OCS Conference Funding Submission

Event Photo:

Andrew, Ivan and I, infront of the SOCAP sign in the main garden at the conference venue

Group picture with Alums and Andrea Armeni at the happy hour on the first day of the conference.

Picture with SOCAP sign on the last day of the conference

Name: Devashish Taknet

Degree Program: MPA IN PUBLIC & NONPROFIT MANAGEMENT & POLICY

Specialization: PNP-Social Impact, Innovation & Investment

Conference Host Organization/Institution: Sorenson Impact Institute

Conference/Competition Name: SOCAP23

Conference Term: Fall Conference Start Date: 2023-10-23 Conference End Date: 2023-10-25

What were your takeaways from this conference/case competition?
SOCAP convenes the most engaged and diverse impact investing community in the world. My purpose of attending the conference was to meet impact investors from various regions and countries to build connections and discuss with them my professional mission. My biggest takeaway was the positive feedback that I received on my mission statement, as well as the interest expressed by others to connect. I also got a better understanding of various players and stakeholders in the field of impact investing and got a chance to interact with them.

How will your participation in this conference/case competition support your professional development?
It was a proud moment to meet 10+ alumni from NYU (Wagner) who were attending the conference in professional capacity. We met up for happy hour on the first day with Andrea Armeni present as well. That was a great opportunity to learn about their roles and organizations. Over the next few months, I will be spending time to build relationships with the people I connected with during the conference.

What are some next steps or action items this conference/case competition inspired?
I have already started to reach out to a few of my connections to help with the NYU Impact Investment Fund in two ways - (1) co-invest with us (2) finding enterprises to invest in. I will also be taking their help in my Capstone project with Donor Advised Funds. I want some of the connections to become my mentors and this seems like a good way to do it. The rest of them I have added on LinkedIn where I continue to share my journey.

What are some tips or best practices that you would like to share with other Wagner students who attend a conference/case competition?
SOCAP uses Brella App for people to connect prior to the conference. I will highly encourage students to use the app to start setting up meetings 15 days in advance. I met 15+ people 1-1 and it was very effective. Volunteering with SOCAP team is a good way to get to know other volunteers, who are entrepreneurs and students from other universities. Also, I would encourage the students to go to the conference with a clear path as to what they want to do post Wagner. I got this question from almost everyone who could be a prospective employer.

Wagner Areas of Impact: Education, Finance, Government, Health, Housing, Inequality, Race, and Poverty, International Development, Leadership, Nonprofits, Social Innovation