About 175 alumni from around the country recently attended the sold-out Magnifying Your Mission social impact conference organized and hosted by the Yale Alumni Nonprofit Alliance (YANA), a shared interest group with over 9,000 members.
Held in New York City at the Yale Club, the event was preceded by an accompanying gala that honored three alumni and one Yale faculty member for their service and contributions to the Yale community: Rachel Littman ’91, Richard Buery, Jr. ’97 JD, Sherry Wang ’07, and Professor David W. Blight.
The conference included multiple panel sessions with topics ranging from “Achieving Excellence Through Effective Governance” to “Financing and Scaling Your Organization’s Impact” to “Using Technology to Magnify Your Mission.” Also featured were keynote presentations by Tom Steyer ’79, co-executive chair of Galvanize Climate Solutions, and Marta Tellado ’02 PhD, president and CEO of Consumer Reports and a member of the Yale Board of Trustees.
Merle Duskin Kailas ’79 MPPM, a YANA board member who served as the event chair, called upon participants to be mindful of the purpose behind the gathering and the incredible things that Yalies can accomplish for the betterment of society when they work together.
“We have the opportunity to leverage our diverse talents, skills, and experiences to address some of the most pressing challenges facing our communities and the world at large,” she said. “The challenges we face may be daunting, but history has shown us that when individuals come together with a shared purpose, incredible transformations can occur.”
She also reminded participants of the true metric of success for those who have dedicated themselves to serving others.
“The impact we seek to create is not measured in numbers or statistics, but in the lives we touch, the communities we strengthen, and the future we shape,” she said.
Ken Inadomi ’76, founding chair of YANA, echoed this sentiment and emphasized the role of the group in galvanizing collective action.
“YANA is about community, bringing like-minded, mission-driven people together and building community,” he said. “Together we are stronger, together we can maximize our collective impact.”
He noted that countless Zoom calls and limited in-person interactions during the coronavirus pandemic years has highlighted the need for people to connect and engage face to face.
“We now know the limits to virtual meetings,” he said. “People in social impact not only want to get together, they need to get together. Our role in convening alumni in-person has never been more important.”
Among the alumni who attended the conference and appreciated what YANA was doing was Sarah Graham ’07, chief development officer for a nonprofit organization that discovers and promotes the careers of talented young classical musicians around the world.
“I am grateful to connect with so many like-minded people in the Yale community and beyond doing good work with the aim of making the world a better place,” she said. “YANA makes me feel supported and valued as a professional, as an alumna, and as a person in a unique way, and I am proud to contribute to its success by participating.”
The same goes for Lauren Graham ’13 MEM, chair of Yale Blue Green, Yale’s environmental alumni group, and chief of staff of a national nonprofit group working to enact policies and programs to end domestic hunger, who said the thought-provoking sessions and content of the conference made her reminisce fondly of her student days at Yale.
“If you can’t be on campus, being in a room full of Yalies at the Yale Club is the next best thing!” she said, adding that serving others and the greater good is a hallmark that distinguishes Yale alumni. “The Yale community is connected and purposeful. More and more people are energized about mission-driven work and understand that we are in a critical window in human history where our collective actions matter to build a future of promise rather than peril.”
This is what motivated Rachel Littman ’91, a former Wall Street finance attorney turned law school educator and career dean, and nonprofit governance specialist, to get involved with YANA years ago as a volunteer, spending the past five years as its executive director.
“People really crave a community of Yalies involved in the social impact space,” she said, adding that alumni in this field, whether they are professionals or volunteers, have at their disposal a robust base of peer support. “They are not alone in their social impact work and there is a wide network of Yalies at all levels and specialties in this space that they can tap into.”
Liana (Epstein) Scarim ’14, who is YANA’s communications director and played a key role in organizing the conference, and works in nonprofit fundraising and development in Colorado, said she was delighted the event resonated with participants.
“The buzz, enthusiasm, and energy of the attendees and their eagerness to learn from and give to one another was apparent,” she said. “We had a huge range of ages and experience levels, and I observed organic conversations and idea sharing beyond the structure we provided.”
She added that the value of the connections and conversations made possible by the conference can endure and reverberate long after the event.
“I hope attendees continue to utilize the YANA network to remember how many people are involved in this work and inspired to make the world a better place,” she said.
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Photo #1 credit: Brian Hammerstein ’85
Photo #2, 3, 5, 6 credit: Henry Kwan ’05 MA
Photo #4 credit: Modesta Matos-Gooding
