Bethany Lampland, '03, Profiled in Forbes: "Doing Good is Great For Business"

Bethany Lampland is taking action to prove that doing good is great for business. “I’ve seen the magic that happens when human altruism and corporate America’s ambitions fit together, when the tension between maximizing profits and doing good are resolved because doing good is good for business,” says Bethany.
Bethany is the 37-year-old Chief Operating Office of The New York Foundling, a non-profit with a 146-year legacy of providing services to empower disadvantaged children and families — from an abused child in need of a foster home, to a young mother who lacks the skills to care for her child, or a young person lost in the juvenile justice system. Each year, The Foundling’s 1,800 employees provide services to over 7,000 families, 250 adults with developmental disabilities and 20,000 children through its child abuse prevention program.
Bethany has first hand experience in connecting profits to doing good. One example is the partnership between the Foundling and COFFEED, a New York based chain of coffee shops and cafes. COFFEED could not afford a Manhattan location. The Foundling headquarters occupies highly coveted real estate in Manhattan (Chelsea). The partnership: The Foundling rents part of its prime Manhattan real estate to COFFEED at a reduced rate (approximately 50% of market value). In return, COFFEED directs a percentage of its revenues to The Foundling that will soon exceed the rental income The Foundling gave up. But this partnership is bigger than just revenue. COFFEED sets aside a quarter of its interior space for marketing the Foundling’s work and the issues of poverty and inequality. And the café employs The Foundling clients, namely teenaged foster children.