In this episode of Capital for Good we speak with Maria Teresa Kumar, the nationally celebrated social entrepreneur, civic and political operative, journalist, commentator and co-founder and CEO of Voto Latino, the nation’s largest Latino voter registration organization.

We begin by discussing some of the formative experiences that shaped Kumar’s passion for politics and civic engagement, including her childhood in a bicultural family and community in Northern California, where she learned how to navigate and bridge difference, real and perceived, to find common cause. In these years and environment, shaped in part by Prop 187 and anti-immigrant sentiment and policy, Kumar learned first-hand how young people in Latino and other immigrant households were critical to mobilizing their families and communities — to become citizens and voters — and in the process dramatically shift electoral outcomes to better reflect community needs.

In 2004, with the recognition that Latinos were the second largest demographic group in the country, Kumar and Rosario Dawson founded Voto Latino, centering voter mobilization efforts on young people, and using technology and other pop culture and media tools “to market democracy every single day.” In the twenty years since, Voto Latino has registered over two million voters and played a central role in flipping a number of swing states in various elections.

We cover the 2024 election, and the widely held interpretation that Latino voters’ shift to the right contributed to the election of Donald Trump. Kumar notes that while some Latino voters did shift right, many more stayed home in 2024 (38 percent) than in 2020 (27 percent). She believes this reflects broader anxiety and frustration; Latinos, who disproportionately bore the economic toll of the pandemic, and have continued to struggle with persistent affordability challenges and unresolved immigration reform, did not see their needs adequately addressed by either party. Today, Kumar suggests that most Latinos, even those who voted for Trump, believe the President has gone too far, a sentiment reflected in recent survey data from Voto Latino and the Latino Community Foundation.

Looking ahead, Kumar argues that it is critical to re-engage voters, and to use “culture at scale” — thoughtful conversations, podcasts, influencers, other creative engagement tools, to address needs and “remind people that when they participate government does work, government can be kind, and it’s the will of the people.” She also notes that at this moment it is critical for citizens to hold government accountable.

“2024 was really painful,” Kumar says. “We’re feeling what happens when we don’t participate. But 2026 is right around the corner… We have the ability to inspire, aspire, and to imagine getting to that more perfect union. And that takes all of us.”

Thanks for Listening!

Subscribe to Capital for Good on Apple, Amazon, Google, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Drop us a line at socialenterprise@gsb.columbia.edu.

Mentioned in this podcast:

• Voto Latino
• Survey Data and Report, (Voto Latino and Latino Community Foundation, 2025)

In this episode of Capital for Good we speak with Greg Shell, a seasoned investor, civic leader, and partner at Goldman Sachs Alternatives, where he leads the firm’s inclusive growth strategy.

Over the course of the conversation, we discuss how Shell’s three decades and expertise in investing, and his commitments to creating opportunity and greater economic and social mobility, for many years pursued through board leadership and community and nonprofit engagement, have come together in impact investing, first at Bain Capital, and now at Goldman Sachs Alternatives.

Shell explains that he believes deeply in the power of capitalism — the power of the profit model to drive innovation, opportunities for ownership and wealth building, economic growth — and that the current system is failing to deliver broad based economic and social mobility. He notes that stagnant wages, growing income and wealth inequality, and deep and real economic insecurity, are all profound challenges, but ones that must and can be addressed.

“Our economy would be bigger and faster growing if more people could participate and contribute fully,” Shell says. This is also the thesis of the private equity strategy he leads at Goldman Sachs Alternatives that invests into affordable and high-quality health care, education and workforce development, and financial inclusion. In each vertical, Shell’s team identifies companies that focus on remedying exclusion as social and economic challenge and market opportunity, where need drives demand, innovation expands access, and both lead to social impact and strong business fundamentals. We walk through two portfolio examples in education (online literacy intervention) and health care (autism services).

Despite the turbulence of the current environment, Shell is optimistic. “Human capital is the first, best and greatest asset we have,” he says. “Investing in human capital is always the right decision, and if we do it the right way” can deliver extraordinary returns, on every dimension.

Thanks for Listening!

Subscribe to Capital for Good on Apple, Amazon, Google, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Drop us a line at socialenterprise@gsb.columbia.edu.

Mentioned in this Episode

• Goldman Sachs Inclusive Growth