimed at defining a path for housing and land use in Puerto Rico. Deepak was a postdoctoral fellow at the Watson Institute for Public and International Affairs at Brown University and completed a Ph.D. in Urban and Regional Studies in the Department of Urban Studies and Planning at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
Charlotte Gossett Navarro
Hispanic Federation
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Dulce del Rio-Pineda
Mujeres de Islas
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Dulce del Rio-Pineda's, Mujeres de Islas
Dulce del Rio-Pineda's association with Culebra began in the 1980s when she took on the role of coordinating summer camps for children with functional diversity. Already a qualified biologist and educator with a Master's in Special Education from NYU, her experience in Culebra became a cornerstone in her life's journey.
In 2010, Dulce's dedication to the island manifested even further. She co-founded Mujeres de Islas, a non-profit organization committed to fostering Culebra's sustainable development. With a passionate focus, Dulce constantly champions the need for quality community services, while also underscoring the importance of social equity and justice.
Inspiration for her leadership and vision stems from the formidable women in her lineage and circle, including her mother, aunts, friends, and now her granddaughter. These women have shaped her perspectives, driving her to advocate for unity, resilience, and community involvement.
Beyond her professional commitments, Dulce finds solace in the embrace of nature. She's particularly fond of the beach and relishes crafting, sewing, and sailing. Most recently, her cherished moments involve the company of her granddaughter.
Mariana Reyes
Taller Comunidad La Goyco
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Lyvia N. Rodríguez Del Valle
El Enjambre
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Lyvia N. Rodríguez, El Enjambre
Lyvia is an urban and regional planner who has worked for 28 years in issues related to the right to the city, risk management, collective land tenure as a means to prevent displacement in self-built settlements, and participatory action-planning. She was the founding executive director of the internationally renowned Proyecto ENLACE del Caño Martín Peña, and the innovative, World Habitat Award recipient Fideicomiso de la Tierra del Caño Martín Peña.
As cofounder of El Enjambre, Lyvia accompanies organizations striving to strengthen their grassroots work as it connects to wider issues. She continues to explore the regularization of self-built settlements through collective land tenure and just transitions as a strategy of adaptation to climate change. Occasionally, Lyvia teaches at the Graduate School of Planning, University of Puerto Rico.
Merarys Rios-Vargas
U.S. Census Bureau
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Merarys Rios-Vargas
Chief, Ethnicity and Ancestry Branch, Population Division, U.S. Census Bureau
Merarys Ríos-Vargas is chief of the Population Division’s Ethnicity and Ancestry Branch at the U.S. Census Bureau. In this role, Ríos-Vargas serves as a subject matter expert while leading, and advising research on the reporting patterns and demographic characteristics of the Hispanic Origin population and ancestry groups in the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Island Areas.
Throughout her career, Ríos-Vargas has conducted extensive outreach, presentations, and workshops to various stakeholder groups. She has represented the Census Bureau in numerous interviews as a commentator and subject matter expert on Voice of America, CNN, Telemundo, Univision, and other international media outlets. Ríos-Vargas has authored and co-authored numerous publications, including Race Reporting Among Hispanics: 2010, The Hispanic Population: 2010, Understanding Counts of Afro-Latino Responses in the 2020 Census and several America Count Stories on the Hispanic Population.
Merarys began her career at the Census Bureau in 2006 as a survey statistician in the American Community Survey Office’s Education, Communication and Outreach Branch. She received a Master’s degree in Demography (2008) and a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology (2004) from the University of Puerto Rico. In 2009, she completed a Master’s Certificate in Project Management from George Washington University. Rios-Vargas is the recipient of five U.S. Census Bureau Bronze Medal Awards for her contributions to the 2010 and the 2020 Decennial and Island Areas Census.
Rachel Marks
U.S. Census Bureau
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Rachel Marks
Chief, Racial Statistics Branch, Population Division, U.S. Census Bureau
Rachel Marks is chief of the Racial Statistics Branch in the Census Bureau’s Population Division. She leads a research team that analyzes data on race and ethnicity from the 2020 Census, 2020 Island Areas Census, American Community Survey, and the Current Population Survey. She advises and guides research focusing on the reporting patterns of racial and ethnic groups in the United States, Puerto Rico, and other Island Areas.
Rachel has conducted extensive outreach, presentations, and workshops with various stakeholder groups throughout her career and was a lead researcher for the 2015 National Content Test, which examined alternative ways to collect data on race and ethnicity. She is a leading expert on the Middle Eastern and North African population in the United States – and has authored many reports and presentations.
Rachel joined the Census Bureau in 2007 as a survey statistician in the Decennial Management Division’s Puerto Rico, Island Areas, and Overseas Enumeration Branch. She has a master’s degree in sociology from the University of New Hampshire and a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Shippensburg University in Pennsylvania. She also completed a master’s certificate in project management at George Washington University.
Joe Evans
Kresge Foundation
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Joe Evans
Portfolio Director and Social Investment Officer, Kresge Foundation
Joe Evans is the portfolio director and social investment officer at The Kresge Foundation’s Social Investment Practice. He oversees various types of investments that align with Kresge's mission, including loans, guarantees, deposits, and equity investments. Joe is dedicated to originating, structuring, and finalizing new investments in line with responsible social investment practices, applicable regulations, and foundation priorities. He joined the foundation in 2014 after more than a decade of experience in organizational development, nonprofit business planning, and social investing with a prominent consulting firm.
In addition to his consulting background, Joe has served in various roles, including as an executive at a community action agency and as the director of lending for a community development financial institution focused on housing and education for individuals with disabilities and their families. He holds a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Southern Connecticut State University.
Eduardo Carrera
Platform for Social Impact
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Eduardo Carrera
CEO, Platform for Social Impact
Eduardo Carrera has raised and successfully deployed $120M in blended capital for social impact projects in Puerto Rico. He comes into the Platform for Social Impact (PSI) after two decades of serving as COO and later CEO of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Puerto Rico. Some of his achievements include the creation of Vimenti, the first school in Puerto Rico with a two-generation educational model. He also founded the Youth Development Institute, the leading force behind the unanimous passing of law 84 of 2021 which established a ten-year policy roadmap to reduce child poverty on the Island.
José Carabllo Cueto, PhD
University of Puerto Rico at Río Piedras
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José Caraballo Cueto, PhD
Associate Professor, University of Puerto Rico at Río Piedras
José Caraballo-Cueto currently works as an Associate Professor in the graduate business school in the University of Puerto Rico at Rio Piedras. He worked for eight years in the University of Puerto Rico at Cayey, where he was also a regular researcher in the Institute for Interdisciplinary Research and the Director of the Census Information Center of Puerto Rico. Caraballo completed a Ph.D. in economics at The New School for Social Research in 2013, where he specialized in econometrics (a branch of statistics) and development, obtaining honors in the latter. He has obtained grants from the National Institute of Health, the Open Society Foundation, the Segarra-Boerman Foundation, the Global Foundation for Democracy and Development based in New York, the Youth Institute of Puerto Rico, and the Foundation Network, among other grants to study topics related to human development. He was a Visitant Scholar in Princeton University and recently was recognized as an “emerging scholar in the US” by the magazine Diverse Issues. He has published twenty peer-reviewed articles in international outlets including: “The effect of consecutive disasters on educational outcomes” in the International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction (with Eileen Segarra, Yolanda Cordero and Héctor Cordero), “Colorism and Health Disparities in Home Countries: The Case of Puerto Rico” in the Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health (with Isar Godreau); Balancing Fiscal and Mortality Impact of SARS-CoV-2 Mitigation Measurements” in Letters in Biomathematics (with Maytee Cruz); “Balanced Versus Unbalanced Growth: Revisiting the Forgotten Debate with New Empirics" in the Review of Development Economics (with Xiao Jiang and Chau Ngoyen), "Do Gender Disparities Exist Despite a Negative Gender Earnings Gap?" in the journal Economia (with Eileen Segarra), “From Deindustrialization to Indebtedness: The Case of Puerto Rico” (with Juan Lara in the Journal of Globalization and Development), “Free trade Zones, Liberalization, Remittances, and Tourism, for what? Jobless Growth in the Dominican Republic” (in the International Journal of Development Issues), and “How (not) to Estimate GDP at the Sub-State Level: the Usefulness of the Economic Census” (in The Review of Regional Studies).
He has also published one book and more than 150 essays in Puerto Rico and in international outlets. Caraballo-Cueto participate as a reviewer in several academic journals including the World Bank Economic Review, Review of Political Economy, Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, and the Journal of Asian Economics. He is the past president of the Puerto Rico Association of Economists and a regular contributor to the research platform “Econolatin”, managed by the Autonomous University of Madrid.
He had more than 140 presentations in academic conferences in different countries including in Yale University, Rutgers University, in the American States Organization, and in the United Nations. Dr. Caraballo was the General Coordinator of the first Human Development Report of Puerto Rico, a multi-sectoral research project done in tandem with the United Nations. He also worked as a Statistical Project Manager in the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics, where he was Chair of the Subcommittee of Economic Statistics. He is a member of several academic associations and a regular speaker in the media.
Ian Seavey
Yale University’s Jackson School of Global Affairs
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Ian Seavey
Predoctoral Fellow in International Security Studies at Yale University’s Jackson School of Global Affairs and PhD candidate in the department of history at Texas A&M University
His research examines U.S. empire in the Caribbean through the lens of disaster relief, environmental policy, and rum production. His dissertation and subsequent book manuscript, “Colonial Calamities: The Politics of U.S. Disaster Relief in Puerto Rico, 1898-1979,” tells the story of how evolving ideas about disaster relief fundamentally shaped and continue to shape the colonial relationship between the Puerto Rico and the United States. He has published articles in a variety of venues including the Journal of Advanced Military Studies, AHA Perspectives, and the Journal of Environmental Hazards. His research has been funded by the Harry S. Truman Library Institute, the Albritton Center for Grand Strategy, and Yale’s Brady-Johnson Program in Grand Strategy. In his free time, he enjoys playing guitar in various heavy metal bands.
Alberto Velázquez
Puerto Rico Department of Statistics
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Alberto Velázquez
Senior Project Manager, Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics
Alberto Velázquez Estrada is a member of the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics team, serving as Senior Project Manager. Since 2013, he has been coordinating projects such as the State Data Center Program - Census Data and Information Centers chapter for Puerto Rico, the Migrant Profile, and representing Puerto Rico in the Federal State Cooperative for Population Estimates of the U.S. Census Bureau, among other demographic and geographic projects. He earned a bachelor's degree in Social Sciences with a concentration in Geography from the Río Piedras Campus of the University of Puerto Rico and a master's degree in Demography from the Graduate School of Public Health at the Medical Sciences Campus of the same institution. Upon completing his graduate studies, he worked as an intern at the Demographic Surveys Division of the U.S. Census Bureau and as a coordinator and data analyst in the Ryan White Program at the Department of Health of Puerto Rico.
Dr. Francisco Pesante González
Puerto Rico Department of Statistics
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Dr. Francisco Pesante González.
Project manager and coordinator of the Academies and Workshops Program, Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics
Dr. Francisco Pesante González is a project manager and coordinator of the Academies and Workshops Program at the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics. He has worked at this agency for the past 13 years and has co-authored publications such as the Interactive Profile of Child Abuse, the Human Development Report, and the 2015 Food Security Report in Puerto Rico, among others. Prior to this role, he was an Analyst in Management and Planning at the Department of Justice. He completed a doctorate in history, specializing in the topic of agrarian public policies in 20th-century Puerto Rico.
Deepak Lamba-Nieves
Center for a New Economy
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Deepak Lamba-Nieves
Director of Research, Center for a New Economy
Deepak Lamba-Nieves is the Director of Research and holds the Churchill G. Carey, Jr. Chair of Economic Development Research at the Center for a New Economy (CNE). He also teaches at the Graduate School of Planning at the University of Puerto Rico. Deepak has been researching the socioeconomic perspectives and development trajectories of Puerto Rico for two decades. Currently, he is working on research projects focused on post-disaster reconstruction as part of the CNE's Blueprint Initiative, a collective effort aimed at defining a path for housing and land use in Puerto Rico. Deepak was a postdoctoral fellow at the Watson Institute for Public and International Affairs at Brown University and completed a Ph.D. in Urban and Regional Studies in the Department of Urban Studies and Planning at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
Charlotte Gossett Navarro
Hispanic Federation
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Dulce del Rio-Pineda
Mujeres de Islas
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Dulce del Rio-Pineda's, Mujeres de Islas
Dulce del Rio-Pineda's association with Culebra began in the 1980s when she took on the role of coordinating summer camps for children with functional diversity. Already a qualified biologist and educator with a Master's in Special Education from NYU, her experience in Culebra became a cornerstone in her life's journey.
In 2010, Dulce's dedication to the island manifested even further. She co-founded Mujeres de Islas, a non-profit organization committed to fostering Culebra's sustainable development. With a passionate focus, Dulce constantly champions the need for quality community services, while also underscoring the importance of social equity and justice.
Inspiration for her leadership and vision stems from the formidable women in her lineage and circle, including her mother, aunts, friends, and now her granddaughter. These women have shaped her perspectives, driving her to advocate for unity, resilience, and community involvement.
Beyond her professional commitments, Dulce finds solace in the embrace of nature. She's particularly fond of the beach and relishes crafting, sewing, and sailing. Most recently, her cherished moments involve the company of her granddaughter.
Mariana Reyes
Taller Comunidad La Goyco
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Lyvia Rodríguez
El Enjambre
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Lyvia N. Rodríguez, El Enjambre
Lyvia is an urban and regional planner who has worked for 28 years in issues related to the right to the city, risk management, collective land tenure as a means to prevent displacement in self-built settlements, and participatory action-planning. She was the founding executive director of the internationally renowned Proyecto ENLACE del Caño Martín Peña, and the innovative, World Habitat Award recipient Fideicomiso de la Tierra del Caño Martín Peña.
As cofounder of El Enjambre, Lyvia accompanies organizations striving to strengthen their grassroots work as it connects to wider issues. She continues to explore the regularization of self-built settlements through collective land tenure and just transitions as a strategy of adaptation to climate change. Occasionally, Lyvia teaches at the Graduate School of Planning, University of Puerto Rico.
Merarys Rios-Vargas
U.S. Census Bureau
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Merarys Rios-Vargas
Chief, Ethnicity and Ancestry Branch, Population Division, U.S. Census Bureau
Merarys Ríos-Vargas is chief of the Population Division’s Ethnicity and Ancestry Branch at the U.S. Census Bureau. In this role, Ríos-Vargas serves as a subject matter expert while leading, and advising research on the reporting patterns and demographic characteristics of the Hispanic Origin population and ancestry groups in the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Island Areas.
Throughout her career, Ríos-Vargas has conducted extensive outreach, presentations, and workshops to various stakeholder groups. She has represented the Census Bureau in numerous interviews as a commentator and subject matter expert on Voice of America, CNN, Telemundo, Univision, and other international media outlets. Ríos-Vargas has authored and co-authored numerous publications, including Race Reporting Among Hispanics: 2010, The Hispanic Population: 2010, Understanding Counts of Afro-Latino Responses in the 2020 Census and several America Count Stories on the Hispanic Population.
Merarys began her career at the Census Bureau in 2006 as a survey statistician in the American Community Survey Office’s Education, Communication and Outreach Branch. She received a Master’s degree in Demography (2008) and a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology (2004) from the University of Puerto Rico. In 2009, she completed a Master’s Certificate in Project Management from George Washington University. Rios-Vargas is the recipient of five U.S. Census Bureau Bronze Medal Awards for her contributions to the 2010 and the 2020 Decennial and Island Areas Census.
Rachel Marks
U.S. Census Bureau
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Rachel Marks
Chief, Racial Statistics Branch, Population Division, U.S. Census Bureau
Rachel Marks is chief of the Racial Statistics Branch in the Census Bureau’s Population Division. She leads a research team that analyzes data on race and ethnicity from the 2020 Census, 2020 Island Areas Census, American Community Survey, and the Current Population Survey. She advises and guides research focusing on the reporting patterns of racial and ethnic groups in the United States, Puerto Rico, and other Island Areas.
Rachel has conducted extensive outreach, presentations, and workshops with various stakeholder groups throughout her career and was a lead researcher for the 2015 National Content Test, which examined alternative ways to collect data on race and ethnicity. She is a leading expert on the Middle Eastern and North African population in the United States – and has authored many reports and presentations.
Rachel joined the Census Bureau in 2007 as a survey statistician in the Decennial Management Division’s Puerto Rico, Island Areas, and Overseas Enumeration Branch. She has a master’s degree in sociology from the University of New Hampshire and a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Shippensburg University in Pennsylvania. She also completed a master’s certificate in project management at George Washington University.
Joe Evans
Kresge Foundation
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Joe Evans
Portfolio Director and Social Investment Officer, Kresge Foundation
Joe Evans is the portfolio director and social investment officer at The Kresge Foundation’s Social Investment Practice. He oversees various types of investments that align with Kresge's mission, including loans, guarantees, deposits, and equity investments. Joe is dedicated to originating, structuring, and finalizing new investments in line with responsible social investment practices, applicable regulations, and foundation priorities. He joined the foundation in 2014 after more than a decade of experience in organizational development, nonprofit business planning, and social investing with a prominent consulting firm.
In addition to his consulting background, Joe has served in various roles, including as an executive at a community action agency and as the director of lending for a community development financial institution focused on housing and education for individuals with disabilities and their families. He holds a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Southern Connecticut State University.
Eduardo Carrera
Platform for Social Impact
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Eduardo Carrera
CEO, Platform for Social Impact
Eduardo Carrera has raised and successfully deployed $120M in blended capital for social impact projects in Puerto Rico. He comes into the Platform for Social Impact (PSI) after two decades of serving as COO and later CEO of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Puerto Rico. Some of his achievements include the creation of Vimenti, the first school in Puerto Rico with a two-generation educational model. He also founded the Youth Development Institute, the leading force behind the unanimous passing of law 84 of 2021 which established a ten-year policy roadmap to reduce child poverty on the Island.
José Carabllo Cueto, PhD
University of Puerto Rico at Río Piedras
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José Caraballo Cueto, PhD
Associate Professor, University of Puerto Rico at Río Piedras
José Caraballo-Cueto currently works as an Associate Professor in the graduate business school in the University of Puerto Rico at Rio Piedras. He worked for eight years in the University of Puerto Rico at Cayey, where he was also a regular researcher in the Institute for Interdisciplinary Research and the Director of the Census Information Center of Puerto Rico. Caraballo completed a Ph.D. in economics at The New School for Social Research in 2013, where he specialized in econometrics (a branch of statistics) and development, obtaining honors in the latter. He has obtained grants from the National Institute of Health, the Open Society Foundation, the Segarra-Boerman Foundation, the Global Foundation for Democracy and Development based in New York, the Youth Institute of Puerto Rico, and the Foundation Network, among other grants to study topics related to human development. He was a Visitant Scholar in Princeton University and recently was recognized as an “emerging scholar in the US” by the magazine Diverse Issues. He has published twenty peer-reviewed articles in international outlets including: “The effect of consecutive disasters on educational outcomes” in the International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction (with Eileen Segarra, Yolanda Cordero and Héctor Cordero), “Colorism and Health Disparities in Home Countries: The Case of Puerto Rico” in the Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health (with Isar Godreau); Balancing Fiscal and Mortality Impact of SARS-CoV-2 Mitigation Measurements” in Letters in Biomathematics (with Maytee Cruz); “Balanced Versus Unbalanced Growth: Revisiting the Forgotten Debate with New Empirics" in the Review of Development Economics (with Xiao Jiang and Chau Ngoyen), "Do Gender Disparities Exist Despite a Negative Gender Earnings Gap?" in the journal Economia (with Eileen Segarra), “From Deindustrialization to Indebtedness: The Case of Puerto Rico” (with Juan Lara in the Journal of Globalization and Development), “Free trade Zones, Liberalization, Remittances, and Tourism, for what? Jobless Growth in the Dominican Republic” (in the International Journal of Development Issues), and “How (not) to Estimate GDP at the Sub-State Level: the Usefulness of the Economic Census” (in The Review of Regional Studies).
He has also published one book and more than 150 essays in Puerto Rico and in international outlets. Caraballo-Cueto participate as a reviewer in several academic journals including the World Bank Economic Review, Review of Political Economy, Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, and the Journal of Asian Economics. He is the past president of the Puerto Rico Association of Economists and a regular contributor to the research platform “Econolatin”, managed by the Autonomous University of Madrid.
He had more than 140 presentations in academic conferences in different countries including in Yale University, Rutgers University, in the American States Organization, and in the United Nations. Dr. Caraballo was the General Coordinator of the first Human Development Report of Puerto Rico, a multi-sectoral research project done in tandem with the United Nations. He also worked as a Statistical Project Manager in the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics, where he was Chair of the Subcommittee of Economic Statistics. He is a member of several academic associations and a regular speaker in the media.
| Name | Organization Name | Job Position | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dessy Bones Colón | Fundación de Mujeres en Puerto Rico | Operations Officer | [email protected] |
| Veronica Colón Rosario | Fundación de Mujeres en Puerto Rico | Executive Director | [email protected] |
| Zulnette García Ramos | Fundación de Mujeres en Puerto Rico | Program Officer | [email protected] |
| Neeltje van Marissing Méndez | Flamboyan Foundation | Senior Managing Director Communications and External Affairs | [email protected] |
| Darryl Chappell | Darryl Chappell Foundation | CEO | [email protected] |
| Iris A. Medina | Flamboyan Foundation | Director, Revitalizing in Education | [email protected] |
| Laura Rexach | Fundación Intellectus | Executive Director | [email protected] |
| Natcha Aponte | Humanidades Puerto Rico | Accounting Officer Fiscal Area | [email protected] |
| Dalila Rodriguez Saavedra | Humanidades Puerto Rico | Grants Director | [email protected] |
| Jeirca Medina | Titín Foundation | Public Policy Director | [email protected] |
| Yadira Valdivia | Liberty Foundation | Executive Director | [email protected] |
| Baby Jaunarena | Fundación Colibrí | Executive Director | [email protected] |
| Jocelyn G. Capeles-Perez | Fundación Comunitaria de Puerto Rico | Philanthropic Services Manager & Public Relations | [email protected] |
| Kate Landon | Ban Ki-moon Foundation | Executive Director | [email protected] |
| Jesús Barriera Bonilla | Humanidades Puerto Rico | Program Officer | [email protected] |
| Sonya Canetti Mirabal | Humanidades Puerto Rico | Executive Director | [email protected] |
| Suheily Chaparro | Humanidades Puerto Rico | Director, Programa de Iniciativas Propias | [email protected] |
| Kinyta Smalls | Peter Alfond Foundation | Executive Director, PR | [email protected] |
| Sara Benitez Delgado | Fundación de Mujeres en Puerto Rico | Co-president | [email protected] |
| Hazel Colón | Titín Foundation | Program Director | [email protected] |
| Jessie Guerrero | Hispanic Federation | Grants and Contracts Manager | [email protected] |
| Maya Procel | Magic Cabinet | Sr. Manager, Special Projects | [email protected] |
| Almirca Santiago | Hispanic Federation | Vice President for Grants and Capacity Building | [email protected] |
| Elena Pérez | Magic Cabinet | Program Officer | [email protected] |
| Zach Grossnickle | Magic Cabinet | Sr. Manager, Brand and Communications | [email protected] |
| Ivonne Gómez | Fundación Gestos Positivos Econo | Director | [email protected] |
| Christina Engel | Magic Cabinet | Chief Executive Officer | [email protected] |
| Nicolle Díaz | Fundación Segarra Boerman | Program Coordinator | [email protected] |
| Jaime Toro-Monserrate | Humanidades PR | President Board of Directors | [email protected] |
| José Ramón (Benny) Benítez | Fundación Rimas | General Manager | [email protected] |
| María Gabriela Velasco | Fundación Rimas | Program Manager | [email protected] |
| Héctor González | Fundación Rimas | Board of Directors Member | [email protected] |
| Anahí Lazarte | Fundación Rimas | Board of Directors Member | |
| Lydia R. Figueroa Cuevas | Fundación Triple S | Executive Director | [email protected] |
| Franchesca E. Rivera Cintrón | Flamboyan Foundation | Director, K-3 Reading | [email protected] |
| Rubiam Martínez | Fundación Ángel Ramos | Program Officer | [email protected] |
| Edenmari Montijo | Fundación Ángel Ramos | Communications and Development Manager | [email protected] |
| Keila López | Fundación Ángel Ramos | Grants and Program Manager | [email protected] |
| Yarelis Pagán | Fundación Ángel Ramos | Program Officer | [email protected] |
| Laura López | Fundación Ángel Ramos | Executive Director | [email protected] |
| Laura Navarro Rosado | Flamboyan Foundation | Managing Director, Education | [email protected] |
| Alexis Ortiz | The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation | Senior Program Associate | [email protected] |
| Maritere Padilla Rodriguez | Hispanic Federation | Director of Policy and Advocacy | [email protected] |
| Mariemyr Ortiz Pérez | Triple S | CHW Supervisor | [email protected] |
| Maximilián Vega-Vélez | María Fund PR | Coordinator of the SylC Trans and Non-Binary Initiative | [email protected] |
| Raquela Delgado Valentín | María Fund PR | Director of Resource Mobilization and Collaborations between Social Movements | [email protected] |
| Coral Aponte | Flamboyan Foundation | Policy and Partner Engagement | [email protected] |
| Maria Concepción Díaz | Oxfam US | Program Manager | [email protected] |
| Proviana Colón | Fundación Banco Popular | Program Manager | [email protected] |
| Ian Seavey | Yale University’s Jackson School of Global Affairs | Predoctoral Fellow in International Security Studies | [email protected] |
| Alberto Velázquez | Puerto Rico Department of Statistics | Senior Project Manager | [email protected] |
| Francisco Pesante González, PhD | Puerto Rico Department of Statistics | Project manager and coordinator of the Academies and Workshops Program | [email protected] |
| Deepak Lamba-Nieves | Center for a New Economy | Director of Research | [email protected] |
| Merarys Rios-Vargas | U.S. Census Bureau | Chief, Ethnicity and Ancestry Branch, Population Division | [email protected] |
| Rachel Marks | U.S. Census Bureau | Chief, Racial Statistics Branch, Population Division | [email protected] |
| Joe Evans | Kresge Foundation | Portfolio Director and Social Investment Officer | [email protected] |
| Eduardo Carrera | Platform for Social Impact | Chief Executive Officer | [email protected] |
| José Caraballo Cueto, PhD | University of Puerto Rico at Río Piedras | Associate Professor | [email protected] |
| Dulce del Rio-Pineda | Mujeres de Islas | [email protected] | |
| Mariana Reyes | Taller Comunidad La Goyco | ||
| Lyvia N. Rodríguez Del Valle | El Enjambre | [email protected] | |
| Carlos Rodríguez Silvestre | Flamboyan Foundation | Executive Director, PR | [email protected] |
| Sofía Martínez-Álvarez | Titín Foundation | Executive Director | [email protected] |
| Beatriz Polhamus | Fundación Banco Popular | Executive Director | [email protected] |
| Mary Ann Gabino | Puerto Rico Community Foundation | Senior Vicepresident | [email protected] |
| Charlotte Gossett | Hispanic Federation | PR Chief Director | [email protected] |
| Carolina Cotto | Fundación Ángel Ramos | Programs Officer | [email protected] |
| Anja Paonessa | Filantropía Puerto Rico | Membership Officer | [email protected] |
| Glenisse Pagán Ortiz | Filantropía Puerto Rico | Executive Director | [email protected] |
| Richard Córdova | Filantropía Puerto Rico | Operations Officer | [email protected] |
| Xiomara Torres Rivera | Filantropía Puerto Rico | Communications Manager | [email protected] |
| Nicole Méndez | Filantropía Puerto Rico | Operations and Logistics Coordinator | [email protected] |
| Joel Franqui | Filantropía Puerto Rico | Project Coordinator | [email protected] |
| Karla Vargas | Filantropía Puerto Rico | Director of Strategic Initiatives | [email protected] |
| Brian Díaz | Filantropía Puerto Rico | Media Content Creator | [email protected] |
| Leonardo Laboy Beatriz Lizardi | Armonía de la Montaña | Armonía de la Montaña | [email protected] |
| Gina Malley | Camp Tabonuco | Camp Tabonuco | [email protected] |
| Alondra Perez | Centro Esperanza | Centro Esperanza | [email protected] |
| Karla Durán | EcoTienda La Chiwi | EcoTienda La Chiwi | [email protected] |
| JeyMa García y Valeria | Finca Pajuil | Finca Pajuil | [email protected] |
| Andres Altra | Friends of Puerto Rico | Friends of Puerto Rico | [email protected] [email protected] |
| Ashley Anahata | Hermittes Anahata Foundation | Hermittes Anahata Foundation | [email protected] |
| Karen Albors | Modo Consciente | Modo Consciente | [email protected] |
| Lucianne Velez | Paz Para Ti | Paz Para Ti | [email protected] |
| Belisa Alvarez | Tereques | Tereques | [email protected] |
| Vanessa Cintrón | Tierra de Luna | Tierra de Luna | [email protected] |
General Convening Details
Registration: All convening sessions will be at the Caribe Hilton Hotel in San Juan, with the exception of our closing ‘Junte Social’, which will take place at MADMi. Registration will open at 8:30 am on Wednesday, October 18th, right in front of Salón Flamingo on the 2nd floor. We encourage you to arrive early to pick up your badge and enjoy an early breakfast.
Dress code: There’s no strict dress code for the convening; your comfort is our priority. However, please keep in mind that hotel meeting rooms tend to have cooler temperatures, so having an extra jacket on hand might be a good idea.
Social Media: We’ll be actively posting on social media throughout the convening, and we invite you to join the conversation. Don’t forget to use our official event hashtags: #ExpandToAlign and #2023Convening in your posts. Let’s make our online presence as vibrant as our in-person gathering!
Parking: On-site parking is available at $25, or you can find a multi parking option in front of the hotel for $15. If you prefer not to use these parking facilities, you can easily opt for an Uber ride.
Spotify Playlist: Tune in Now & Set the Event Vibe! 🎶 2023 Annual Convening Playlist on Spotify.
Culture, Participation & Privacy Guidelines
We want you to experience our annual convening as a chance to continue building our philanthropic community by enabling collaborative discussions that allow diverse grantmakers to work together and scale up their impact in Puerto Rico. Discussions should be lively, yet respectful, and always seek to bridge the gaps between diverse opinions, cultures, interests, and backgrounds, while staying focused on our mission to improve the lives of the marginalized.
You may tag us on Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter, and use the #convenePR hashtag so other attendees can find your posts.
Sessions might be recorded for archival purposes and available for our members.
We may take photos or video of sessions and attendees.
This content is for FiPR use only and may appear on our website, newsletter, social media pages, or future promotional material.
While fundraising is prohibited, we do encourage you to share what you learn and to refrain from doing so if the speakers explicitly request confidentiality.
Please abide by our Culture, Participation & Privacy Policy.
COVID-19 Guidelines
Vaccination and masks are not required. The meeting room should allow us to be comfortably spaced. We understand that there will be a mix of perspectives and needs among group members, and we trust that we can all respect and support that diversity.
Stay at home if you’re sick or have been in close contact with anyone who tested positive for COVID-19.
Be respectful of anyone’s desire for space, face coverings or a touchless experience.
“Thank you for the wonderful content! The data has been incredibly helpful.”
- Kinyta Smalls
