Q&A with Joe Sanberg: A journey from Wall Street to activism

Joe Sanberg, co-founder of Aspiration, went from Wall Street to activism and funded The L.A. Trust COVID-19 Youth Task Force this summer.

Joe Sanberg is an entrepreneur, philanthropist and activist. After graduating from Harvard, he became a Wall Street analyst but left because he disliked working in an industry that “totally divorced service from profit.” He invested in start-ups like the meal delivery service Blue Apron. In 2013 he co-founded Aspiration, Inc., a socially conscious financial services company. Sanberg was instrumental in establishing the California Earned Income Tax Credit in 2015 and founded CalEITC4Me, one of the state’s largest anti-poverty programs. Introduced to The L.A. Trust by Emily Kane of Ethos Giving, he funded the COVID-19 Youth Task Force, implemented by The L.A. Trust, L.A. Unified, and the UCLA Department of Community Health Science, Fielding School of Public Health. 

Q. You grew up in Southern California, attended Harvard and worked as a Wall Street analyst. What prompted you to become a socially conscious investor and anti-poverty activist? 

A. The values that my mom instilled in me as a young person. And my brother telling me, when I was 29, that my 18-year-old self wouldn’t like the person that I had become. The fact that I had become disconnected from my core values sparked me to reconnect with the person my mom raised me to be and with what I believe my purpose in this world is. 

Q. COVID-19 struck communities of color especially hard. How do healthcare, education, income inequality and racism contribute to poor health outcomes? 

A. Most of all, what the Covid-19 pandemic showed us is that the lie we’ve been told that we, as a nation, can’t afford to do transformational things has always been a lie. We can afford to do all the things we need to do to end poverty, provide healthcare and root out systemic racism from our institutions, we just lack the political will to do so. We saw that when it came to rescuing corporations, there was no scarcity of trillions of dollars worth of bailouts for them, which is yet another reminder that the United States has what it needs to create financial security, justice and fairness for all its citizens. This is the fourth major instance within a century through which we’ve been reminded that there’s no scarcity of resources in this country. We were reminded when the economy was bailed out after the market crash in the early part of the 20th century. We were reminded when we spent trillions of dollars on wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. We were reminded when the government bailed out Wall Street banks during the 2008 financial crisis. And we were reminded yet again during the Covid-19 pandemic that the reason we are not providing justice, fairness and economic security for all is not because we can’t afford to do so, it’s because the government has chosen not to do so. 

Q. We mentioned Harvard and Wall Street, but you were raised by a single mom in very modest circumstances. Why are so many Americans trapped in intergenerational poverty? 

A. So many Americans are trapped in intergenerational poverty because of our system. Our system is designed to trap people in poverty, not help them get out of it. Our system and our tax code are designed to ensconce wealth in the hands of those who already have it, which definitionally, also ensconces the legacies of racism, misogyny and slavery that go back to our nation’s founding. Our country was founded with slavery encoded into its laws; with the inability of women to vote and own property. Our tax code is prejudiced in favor of legacy wealth. Our system makes concrete the very injustices that go back to our nation’s founding. 

Q. You’ve said you quit Wall Street because it “divorced service from profit.” How have you managed to link service and profit as an investor?  

A. I don’t think of myself as an investor; I think of myself as an entrepreneur and business builder. And as an entrepreneur, I create organizations whose success is connected to the value they deliver to their stakeholders, their customers, their employees and their communities. How do we remarry profit and purpose? There’s nothing wrong with making money as long as you’re delivering value to people. What’s gone wrong on Wall Street is that profit has become its own purpose. 

Q. In addition to income inequality, you’re passionate about the environment. This is really a social justice issue, since people of color live in communities subjected to the worst pollution. How do we work for environmental justice? 

A. We work for environmental justice by innovating in both the public and private sectors and by applying pressure on businesses and government to radically reduce carbon emissions here in the United States and around the world. Solving the climate crisis is going to require innovation -- the creation of new things that perform in new ways. But it’s also going to require changing behaviors we are accustomed to, like reducing how much we drive gasoline-powered vehicles and how much fossil fuels we burn to create energy. We need the next generation to create new companies and organizations that do not plunder the planet for profit but utilize sustainable resources. We need you! And remember, there is no environmental justice without racial and economic justice, and there’s no racial and economic justice without environmental justice. The communities that are hardest hit by injustices are those that have the least power. Injustice is about a power imbalance, and so we must empower young people to join together and use their voices and their resources to demand change.  

Q. If you could flip a switch and just change one big thing, what would it be? 

A. That every person would have free healthcare. 

Q. You’re only 42. What do you want to do with the rest of your life? What would you like your legacy to be? 

A. I’d like my legacy to be that I did everything I possibly could, as sincerely and effectively as I could, with my God-given time and abilities, to end poverty. I want to be able to look back on my life and know that there was nothing I could have done that I didn't do. 

Vaccination efforts slow Delta wave of coronavirus in Southland

The L.A. Trust visited St. John’s busy vaccination operation in South L.A. Shown: CMO Dr. Anitha Mullangi (center) and Regional Medical Directors Dr. Sushant Bandarpalle and Dr. Matthew Welzenbach. 

   

Los Angeles County appears to be turning the corner on the Delta wave of COVID-19, thanks to increased vaccinations, greater testing and a return to physical distancing and mask wearing.  

“The L.A. Trust was proud to be part of the coalition encouraging voluntary vaccinations this summer” said Maryjane Puffer, executive director of The Los Angeles Trust for Children’s Health. “But now our effort to protect our students and families enters a new phase as Los Angeles Unified mandates vaccinations for all students 12 and older by January 10, 2022, unless they have a medical or other exemption.”   

Puffer said vaccine awareness will be more important now than ever. Those opposed or reluctant to getting the COVID-19 vaccine include the one of three L.A. County residents ages 12-17 who remain completely unvaccinated (L.A. County Department of Public Health, 9/9/2021).  

Listening to youth 

The L.A. Trust COVID-19 Youth Task Force, comprised of students from 16 Los Angeles Unified Hight Schools, has been working since March to educate themselves, their peers and their communities about the dangers of COVID-19 and the importance of getting vaccinated.  

The task force, funded by Aspiration co-founder Joe Sanberg, hit all its goals, educating hundreds of peers and community members and making thousands of impressions online. 

“These young people were true health activists,” said Esther Yepez, program manager for The L.A. Trust. “They not only became knowledgeable about the complex issues involved, they also learned how to effectively present this information and advocate for vaccination with their peers and communities.” 

Task force members were positive about the experience. One said they “gained confidence and skills in public data analysis, researching and community outreach.”  Another said they had learned “patience by getting in debates and struggling to get my point across.”  

Universal vaccination 

The L.A. Trust joined the L.A. County Department of Public Health, the Public Health Institute and 12 clinics and agencies to increase vaccinations and vaccine awareness as part of the We Vaccinate L.A. County campaign this summer. 

“Our school- and community-based clinics have been doing heroic work,” Puffer said. “St. John’s Well Child & Family Centers have administered more than 300,000 COVID shots alone — that’s just incredible.”  

Other participating providers are Eisner Pediatric and Family Center, LAUSD Wellness Programs, Northeast Valley Health Corporation, South Bay Family Center, Social Model Recovery Systems, South Central Family Health Center, T.H.E. Clinic, UMMA Community Clinic, Valley Community  Healthcare, ViaCare and Watts Healthcare Corporation. 

The L.A. Trust supported the community campaign with its own multilingual social media effort, reaching tens of thousands of L.A. County residents.  

L.A. Unified mandate 

“Getting to universal vaccination is going to require a lot of hard work, education, understanding and love,” Puffer said. “Teamwork, like we’ve seen in this effort, is critical.”  

School board member Dr. George J. McKenna III noted tha vaccine mandates are nothing new. “Mandatory immunizations for eligible students protect the entire Los Angeles Unified family. I’m old enough to remember when polio crippled some of my classmates. In fact, school children received the first, life-saving polio vaccination in 1954. Keep in mind that nationwide, more than 250,000 children (about half the population of Wyoming) were diagnosed with COVID-19 last week.”  

“The science is clear – vaccinations are an essential part of protection against COVID-19,” Interim Superintendent Megan K. Reilly said. “The COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective, and requiring eligible students to be vaccinated is the strongest way to protect our school community.” 

To learn more, find a vaccination site near you and make an appointment, visit VaccinateLACounty.com (English) or VacunateLosAngeles.com (Spanish). You can also call 833-540-0473 for help finding an appointment, connecting to free transportation or scheduling a home visit if you are homebound. Vaccinations are free and open to eligible residents and workers regardless of immigration status. 

The L.A. Trust, students and allies join suicide prevention campaign

Belmont SAB members asked their peers, “What makes life worth living?” at the first in-person campus campaign in nearly two years. Esther Yepez (center) distributed L.A. Trust hoodies to the health activists. 

The Los Angeles Trust for Children’s Health continued its education and outreach on student mental health during Suicide Prevention Awareness Week in September. 

“Every week should be suicide prevention week,” said Senior Program Manager Robert Renteria of The L.A. Trust. “These are stressful times and our teens, especially, are going through a stressful time of life,” he said. “It is up to all of us to listen when youth talk about hurting themselves or feeling depressed.” 

The L.A. Trust and its student-run Student Advisory Boards held a tabling event at Belmont Hight and posted extensively on social media during the week, culminating in a one-hour online workshop marking World Suicide Prevention Day, September 10. 

The workshop was hosted by Renteria and Francisco Dussan of L.A. Unified Student and was attended by members of The L.A. Trust, L.A. Unified and other organizations. 

“Guy with a story”

It featured and guest speaker Greg Elsasser, an author, English teacher and three-time suicide survivor. Elsasser prefaced his remarks by saying, “I’m not an expert, just a guy with a story.”  

He said he had suffered from depression since childhood and had seen more than 30 therapists, counselors and clergy. “I was never honest with them when I was young,” he said.  

He said his big secret was being gay. “I never dealt with my sexuality,” he said. “I did not want to be shunned by my family, my God and my church.” Elsasser’s first suicide attempt was when he was 15 and his last was 7 years ago.  

 The equation changed when he started asking himself how his suicide would harm him. He made lists of things he wanted to do. “They were small things at first, like watching the next season of Game of Thrones.” As his lists got longer and his dreams got bigger the desire to escape life lessened. “I don’t wait till things are spiraling out of control,” Elsasser said. “I realize that there’s nothing that can’t be fixed.”  

Dussan said LGBTQ+ youth more vulnerable to suicide. He provided several resources available 24/7 for those seeking help, including the Trevor Project (866 488-7386), focused on LGBTQ+ youth but open to all, and the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (800 273 8255 in English and Spanish). You can also text HELLO TO 741741 anytime. 

Vaccinating everyone, including youth, is the key to stopping Delta

Vaccinating everyone — including youth 12 and above — is key to stopping the fast-spreading Delta variant. 

By Maryjane Puffer, Executive Director 
The Los Angeles Trust for Children’s Health

Los Angeles is at a turning point. We must defeat the pandemic now or let a new wave of coronavirus cases sweep through our communities in the next several months.

Forty-five percent of county residents are still not fully vaccinated, and some of the communities hit hardest by COVID-19 have the lowest vaccination rates. Vaccinations are also lagging among the young, who may be more susceptible to the Delta variant than they were to previous strains. 

No vaccine offers 100% protection against infection, but current vaccines have proven safe and effective against all strains of COVID-19, including the Delta variant. More than 99.99% of people fully vaccinated people have not had a breakthrough case resulting in hospitalization or death, according to the CDC. 

We must get this message to the millions of Angelenos who remain unvaccinated, including our youth 12 and above. This is critical as the virulent and dangerous Delta variant spreads. 

Vaccination push

The Los Angeles Trust for Children’s Health is teaming with the L.A. County Department of Public Health, the Public Health Institute and 12 clinics and agencies to increase vaccinations and vaccine awareness as part of WeVa + LA. We are also supporting The L.A. Trust COVID-19 Youth Task Force, which is building vaccine awareness across Los Angeles. The task force is funded by a grant from Aspiration founder Joe Sanberg facilitated by Ethos Giving. 

RESOURCES 

The L.A. Trust 

The L.A. Trust is conducting a social media campaign to support our partners using the hashtag #WeVaxLACounty. Get photos, videos, posts, blogs and account handles at https://bit.ly/3lcbnGe 

CCALAC 

The Community Clinic Association of Los Angeles County has produced a robust COVID-19 toolkit with customizable texts, social media posts and website pages for use by clinics and other agencies. 

DPH 

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health Services offers vaccine scheduling and a communications and information dashboard on vaccines and vaccination rates. Get social media posts in English, Spanish, Chinese, Korean and Armenian at https://thesocialpresskit.com/countyofla 

To learn more, find a vaccination site near you and make an appointment, visit VaccinateLACounty.com (English) or VacunateLosAngeles.com (Spanish). You can also call 833-540-0473 for help finding an appointment, connecting to free transportation or scheduling a home visit if you are homebound. Vaccinations are free and open to eligible residents and workers regardless of immigration status. 

Youth COVID-19 campaign will hit close to home

Students on The L.A. Trust COVID-19 Youth Task Force are developing a campaign to promote awareness and vaccination in Los Angeles. 

High school students from 16 different campuses have joined The L.A. Trust COVID-19 Youth Task Force to educate their communities about the dangers of the coronavirus and the importance of vaccination. For many — quarantined for a year and grieving lost loved ones — the effort is personal. 

“While all of our youth have been impacted one way or another, some of them are also grieving lost family members,” Nina Lee Tran, program manager for The L.A. Trust. “These youth applied to our Task Force and were selected to go through a rigorous and fast-paced program to learn more about COVID-19 and make a difference through their campaign.” 

The task force is funded by a grant from Aspiration co-founder Joe Sanberg (Sanberg’s grant was facilitated by Ethos Giving). The task force started work March 1 and will continue through the end of August. The students, ages 15 to 17, have a lot on their plate, including learning about COVID and developing community presentations and social media campaigns.  

Follow the task force on Instagram @covid_19ytf 

The students’ participation “reminds me that youth are eager to learn and impact their communities, even during the pandemic,” Tran said. 

Learning will be on two tracks: Students will become informed about the virus, the disease and vaccination, and will also become experts on communicating their message at community meetings and on social media. 

Learning from experts 

The 22 student members meet two hours per week and learn about COVID-19 from experts from UCLA, including Dr. Moira Inkelas, Dr. Vladimir Manuel and Dr. Jennifer B. Peralta. Topics include the biology and virology of COVID-19; understanding data and interpreting local testing and vaccination rates; and understanding vaccines. 

The second half of each weekly two-hour session will focus on campaign and presentation development. It will be led by Tran, Program Manager Esther Yepez of The L.A. Trust, and Sabrina Rodrigues, an MPH fellow from UCLA. 

High schools and charter schools represented on the task force are: Alliance Ted K. Tajima High School; Bell High School; Bright Star Secondary Charter Academy; Carson High School; Crenshaw High School; Girls Academic Leadership Academy; Huntington Park High School; Jordan High School; Locke High School; Manual Arts High School; San Pedro High School; South East High School; STEM Academy of Boyle Heights; STEM Academy of Hollywood; University Prep Value High School Charter; and West Adams High School.