I primarily worked on conducting research, developing relationships with potential donors and experts in water infrastructure, and creating collateral for the Water Philanthropy Fund. Merton Capital Partners is at the intersection of venture capital and philanthropy, creating large-scale vehicles to make high-dollar, well-planned projects accessible to Giving Pledge signers and other large philanthropy. Specifically, the Water Philanthropy Fund is one of two MCP projects, designed to create a path to solve urgent water challenges including polluted drinking water, wasted water, and polluted rivers by upgrading U.S. water infrastructure.

I had the opportunity to apply the qualitative skills I gained at CBS in business development and building relationships with potential philanthropists and experts in the field.

I was initially drawn to MCP because it is at the intersection of private equity and philanthropy. With a background in nonprofit strategy and marketing, I had expected to do the same. However, early on, I realized that there was a pressing need to develop relationships and collateral for the Water Fund specifically. The challenge I faced was to quickly acclimate myself with water infrastructure in the United States, and how to move forward in terms of marketing and reaching out to potential donors.

I found this experience to be both enriching and insightful. I had the opportunity to work on a project in water: a basic human right and need that touches every part of our lives, yet clean water is not available to millions of Americans. Although I was not primarily interested in water, I was interested in scaling philanthropic efforts to create long-term, sustainable impact. MCP is still in the beginning stages of developing the Water Fund, which meant we had a small team and were invited to high-level conversations with the founder, private equity partner, Sciens Water, and other experts in the field, including Columbia Professor Lall. Overall, I appreciated the opportunity to learn about water, how to scale nonprofits, and access high-level conversations regarding a pressing need in the United States.