Fellow - Erica Hargreave
Erica Hargreave
Storyteller & Open Payments Community Builder
Erica Hargreave is an internationally award-winning storyteller and educator with a passion for connecting communities to alternative funding pathways. Through her Interledger Foundation Ambassadorship, she catalyzed collaborations, advanced Web Monetization literacy, and created outreach opportunities to help creatives, educators, and social-good initiatives explore inclusive, sustainable open payment pathways.
Ambassador Project
As an Interledger Foundation Ambassador, Erica built community across sectors through collaborative, hands-on outreach advancing Open Payments and Web Monetization. She convened media professionals, digital creators, open education leaders, Indigenous communities, and disability advocates to experiment, connect, and co-create pathways for adoption, partnerships, and real-world use.
These collaborations focused on building measurable learning and sharing insights openly across the global ecosystem.
What Inspired Her Work
"In discovering Open Payments, we saw the potential to particularly help and create opportunities for people who live in marginalized communities who can't participate in traditional 9 to 5 jobs."
Erica’s work was shaped by her experience navigating traditional funding systems in the creative industries and by the accessibility challenges faced by many creators and educators. Her goal has been to explore sustainable funding models that expand opportunities for marginalized communities.
Vision for the Future
"For me, the future of financial inclusion means creating financial pathways that help create opportunities for people who live in marginalized communities who can't participate in traditional 9 to 5 jobs, to earn sustainably."
She emphasizes that accessibility must be intentionally built into financial systems—from the underlying technology to community programs, events, and funding opportunities.
Read her contributions
https://community.interledger.org/ericahargreave/series/31 - Interim report