Assets = greater financial resiliency

Definition of Asset building from guest speaker at today's class:

Asset building is the process by which individuals and families gain control of their existing resources, allowing them to build and leverage savings and develop tangible financial assets, leading to greater financial resiliency.

I like this definition. It works in all sorts of economic contexts, as much for a farm or shoeshine gear in the third world as for Individual Development Accounts in the first. Compare this to the definition of asset building offered by the Washington Asset Building Coalition:

Asset building is defined as “engaging in long-term saving and investment behavior as a means to increasing financial independence.”

According to Washington University:

Asset building refers to strategies that increase financial and tangible assets, such as savings, a home, and businesses of all kinds.

Also framed rather narrowly.