Hannah Vargason is a Finance Research Fellow at the Center for Impact Finance at the University of New Hampshire’s Carsey School of Public Policy.
Hannah previously worked with Partner Community Capital, Inc. (PCAP), formerly known as Natural Capital Investment Fund, a CDFI promoting socially and environmentally responsible business development in central Appalachia and the Southeast, where she held various roles over nearly 10 years. Most recently, as V.P. and Director of Impact Strategy, Hannah oversaw PCAP’s Development Services. She managed programming and sourced loans related to clean energy, local food systems, tourism- and recreation-based economies, real estate redevelopment and downtown revitalization, working extensively with a regional network of service providers and funding sources. Additionally, Hannah launched and oversaw an SBA Women’s Business Center hosted by PCAP, which supports businesses owned by women as well as people in other traditionally marginalized groups.
Hannah also serves on the Board of Directors for Bright Community Capital, a subsidiary of Coastal Enterprises, Inc. with a mission of driving more solar energy investments in low-income communities; and she helps lead the CDFI Women’s Network as part of a committee. Hannah has 15 years’ experience in the nonprofit sector overall, including leading the implementation of a green infrastructure plan for the Central Indiana Land Trust, developing a Home Performance with ENERGY STAR program for Hampton Roads, VA, and consulting for the US Air Combat Command on supporting renewable energy infrastructure development.
Hannah has a Master of Public Policy from the College of William and Mary, and a BA in Economics and Anthropology from Mary Baldwin College (now Mary Baldwin University). She works and lives in western Maryland, with her husband who works in the field of aquaculture, their rescue dog, and backyard chickens.
