Iris Brilliant headshot

Iris Brilliant

Money Coach, Brilliant Coaching

Iris Brilliant (she/her) is a money coach based in Minneapolis, MN. Her life mission is to support people with wealth to move money to social justice, and to transform how we relate to money, family and community along the way.

Iris first became passionate about moving money to support social justice when she unexpectedly inherited wealth at age 22. Already an activist involved in anti-racist and feminist organizing, she felt unable to reconcile her political values with owning stocks in guns, oil and tobacco. After some soul-searching, she joined staff at Resource Generation, a national community of young adults with wealth committed to social justice, to build community with others who could relate to her experience, and to learn how to move money to social justice.

As a National Organizer at Resource Generation, Iris specialized in working with high net wealth individuals and people with family foundations, and developed skills to mentor young people with wealth, and help them organize family members, navigate challenging conversations about money, and fund social justice organizations. While at RG, she helped move over $10M to social justice movements.

In 2018, Iris started her own business to make more impactful one-on-one change for individuals with wealth. She is a certified Certified Professional Co-Active Coach (CPCC), via the Co-Active Training Institute.

Iris also works as a donor advisor for Movement Voter Project, where she advises donors on their political giving towards the 2020 election. She has helped raise over $4.5M to grassroots organizations working in swing states. Iris also worked as a Social Justice Strategist at Robasciotti & Philipson Wealth Management to develop new social justice screens in the public equity market and help investors divest from destructive industries.

Outside of work, Iris is a singer-guitarist in a jazz/funk band, an avid sci-fi reader and an amateur boxer.

Contributions

Effective Family Philanthropy in Action

How to Interrupt the “Vicious Cycle of Inherited Wealth:” A Conversation with Iris Brilliant

Posted on October 17, 2023 by Britt Benavidez, Iris Brilliant

Vicious cycle of arrows in a circle
For wealth inheritors, having access to a large sum of money they did not earn is a privilege, but often comes with mixed emotions and a deep sense of responsibility. Acknowledging and building a healthy and transparent relationship to wealth can help improve personal and family relationships, deepen connections in community, and ultimately promote greater, and more equitable redistribution of… Read More

Engaging Youth Peer Network: Talking about Money with Teen Friends with Iris Brilliant

Posted on February 25, 2022 by Iris Brilliant

Talking about money with friends is difficult, and yet the story of your foundation, its origin, and assets for grantmaking is all related to a money journey.  Join Iris Brilliant to hear her story as a grantmaker, partner, donor advisor, activist, and coach. Iris’s life mission is to support people with wealth to move money to social justice, and to… Read More

Changemakers: National networks engaging next gen philanthropic leaders

Posted on March 17, 2016 by Andrea Zucker, Biz Ghormley, Brendan Adams, Iris Brilliant, Manuela Arciniegas, Mary Galeti, Rebecca Balter, Katie Scott

Family foundation boards are expected to see a period of unprecedented change over the next few years, with a new generation of philanthropists poised to take over leadership roles. It's more important than ever that we provide emerging philanthropic leaders with a variety of networking opportunities and resources to allow them to effectively address the most pressing social issues… Read More