Written by Celesia Smith.
Amy Bell
One of the hardest things to learn in life is how to create your own path– Canfield BHP alumnae Amy Bell is a perfect example of someone who did just that. After graduating from UT in 2003 with a degree in Canfield BHP, a minor in Spanish, and a Masters in Public Accounting (MPA), Amy went on to become a trailblazer in the field of environmental, social, governance (ESG) finance.
As a student, Amy was always interested in social impact as a career path, but the opportunities and terminology surrounding impact-based careers at UT were not as developed when she attended college as they are today.
“The lexicon was different when I was at UT from 1998 through 2003. People weren’t yet talking about social entrepreneurship or those types of things, but there were definitely phrases like economic development and community finance,” Amy said. “The microfinance space was starting to be a little bit more present in the popular vernacular although it honestly didn’t start to take off until the mid to late 2000s. I was just really interested in this idea of capitalism as a force for good, thinking about stakeholders in a way that we’re not only driving profits but also longer-term sustainability and societal impact.” Continue reading