2003 CDVCA Leadership Awards
In order to recognize outstanding contributions to the field of community development venture capital, CDVCA honors one practitioner and one investor with a CDVCA Leadership Award each year.
Nick Smith
CDVCA Practitioner Leadership Award
CDVCA selected Nick Smith to receive its first ever Practitioner Award, which recognizes an individual who has made outstanding contributions to the CDVC field with emphasis on the individual's excellent performance, passionate commitment, and visionary leadership.
Mr. Smith has been a visionary CDVC leader. He has been an outstanding practitioner and played a pivotal role in developing the industry. He is the founder and Chairman of the Northeast Ventures Corporation, one of the oldest and most respected CDVC funds in the nation. For over ten years, Northeast Ventures has served as a model and example to those starting and operating similar funds throughout the country. Mr. Smith has also played a seminal role in bringing the industry together as the founder and chairman of the Community Development Venture Capital Alliance.
Ford Foundation
CDVCA Investor Leadership Award
CDVCA selected the Ford Foundation to receive its first ever Investor Award. Susan Berresford, President of the Ford Foundation, received the award on behalf of the Foundation. The Investor Award recognizes a provider of capital who has made outstanding contributions to the CDVC field and has demonstrated a dedication and a shared commitment to CDVC's goal of advancing the livelihoods of low-income individuals and the economies of distressed communities.
The Ford Foundation has shown leadership as both an investor and a grantmaker in supporting and helping to found the field of community development venture capital. Ford was a pioneer in investing in individual community development venture capital funds before a national industry existed. It has played a critica role supporting efforts to develop best practices and innovative techniques of supplying equity capital to distressed communities. It continues to play a leading role in encouraging research on the industry and helping it to develop ways to better serve low-income people and communities.
