Ok - I have been terrible about keeping this blog updated and I apologize (mainly to myself, because this blog is a way of helping me think about my experiences at Wagner). I would say I promise to do a better job, but with finals in a few weeks I'm not sure I'll be keeping that promise.
Went to the annual Net Impact conference 2 weekends back up in Cornell. The conference is huge - they had 2600 people this year and it was an incredible networking opportunity. Got to see some great people talk about the work and impact they are having and also got to see some not so great panels (don't get me started on Corporate Social Responsibility).
The first day I was a bit disoriented - running across Cornell's humongous campus from one panel to the next in the bitter cold. I didn't know what to expect and I was just a bit lost. So I'd say the first day was a bit of a dud. Even the panels seemed uninteresting.
But the second day was incredible. Attended a case presented by Sustainable Harvest. Very cool company, doing incredible things in the coffee supply chain space. If you're looking for an internship next summer in CA, then I look them up. The final presentation on Emerging Market Investing was probably the best panel of the weekend. We had Grassroots Business Fund, Soros Economic Development Fund and JP Morgan's social investment fund on the panel. Strong NYU contingent in the first 2 rows which was great as well :)
Got some great career advice - bulk up on my finance skills and consider a stint at management consulting as a stepping stone to the social venture capital space. Now I'm torn about what to do with my next summer. Decisions! Decisions! Decisions!
High level take aways -
* Don't run from panel to panel, even if you think you'll miss the next panel. Slow down, talk to people. Create relationships
* Definitely stay for the after parties. We social sector people know how to get our drink on
* Best part of the trip was developing bonds with my fellow NYU students. A weekend away with friends is great bonding
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