Community, Accessibility, and Belonging Conference

“Confronted with the bleak arithmetic of stagnant incomes and out-of-control housing expenses, people cut back wherever possible. Eventually, they’ve cut all they can,” writes journalist and anthropologist Brian Goldstone, Ph.D., in his 2025 book, There Is No Place for Us: Working and Homeless in America.

Goldstone is the 2026 keynote speaker for Peter T. Paul College’s Community, Accessibility, and Belonging Conference, where he will share the stories of five Black families in Atlanta, Georgia. Through their experiences, he will reveal how low wages, rising rents, and economic shifts are pricing essential workers out of stable housing and expose the growing crisis of housing instability among the employed. His book was recently named among the Best Books of 2025 by The New York Times, The Atlantic, and NPR, and was also included on former President Barack Obama’s 2025 “Favorites” list.

Goldstone brings to the stage a powerful blend of rigorous scholarship and immersive journalism. He earned his PhD in anthropology from Duke University and has been recognized with some of the country’s most prestigious awards and fellowships. However, perhaps even more compelling is his willingness to go where the stories are and expose some of the most pressing social issues of our time. Goldstone taught at Sing Sing prison and explored life after incarceration in the United States. He reported from Ghana on psychiatric care, examined chronic pain amid the opioid epidemic, and uncovered Israel’s efforts to deport African asylum seekers.

His work has appeared in The New York Times, Harper’s, The New Republic, The California Sunday Magazine, Guernica, and Jacobin, among many others, and is widely regarded as incisive, deeply human, and socially urgent. For professionals and students alike, Goldstone offers a compelling lens on inequality—and a vital invitation to rethink the systems shaping contemporary life.

Examining the Long-Term Economic Impact of Inequality 

What does inequality actually do to an economy over time—and why does it matter for business, policy, and community well-being?

In this panel, leading scholars from economics, public policy, and marketing unpack how wealth inequality shapes life outcomes across generations. Attendees will gain a deeper understanding of how policies around taxation, social benefits, and energy regulation intersect with labor markets, household decisions, and access to essential resources, often locking individuals and communities into unequal trajectories.

Drawing on research spanning tax policy, energy poverty, governance, and consumer behavior, panelists will discuss how structural inequality influences where people live, how they work, their health investments, and how they participate in markets. This session offers attendees a powerful, interdisciplinary lens for understanding the broader economic consequences of inequality, and what research suggests about building more inclusive, resilient economic systems that benefit both people and markets. 

Attendees will leave with:

• A clearer picture of how inequality shapes long-term economic growth and stability
• Insights into how policy and market forces can reinforce (or reduce) inequality
• Research-informed perspectives relevant to business strategy, public service, and social impact work

Policy Experts Addressing Reform in the Health and Housing Sectors

Health and housing are more than social issues—they are foundational to economic security, workforce stability, and community resilience.

This panel brings together policy researchers and practitioners to examine how health and housing systems shape economic security and well-being across communities. Panelists will discuss how existing policy frameworks in healthcare financing, housing investment, and social services influence access, affordability, and long-term outcomes, particularly for populations experiencing economic disadvantage. 

Drawing on evaluation research, applied sociological analysis, and extensive experience in health law and Medicaid administration, the panel will explore how programs are designed, implemented, and assessed across local, state, and federal contexts. The discussion will focus on evidence about what different approaches have achieved, how health and housing systems intersect with broader social and economic conditions, and what current research reveals about opportunities and constraints within these sectors.

Attendees will leave with:

• A clearer understanding of how health and housing systems shape economic outcomes
• Insight into policy approaches that have shown measurable impact
• Practical context for engaging in policy, advocacy, or cross-sector collaboration
   

Workshop: Tree of Power (Interactive Session with Patty Mathison) 

Lasting change requires more than good intentions—it requires understanding power.

Non-Profits Addressing Wealth Inequality Across New England

What does it take to address wealth inequality on the ground—and at scale?

This panel brings together nonprofit leaders from across New England who are working at the front lines of economic insecurity. Panelists will share how mission-driven organizations are tackling wealth inequality through housing stability, small business support, food access, community development, and expanded access to capital.

Drawing on hands-on leadership and cross-sector collaboration, the conversation will explore how nonprofits navigate complex funding, policy, and economic landscapes while delivering measurable impact. Attendees will gain insight into how programs are designed, managed, evaluated, and scaled, and how nonprofits partner with government, financial institutions, and communities to build lasting economic opportunity.

Attendees will leave with:

• Real-world examples of nonprofit strategies addressing wealth inequality
• Insight into partnerships that strengthen community-level impact
• A deeper understanding of how nonprofits contribute to regional economic resilience
   

– Professor of Economics, Peter T. Paul College of Business & Economics

Dr. Conway is an applied microeconomist whose interests span labor, public and health economics. Her research centers on how government policies affect household decisions such as where to live, how to spend their time including work decisions, or how much to invest in their health or that of their children. A specific focus is examining the evolution and implications of state-level estate taxes and income tax breaks for the elderly, and the role these policies play in elderly interstate migration and other outcomes. Her work has been funded by NIH and has appeared in outlets such as Demography, Journal of Health Economics, Journal of Human Resources and the National Tax Journal. Karen’s teaching interests are in applied econometrics and public economics, and she teaches capstone courses at the undergraduate and master’s levels as well as intermediate level and principles of microeconomics.

– Director, Carsey School of Public Policy; Professor of Political Science, UNH

Dr. Stephen Bird is the Director of Carsey School of Public Policy and a professor of political science at the University of New Hampshire. His current research and engagements focus on energy conflict & polarization, drivers of energy acceptance (fracking, solar, wind), split incentives and energy poverty, and energy technology governance & implementation (microgrids, green data centers). Stephen's work examines all aspects of energy policy and regulation broadly, with a deep focus on impacting the energy transition. Engagements and research awards have included New York’s Energy Research Authority, the U.S. State Department, the European Commission, National Resources Canada, a 2016 Fulbright Research Chair, and the National Science Foundation. Corporate partnerships have included the NY Power Authority, GE, National Grid, AMD, the US Green Building Council, and IBM. Stephen completed his PhD at Boston University and his Masters at Harvard University.

– Associate Professor of Marketing and F.W. Olin Distinguished Chair of Global Business, Babson College

Dr. Samantha N. N. Cross is an Associate Professor of Marketing and the F.W. Olin Distinguished Chair of Global Business at Babson College. She incorporates innovative multi-method approaches in her research, which examines cultural and sensory influences, and societal forces on consumption, decision making and innovation. She is particularly interested in how diverse identities, perspectives, beliefs and abilities co-exist in consumers, households and the marketplace. Her work has been accepted for publication in top marketing journals, including the Journal of Marketing, the Journal of Consumer Psychology, the International Journal of Research in Marketing, the Journal of Public Policy and Marketing, the Journal of Advertising, the European Journal of Marketing, and Consumption, Markets and Culture. Dr. Cross has received several awards for her research, including the Thomas C. Kinnear Award, the Jane K. Fenyo Best Paper Award for Student Research, the ACR/Sheth Foundation Dissertation Award, and the Outstanding Article Award at the Journal of Advertising. Her global research network received the Women in Marketing (WiM) Scientist Award, and she is currently listed on the Fulbright Specialist Roster. She has served on several boards and committees in her field, including the Transformative Consumer Research (TCR) Advisory Committee, the Board for the Association for Consumer Research (ACR), and the Academic Council of the American Marketing Association (AMA). Dr. Cross was an issue editor on Racism and Discrimination in the Marketplace for the Journal of the Association for Consumer Research. She serves on a number of editorial review boards, and has been an invited faculty fellow/mentor at several doctoral symposiums and workshops. Dr. Cross received her Ph.D. in Marketing from the University of California, Irvine, her M.B.A. in International Business from DePaul University, and a B.Sc. in Management Studies from The University of The West Indies.

– Research Director, Center for Impact Finance, Carsey School of Public Policy

Val Benson is the Director of Research for the Center for Impact Finance at the Carsey School of Public Policy. With two decades of experience in applied policy research, she studies social policies and community investments that address economic disparities through housing, workforce development, community development finance, and related programs. Val designs rigorous evaluations using experimental and quasi-experimental designs and mixed-methods approaches to understand what works, for whom, under what conditions, and why. She has deep expertise in distilling evaluation findings into actionable guidance for policy and practice, and strives to bring an equity lens to her work by continuously seeking out the expertise of impacted communities and examining the history of systems, structures, and policies that shape opportunity.

Val has also led and supported major studies for the U.S. Departments of Housing and Urban Development, Labor, and Health and Human Services, and has served as a systematic reviewer for several federal evidence clearinghouses. Prior to UNH, she held leadership roles at MEF Associates and Abt Associates, worked at NeighborWorks America, and founded Val Benson Consulting to design evaluation and learning initiatives for community-based organizations. She holds a Master of Public Policy from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and a Bachelor of Arts from The University of Alabama.

(They/Them) – Research Assistant Professor and Assistant Director, Center for Social Policy in Practice 

Dr. Evan England, is the assistant director of the Center for Social Policy in Practice (SPiP) and a research assistant professor at the University of New Hampshire’s Carsey School of Public Policy. They are a first-generation graduate and three-time alumna from the University of New Hampshire, having completed their bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in sociology at UNH. With their focus on social inequality and health equity, Evan has developed relationships with numerous local, statewide, and regional partners to evaluate and improve access to and experiences within healthcare and in broader New Hampshire communities. At SPiP, Evan also co-leads the New Hampshire Early Care and Education Research Consortium. 

 – Director, Health Law & Policy, Institute for Health Policy and Practice, University of New Hampshire

Deborah H. Fournier, JD has twenty years of health policy experience, including posts at national organizations such as the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) and the National Academy for State Health Policy (NASHP).  Ms. Fournier has also served in two state Medicaid programs, culminating in her serving as NH’s Medicaid Director.  Ms. Fournier’s career has encompassed health policy related to public health crises, healthcare financing, payment reform, health insurance coverage programs, social drivers of health, and innovative Medicaid policies.  She is currently focused on healthcare affordability and emerging pathways for sustainably financing healthcare services and public health services. 

(she/her) – Basic Needs Coordinator and Case Manager

– State Director for SBDC

– Director of Communication at Mass Executive Office of Education

– COO of New Hampshire Community Loan Fund

– Foundation Advancement Director at The Lighthouse Foundation