Institute names inaugural executive director to spearhead launch of the organization’s research and advocacy work in 2023
San Francisco, CA – Today, the Excessive Wealth Disorder Institute (EWDi) — a think tank committed to creating a more balanced distribution of wealth in the United States by elevating policy solutions focusedon curbing the excessive wealth of the nation’s richest individuals — launched operations under the leadership of its inaugural Executive Director, Gabriela Sandoval, Ph.D.
EWDi was founded to shine a light on the societal harm that extreme wealth inequality has created. From corporate greed to a weakening of our democracy, the outsized power of just 0.1 percent of households – who have more assets than two-thirds of Americans – is a crisis that’s only getting worse. EWDi’s mission is to create a more balanced distribution of wealth by elevating policy solutions focused on curbing the excessive wealth of the nation’s richest individuals. Under Gabriela’s leadership, EWDi plans to achieve these goals by:
- Changing the cultural narrative related to the ultra-rich by conducting and amplifying research that documents the damaging societal impacts of excessive wealth.
- Supporting and amplifying campaigns led by existing nonprofits (particularly those run by or serving BIPOC) to address various aspects of wealth inequality.
- Working directly with high-net-worth individuals to generate support for taxing the ultra-rich and related policy solutions.
Ultra-wealthy Americans (150,000 wealthiest Americans) hoard their wealth through tax loopholes and preferential policies enforced by their armies of lawyers, accountants, wealth advisers and politicians. EWDi advocates for four simple tax solutions that would address excessive wealth hoarding: a multi-millionaire income surtax; a robust wealth tax; closing gaping estate tax loopholes and changes in the rules for increased, transparent and more equitable charitable giving.
“I am absolutely thrilled to be joining EWDi as its first Executive Director. Wealth hoarding and concentrations of excessive wealth in the coffers of just a few thousand individuals is in many ways the critical social problem of our times and the dilemma upon which so many other urgent social problems hinge,” said Gabriela Sandoval, Ph.D. “We must implement resolutions to this crisis and the societal distortions it creates. My parents raised me to understand the importance of shared prosperity. I’ve dedicated my life to the struggle for justice—environmental, racial, gender—and I am inspired to bring new energy to this imperative fight for economic justice.”
Gabriela comes to EWDi after years of working on economic inequality in academic, nonprofit, and advocacy spaces. She is a member of the Board of Directors at the California Immigrant Policy Center and prior to joining EWDi, she served as the Race & Equity Policy Director at The Utility Reform Network for over six years. Gabriela holds a Ph.D. in Sociology and M.R.P. in City and Regional Planning from Cornell University.
“Dr. Sandoval has distinguished herself as an intellectual powerhouse and visionary messenger uniquely positioned to build a national movement of diverse thought leaders dedicated to advancing economic inclusion and race and social equity by winning policies that dismantle plutocracy and promote democracy and more just distribution of wealth and power,” said Darrick Hamilton, a member of EWDi’s Board of Directors and Professor of Economics and Urban Policy and Founding Director of the Institute on Race, Power and Political Economy at The New School.
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About Excessive Wealth Disorder Institute
The Excessive Wealth Disorder Institute was created in 2022 to focus attention on the societal dysfunction and distortion of our democracy created by extreme concentrations of wealth in the hands of a small segment of our society – just 0.1 percent of households – who have more assets than two-thirds of Americans. Our mission is to create a more balanced distribution of wealth by elevating policy solutions focused on curbing the excessive wealth of the nation’s richest individuals.