Maruka Rivers (she/her) and Darnell Green (he/him) recently joined the program as deputy director and senior manager, respectively. Rivers and Green sat down with program coordinator Gwen Carleton (they/them) to discuss the urgent need for these initiatives and their vision for the work.

Gwen Carleton: As a trans young adult, I know how stressful it is to navigate these financial and workplace systems — that’s why I’m so excited to see the HRC Foundation creating resources to help people like me. Could you share what excites you about this work?

Darnell Green: What excites me is the community focus of these initiatives. It’s important to build equity in programs and have specific services for trans and non-binary folks. As a Black gay man, I’ve felt the support of many different LGBTQ+ advocacy and HIV prevention programs where trans and non-binary people were often overlooked. This work centers the experiences of folks who have often been sidelined in these spaces. I’m looking forward to getting everyone involved in the financial empowerment conversation.

Maruka Rivers: As a social worker with a background in systems theory, I love that we’re doing this work on a broad scale with public education and research initiatives as well as an individualized approach with more personalized programming. This will allow us to reach a broad sweep of our community with this work and really meet folks where they are. We’re doing a community survey to inform these initiatives, and it’s great to be able to hear from community members directly on what types of financial support they need right now. We’ll also be launching a 10-week course called “Next Level” for 18-to-30-year-olds covering financial health, job readiness and wellness in a single, holistic approach. For the broader LGBTQ+ community, we’re getting ready to launch a financial wellness app, which is called WorthIt, that will be avail-able for anyone to access. The app will do a pulse check of each user’s financial stress and point them to custom articles and resources to help.

Carleton: Darnell, you mentioned how excited you were about these resources being tailored to young adults, particularly Black and Brown folks in the trans and non-binary communities. What steps are you taking to be culturally responsive to these communities?

Green: This isn’t your traditional financial literacy conversation. We’re not talking down to folks or telling them to fix all their problems on their own — we’re in this as a community. In the “Next Level” program, for example, participants will discuss their needs and be connected to services in real time with the help of our partner organizations across the country. These community partners will help participants get rides to interviews, find workplace-appropriate clothing to express themselves, and provide technical assistance for creating resumes and cover letters. The program’s group sessions will create a networking atmosphere and a community feeling where young LGBTQ+ adults are all striving toward the same goals.

Carleton: That’s awesome. Maruka, could you tell me about any queer-specific content or resources that will be available to folks? For instance, I’m thinking about guides on how to budget for gender-affirming care.

Rivers: Of course! I love the fact that folks will be able to access information tailored to the community. That includes information on paying for trans-affirming care, or guides on if or when to disclose one’s sexual orientation and gender identity during the interview process. We’ll also provide resources on dependent care and housing needs through our financial wellness app. These things are LGBTQ+ specific, but they’re really just human resources. It’s important to recognize folks’ queer identities as well as their overall humanity.

Carleton: I’m especially excited about that financial wellness app you mentioned. Could you both speak a bit more about that?

Rivers: I’m excited about it too. We’re partnering with our friends at LifeCents on this work. With their help, we hope to be far-reaching with this app and really make an impact on the broader LGBTQ+ community. We have a goal of reaching thousands over time, and I think we can do it. It’ll be useful for a wide range of folks – adults ages 18-44 are the core audience, but the app will contain valuable information for people of all ages. We’ll be meeting folks with personalized resources at various stag-es of life.

Green: This app is going to create so many amazing avenues for folks by giving them that extra push to improve their finances. It’s going to be the catalyst for someone in the LGBTQ+ community to start a business or become a homeowner. I think the community is going to be thrilled that there’s a resource like this that was specifically made with their needs in mind.

Carleton: Looking into the future, what would you want the impact of this work to look like?

Green: I want to look back and see more LGBTQ+ inclusion in the world, especially workplaces. I’m excited about the potential for large-scale impacts of this work over time.

Rivers: We need to move from surviving to thriving. By focusing on the voices who have been left out of these conversations, we can finally equip everyone with the tools they need to grow and thrive.

Carleton: Thank you both. One last thing – how can folks access the financial wellness app?

Rivers: If you want to be the first to know when the app is launched, sign up for our early access list.