Low-income - Publications - Faculty & Research

29 Mar 2022
Book

5 Qualities That Help Companies Thrive for Decades—Even Centuries

Shetty, a cardiac surgeon and founder of Narayana Health, built a financially viable enterprise at scale by pioneering low-cost heart surgery for tens of thousands of low-income patients. Shetty was motivated by the widespread... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

Profile

David Velasquez

woman alive that could take my mama’s place.” What’s the best thing about your hometown? What I loved about all the places I lived in (all in Southern California), was the community. Growing up in low-income neighborhoods meant that I... View Details

Web

Advancing Global, Public, and Societal Health - Health Care

and teaching, including businesses serving low-income populations in both emerging markets and developed nations. Chu teaches the second year elective Business at the Base of the Pyramid , a course introduced jointly with Professor V.... View Details

27 Feb 2024

Diverse Perspectives: Socioeconomic Inclusion at HBS

It's Socioeconomic Inclusion Week at HBS - what does it mean to be first generation, low-income (FGLI)? Hear from a panel of current students as they share their personal stories and experiences at HBS. This webinar is open to all... View Details

10 Oct 2023
Blog Post

Policy Drivers for Environmental Justice: What Businesses Need to Know

Environmentalist defines environmental racism as “racial discrimination in environmental policy making, corporate decision making, and/or practice which results in the inequitable distribution of environmental burden along lines of race, class, and geography.”[13]... View Details

31 Jan 2023
Op-Ed

Can Insurance Technology Solve the Uninsured Driver Problem?

Insurance technology can enable cash-strapped drivers to access shorter and more affordable durations of coverage. My research finds that many low-income drivers jump at the opportunity to buy coverage when they’re offered the ability to... View Details

Keywords: by Ray Kluender; Insurance

September 2020 (Revised June 2021)
Case

Algramo

By: Michael Chu, Monica Silva and Mariana Cal

Founded in 2013 by José Manuel Moller in Chile, Algramo first became known for addressing the “poverty tax” (the surcharge paid by lower income families for staples sold in smaller sizes) through specially-designed dispensers in low-income neighborhood grocery stores... View Details

Keywords: Packaging-as-a-wallet; Plastic Waste; Business At The Base Of The Pyramid; Reusable Packaging; Alliances With FMCGs To Meet ESG Goals; Social Entrepreneurship; Environmental Sustainability; Strategy; Value Creation; Goals and Objectives; Business Model; Consumer Products Industry; Latin America; South America; Chile

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23 Mar 2022
Blog Post

Learning Curve: The Brother-and-Sister Team Behind a New Edtech Nonprofit

Indian nonprofit devoted to supporting the millions of low-income women who toil in the country’s informal economy. Serving young people and working mothers, brother and sister each came to believe that intervening at the preschool and... View Details

01 Jun 2023
News

Curb Appeal

feels.” “Everything that’s worthwhile is incredibly complicated.” “Everything that’s worthwhile is incredibly complicated.” Tisch’s experience at the NYPD, meanwhile, informed her approach to illegal dumping, a problem that disproportionately affects View Details

Keywords: Alexander Gelfand; photography by Vance Jacobs; Justice, Public Order, and Safety Activities; Government

Web

Driving Impact in Emerging Markets with HBS Alum Nneka Chime (MBA 2015) - Recruiting

First-Generation and Low-Income Student Success Shoma Simkin 04 Mar 2025 WesTrek 2025: Exploring the future of tech in Silicon Valley Michelle Cao 05 May 2025 Meet the Tech Club Shira Amat 13 Mar 2025 Launching Leaders: HBS's New... View Details

Web

Diversity and Inclusion - Christensen Center for Teaching & Learning

that low-income customers are price sensitive?” In response to a student referring to a female case protagonist as “a bitch” - “You seem to be getting a [strong] reaction from your classmates on that description. Would you like to... View Details

07 May 2024
Blog Post

Opportunity to Offset Travel Emissions with Carbon Credits that Meet HBS Criteria

fossil fuel pollution that disproportionately impact low-income communities and communities of color. In addition to the Scope 1 and 2 targets, the plan includes objectives to reduce Scope 3 emissions from travel (with an emphasis on air... View Details

15 Apr 2015
Research & Ideas

Why Americans Voted for an Income Tax

have long balanced competing notions of fairness when deciding on policy toward the poor. We want everyone to pitch in, to pay their "fair share," so we have moved away from making cash transfers to low-income households and... View Details

Keywords: by Matthew C. Weinzierl

14 Mar 2024
Blog Post

IFC India: SELCO - Last Mile Solar Powered Energy for Rural India

Harish Hande and Neville Williams as a private for-profit social enterprise. SELCO initially aimed to sell and service photovoltaic systems in Dr. Hande’s home state of Karnataka, with a mission of providing sustainable energy services to View Details

28 Feb 2023
Blog Post

Celebrating Socioeconomic Diversity and Inclusion at HBS (Part 1)

equity and inclusion in business and society. Here, current HBS students share their personal stories about what being first-generation, low-income (FGLI) means to them through a storyboard series organized by Student Association in... View Details

Web

Diversity and Equity - Alumni

mission. Ascend Leaders The Ascend Leadership Program helps first-generation and low-income MBA students thrive, both academically and socially. It encompasses practical tools, ongoing workshops, community-building events—including... View Details

28 Jun 2022
Book

The Moral Enterprise: How Two Companies Profit with Purpose

How can government and business work together in this fractious political moment, when finding solutions to pressing problems like inequality and climate change are more urgent than ever? Rebecca Henderson, Harvard University’s John and Natty McArthur University... View Details

Keywords: by Avery Forman

01 Feb 2021
What Do You Think?

Has the New Economy Finally Arrived?

four years came along. It brought tax cuts and higher growth. The unemployment rate fell. Wages, particularly for low-income workers, increased. But contrary to Phillips curve thinking, inflation remained the same or even declined. Even... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

19 May 2021
Op-Ed

Why America Needs a Better Bridge Between School and Career

help young people from low-income communities launch promising careers. The applications provide an inside look at the interplay among short-term training providers, employers, colleges, and high schools. "Policymakers, employers, and... View Details

Keywords: by Joseph B. Fuller and Rachel Lipson

03 May 2022
Research & Ideas

Desperate for Talent? Consider Advancing Your Own Employees First

Job openings in the United States continue to hover at record high levels, exacerbated by the Great Resignation and a sputtering emergence from the pandemic. Competition remains fierce among companies struggling to find qualified workers. Yet many employers,... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne

Publications