GWI Overview

When we lift up women, we lift up families, we lift up communities, and all of society benefits. This is true in the United States and around the globe. This is more critical than ever following the economic recession in 2020 due to COVID-19 that worsened the already weakened financial reality of women who made up 60% of job losses during the pandemic.

That is why the Gender Wealth Institute (GWI) was formed by WOMEN’S WAY, the region’s leading organization dedicated to the advancement of women and girls, to close the gender wealth gap in the Greater Philadelphia region by advancing research and practical solutions that build wealth for women who are economically insecure. This will be accomplished through learning (convening stakeholders including women with lived experience of economic hardship, sharing insights, and developing potential solutions), scaling (pilot testing, collaborating, coordinating, and building capacity), and influencing (educating, publishing, creating data repositories, and inspiring others).

GWI Objectives 

• Build a learning community of stakeholders representing multiple sectors to learn together, share resources, and co-create wealth-building practices.
• Test and scale promising practices that build wealth for low-wealth women and close the gender wealth gap.
• Leverage local, regional, and national research, evidence-based practices, and the power of storytelling to inform and support policies that work to close the gender wealth gap.

Five Priority Areas of Intervention

1. Strengthen Financial Health of Women and Girls
2. Change Mental Models through Changing Narratives
3. Increase Representation of Women and Girls in Positions of Leadership and Influence
4. Build a Repository of Data and Stories to Inform Practice and Advocacy
5. Educate stakeholders on the drivers of the Gender Wealth Gap and how to close the Gap

The GWI builds upon WOMEN’S WAY extensive experience in advancing the economic security of women, which includes building a network of 82 active partners committed to a shared vision that all women in the Greater Philadelphia region attain financial well-being for themselves and their families. The partners represent for-profit, non-profit, philanthropic, and public sectors, as well as women with lived experience of economic insecurity. WOMEN’S WAY previous economic security initiatives have been funded by local, regional, and national funders including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

For more information about the Gender Wealth Institute, please contact Kelly Sheard,

the Director of the Gender Wealth Institute at

ksheard@womensway.org