Robert (Bob) Friedman

Why do you do what you do?

I believe in the promise of America — that everyone should have the chance to be all she can be, and that if everyone has the chance to bring their dreams, talents, skills and work to the marketplace, we will all be better off for it. That’s why I started Prosperity Now — to help develop the community practices, public policies and private market interventions so that everyone has a reasonable chance to go to college, start a business, buy a home, save and invest, and create an economic future for themselves, their families, their community, and indeed, the country as a whole.

What drew you to serving on the board?

Fred asked. But, more seriously, I serve because I believe in the greater Bay Area community and the mission and potential of the foundation. My grandfather, Daniel E. Koshland, was a founder of the foundation. He believed in the San Francisco Bay Area community — all of it; he felt that it had enriched him and his life, and that he had a responsibility to give back. I feel that same responsibility and feel very fortunate to be able continue the work of my larger family in making the Bay Area the finest expression on the globe of equity and opportunity for all.

How would you describe your role as a board member?

I believe wholeheartedly in the commitment of the foundation to advance racial and economic equity in the Bay Area in a significant way in the next few years. If any metropolitan area in the world can become a place that offers all its people real opportunity, I think the Bay Area can. As a trustee, donor and member of the community, I am committed to seeing that the foundation is a good partner with all the other actors in the Bay Area — public and private, institutional and individual — in achieving this very American Dream.

Full Biography

Robert E. Friedman has dedicated his life to closing the racial wealth divide and unleashing the freedom and productive potential of all people, especially those marginalized by systemic discrimination. A fourth generation Californian, graduate of Harvard College and Yale Law School, Bob founded and helped lead Prosperity Now, a 45-year-old national non-profit dedicated to enlarging economic participation and prosperity for all. Bob helped create the U.S. microenterprise, saving and asset building fields, and the international enterprise development and child savings fields. He pioneered the practice and policy of Individual Development Accounts (IDAs) and Child Development Accounts (CDAs and Baby Bonds). His third book, A Few Thousand Dollars: Sparking Prosperity for Everyone (New Press, 2018), recounts the history and lessons of this work and sketches the path to building a truly inclusive and prosperous economy that works for everyone. His other books are The Safety Net as Ladder: Transfer Payments and Economic Development (1979) and Expanding the Opportunity to Produce: Revitalizing the American Economy Through New Enterprise Development (1981). Bob serves on the boards of the Rosenberg and San Francisco Foundations and California HOPE Accounts.