WASHINGTON, D.C. (April 20, 2016) – Michael E. Roberts, president and CEO of First Nations Development Institute (First Nations) in Longmont, Colorado, will be honoredtonight with one of four “Asset Builder Champion” (ABC) awardsfrom the Center for Global Policy Solutions in Washington, D.C.
The award ceremony – the third annual – is part of the 2016 Color of Wealth Summit. Tonight’s award reception is followed by tomorrow’sColor of Wealth Summit – “Inclusion Revolution: Race, Economic Mobility and the Future of America.” The summit is an effort under the Closing the Racial Wealth Gap Initiative.
Besides Roberts, the other ABC award recipients are U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters, Pitzer College President-Elect Melvin Oliver, and Highlander Research and Education Center Board Member Meizhu Lui. They are being honored for their significant contributions to addressing racial wealth disparities nationwide.
“While I am flattered to receive this award, it is far from an individual accomplishment,” Roberts noted. “In fact, the recognition for this work goes beyond First Nations itself. The real heroes in this effort are the communities we partner with and whose ideas and solutions we are lucky enough to get to invest in, as equal partners with these communities.”
First Nations is a Native American-created and led national nonprofit organization. For more than 35 years, using a three-pronged strategy of educating grassroots practitioners, advocating for systemic change, and capitalizing American Indian communities, First Nations has been working to restore Native American control and culturally-compatible stewardship of the assets they own – be they land, human potential, cultural heritage or natural resources – and to establish new assets for ensuring the long-term vitality of Native American communities. First Nations serves Native communities throughout the United States.
