EMERGE Everywhere

As the climate crisis deepens, it weighs most heavily on marginalized communities that are already financially fragile. How do we protect these groups from the economic impact of rising energy costs, pollution, and natural disasters as we combat climate change? Listen in as Anne Evens, CEO of Elevate, joins Jennifer to explore the climate-financial health connection and how government, financial, and nonprofit leaders can drive equity through climate action.

What’s the key to financial security today? As technology and a shifting economy reshape how we save, spend, borrow, and plan for the future, mastering the art of money management is critical for achieving financial health. Join us as Jennifer speaks with Suze Orman – personal finance expert, author, Emmy Award winner, and Co-Founder of workplace emergency savings platform SecureSave – about the critical role of savings and the most important step companies can take to support employees’ financial success today.

Financial inequity isn’t a problem unique to the U.S. – it’s a global challenge that prevents many women and their families from escaping poverty. How can we empower all women to achieve financial security? Increasing access to financial services and creating women-centered products are integral parts of the solution. Hear Mary Ellen Iskenderian, President and CEO of Women’s World Banking, paint a picture of the challenges facing women across the world and the unexpected solutions required to close the gender gap in financial health.

The last few years have given us a glimpse at technology’s vast potential to improve financial, physical, and mental well-being. Can it help us achieve financial health for all? Truly advancing equity through technology requires meaningfully investing in founders of color, women founders, and others who bring lived experience to tackle persistent disparities. Tune in to hear Nasir Qadree, Founder and Managing Partner of Zeal Capital Partners, share how Zeal is democratizing venture capital and what it will take to increase investment in underrepresented founders and markets.

Is artificial intelligence the key to providing personalized financial advice for all? While companies like Credit Karma are tapping into AI’s vast potential to help customers manage their money, the technology also raises weighty questions about how to use it responsibly. In this episode, Credit Karma CEO Ken Lin speaks with Jennifer about how the company has embedded AI into its solutions, the biggest opportunities and challenges right now, and what an AI-enabled future might look like.

Diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives across corporate America are facing a backlash from a growing chorus of voices. But as historically marginalized groups continue to fall further behind financially, creating a more equitable financial system has never been more urgent. So where do we go from here? Hear from Greg Cunningham, Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer for U.S. Bank, as he reflects on his own DEI journey and what it really takes to embed equity into business practices.

It’s been two decades since the Financial Health Network and a national movement to improve financial lives were founded. As we celebrate 20 years of creating financial change, what does the future hold? Listen in as longtime finhealth champions Ellen Seidman of the Urban Institute, Arjan Schütte of Core Innovation Capital, and Tilman Ehrbeck of Flourish Ventures reflect on our journey and what we can do next to make the biggest difference in financial health.

The road to financial health for all is long, and Financial Health Network President & CEO Jennifer Tescher has been walking it for almost two decades. In that time, she’s learned that lasting change requires diverse ideas and voices. She started EMERE Everywhere with that vision, and over the past year, she’s hosted finhealth visionaries making change across sectors. Listen to this special solo episode to hear Jen’s thoughts on the progress of financial health – and her hopes for the year ahead. 

Dr. Bechara Choucair grew up in Beirut in the midst of the Lebanese Civil War, raised by parents that created stability in an otherwise unstable time. What he learned then informs his current work as Senior Vice President and Chief Health Officer for Kaiser Permanente: Stable environments create better, more equitable outcomes. In this episode, Dr. Choucair explains how health systems can promote health by fighting back against financial insecurity, which he sees as the next great health crisis.

In 1992, John Hope Bryant brought a bus full of largely White corporate leaders to witness the disinvestment in South Central LA. This was the first big move for Operation HOPE, Inc., a nonprofit that John founded to empower underserved communities through financial literacy. In this episode, John and Jennifer discuss everything he’s learned in the 30 years since that first bus tour – including the importance of financial inclusion and building Black wealth.