People don’t live in buildings, they live in communities, says Gizman Abbas, principal at Direct Invest Development. His sustainable real estate development company works to create opportunity in communities by providing services such as job training and early childhood education along with residential space.
And it does so profitably. “We do really well by our investors, but we also do good in the community,” says Abbas, an Auburn engineering graduate who expanded his business horizons by shifting careers into investment banking and development.