My grandfather came to the US as a war refugee and began selling 5-cent insurance policies door-to-door to other immigrants. Given the poverty and instability of his youth, the concept of insurance was revolutionary to him, and it had an enormous impact on his life. Hearing his stories instilled in me the importance of having financial tools to thrive and taught me they are vital to creating security and opportunity.
Stella understands the power of learning and collaboration for successful impact investing. As a director of strategy & insights at Flourish, she leads these efforts in collaboration with the firm’s leadership, investment teams, and portfolio organizations.
Before joining Flourish, Stella was a manager on the Intellectual Capital team at Omidyar Network, where she focused on exploration of future of work and financial inclusion. Previously, she worked at McKinsey & Company and at Root Capital, an agricultural impact investor that serves small and growing businesses in Africa and Latin America. She began her career with the Kallari Association in Ecuador, where she worked with smallholder farmers to optimize cocoa production and community-based tourism.
Stella received an MBA from Cornell University and a B.A. in economics and development studies from Brown University. Stella speaks English and Spanish.