Greenwich Library is thrilled to announce that Ray Dalio, founder and CIO mentor of Bridgewater Associates, is the recipient of this year’s Peterson Business Award. The award will be presented by Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont at a special award dinner on April 4, 2024, at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Greenwich, Connecticut. Individual tickets and tables for the event are available at greenwichlibrary.org/peterson.

Ray Dalio is a global macro investor who founded Bridgewater Associates out of his two-bedroom apartment in New York City before moving to Connecticut, and ran it for most of its 47 years, building it into the fifth most important private company in the United States, according to Fortune magazine. His investment innovations (e.g., risk parity, alpha overlay, and All Weather) changed the way global institutions approach investing. He has been a valued macroeconomic advisor to many policymakers around the world. Because of the impact his thinking has had on global macroeconomic policies, he was named by TIME magazine as one of the “100 Most Influential People in the World.” Today, Ray remains an investor and mentor at Bridgewater and serves on its board. He is also the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Principles: Life and Work (2017), Principles for Navigating Big Debt Crises (2018), and Principles for Dealing with the Changing World Order (2021). Ray graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance from C.W. Post College in 1971 and earned an MBA degree from Harvard Business School in 1973. He has been married to his wife Barbara for more than 40 years, with three sons and five grandchildren.

The Peterson Business Award was established in 1997 by Greenwich Library and the Peterson Foundation to recognize and honor an individual whose innovative thinking, leadership and sustained record of achievement has had a profound impact on the national and global economy, and whose words and deeds have demonstrated a commitment to intellectual freedom and open access to information. Previous Peterson Business Award recipients have included some of the country’s most prominent corporate leaders.

The Peterson Business Award is named in honor of Clementine Lockwood Peterson, whose 1992 bequest of $25 million to Greenwich Library made possible a new 32,000 square-foot wing at the Greenwich Library. Designed by renowned architect César Pelli, this wing contains expanded business and music collections. Mrs. Peterson’s gift was made in memory of her son, Jonathan, and her husband, J. Whitney Peterson. The Peterson Business Award was conceived to celebrate Mrs. Peterson’s extraordinary generosity and to recognize outstanding business leadership.

Co-chairs for 2024’s Peterson Dinner are Susan Bevan, Lawrence Codraro, and Sharon Phillips. For additional information on sponsorship or group tickets, please contact Lisa Mandel, Greenwich Library Development Director, at (203) 622-7957 or lmandel@greenwichlibrary.org.