Los Angeles County

Deputy Director, Program Operations Governor’s Office

Nicholas Evans serves as the Deputy Director, Program Operations at California Volunteers, Office of the Governor within the Governor’s Office of Service and Community Engagement.

Vice Chancellor, University of California Riverside

Dr. Denise Woods is the Vice Chancellor (VC) for the division of Health, Well-being & Safety at the University of California, Riverside (UCR). She is a national expert on integrating holistic well-being strategies in higher education, and a public health practitioner.

President, CEO, LA County Economic Development Corporation

Stephen Cheung serves as the President and CEO of the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC) and its subsidiary, the World Trade Center Los Angeles (WTCLA). In this dual role, Stephen leads the organizations mission to reinvent the regional economy by advancing growth, equity, and prosperity for all Angelenos.

Chief of Research, Evaluation and Strategy at Homeboy Industries

Dr. Mikala L. Rahn is the Chief of Research, Evaluation and Strategy at Homeboy Industries ensuring economic equity and opportunity, as well as the Founder of Public Works and Learning Works Charter School- supporting access to education and resources for high risk youth.

Co-Founder of Public Bank LA & CA Public Banking Alliance

David Jette is a business and technology executive and social finance advocate from Los Angeles. He helped to co-found Public Bank LA and the California Public Banking Alliance and is a speaker and volunteer organizer for economic justice and innovation efforts across the U.S.

Sustainability Policy Advisor, LA County Chief Sustainability Office

Victoria Simon has spent her career working on energy and climate change issues, developing policies and programs for some of the largest counties, cities, and utilities in the country. She is currently a Sustainability Policy Advisor for the Los Angeles County Chief Sustainability Office.

Founder, Better Future Media

Michael Mezzatesta is a WEALL California Ambassador, as well as Founder of Better Future Media, consulting with social conscious start ups and advocating for alternative economics in the mainstream American political conversation by leveraging social media, community building, and marketing technologies.

Founder, Trauma Resource Center

Elaine Miller-Karas, LCSW, is a social worker, trauma therapist, author, consultant, lecturer, VoiceAmerica podcast host, Psychology Today blogger, and social entrepreneur. She is the co-founder and the Executive Director Emerita of the Trauma Resource Institute.

Tribal Councilwoman of the Costanoan Rumsen Carmel Tribe

Carla has served as a tribal liaison for her people for the past nine years, creating relationships between state parks, government agencies and other tribal communities. She is focused on creating space for ceremonies, land restoration, as well as tribal recognition. Carla is dedicated to working with tribal youth to restore traditional knowledge and bring tangible culture.

Gabrieleno Confederation of Tovaangar

Josh Andujo, a member of the Gabrieleno Confederation of Tovaangar,
is dedicated to preserving and sharing the living culture of his people. Josh honors the legacy of his ancestors by actively uplifting the voices and visibility of the Gabrieleno people.

Emeritus Professor at Pitzer College

Jose Guillermo Zapata Calderon is Emeritus Professor in Sociology and Chicano/a Latino/a Studies at Pitzer College, served as President of the Latino and Latina Roundtable of the San Gabriel and Pomona Valley, served on the Los Angeles County Board of Education, and is currently active in the College for all Coalition and the Coalition for a Better Los Angeles.

Lopez Urban Farm, Board Member

Dr. Jackie Rangel is an educator, mentor, and community activist whose work intersects the fields of education, feminism, and cultural identity. She works as a board member of Lopez Urban Farm, contributing to developing sustainable agricultural practices and fostering local food security, as well as a Committee member of the Latino/a Roundtable.

Liberty Hill Foundation, Program Director, Environmental Leadership Initiative & Bold Vision

Ely Flores leads Bold Vision and the Environmental Leadership Initiative (ELI) at Liberty Hill Foundation, empowering marginalized youth in LA County and championing environmental justice across California. A lifelong organizer and advocate, Ely brings over two decades of experience in youth development, civic engagement, and community power building, rooted in his journey from system-impacted youth to seasoned movement leader.

Wellbeing Economy Alliance California Hub, Learning Coordinator

David is passionate about making a contribution. His work is at the intersection of values, democracy and collaboration. As a learning coordinator for WEALL California, David facilitates the interconnection between community, democracy, nature and policy to co-create a better future.

Co-Founder, Civic Wellbeing Partners

Through Civic Wellbeing Partners, Julie works to spread wellbeing, civic engagement, and collective impact practices. Serving in various local government and nonprofit leadership positions, she pioneered Santa Monica’s award-winning local wellbeing framework and index. Julie has worked with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation; served as a Senior Fellow with UCLA’s Center for Healthier Children, Families, and Communities; and currently Co-Chair’s the Santa Monica Human Relations Council. 

Co-chair, Santa Monica Early Childhood Task Force

Erika Bell is a passionate advocate for child mental health, social justice, and community wellbeing. Along with her work at the task force, she serves as Los Angeles Coordinator for iEmpathize, and Board of Directors for the Santa Monica Bay Area Human Relations Council.

Co-Founder, Director, Civic Wellbeing Partners

As co-founder of Civic Wellbeing Partners, Catalina advances leadership for community wellbeing through local action, use of data, and partnerships. She developed the Wellbeing Microgrant Program and joins with others to create an equitable global society as a Fellow of the Schumacher Institute.

Engagement Manager, Spherical

Nathaly is an Engagement Manager at Spherical, where her goal is support help deeply rooted community-based organizations design and build living infrastructure that helps people and places thrive in the face of climate change working on projects such as the Living Infrastructure Field Kit.

Founder & CEO, People Power

Scott Vineberg is a social entrepreneur and the Founder and CEO of People Power- aiming to improve democracy by popularizing and proliferating state of the art public engagement, participation, and problem solving. Through citizen engagement, Scott works to actualize the most catalytic super solutions, starting with collective intelligence and participatory democracy.

Farmer, Lopez Urban Farm

Stephen is an urban farmer, participatory activist, and poet.

Human Values Center

Dr. Laura Burgis is the president of The Human Values Center (HVC), a nonprofit CBO dedicated to student development in K-12 and higher education, focusing on resilience-building programs rooted in nature-based curricula and aligned to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Inner Development Goals (IDGs). The work of the HVC supports collaboration among university partners to engage in regional service-learning programs for eco-impact at scale.

Open Future Coalition

Kaitlin Archambault is Founder & CEO of Open Future Coalition, developing social, technical, and financial tools that support a global network of grassroots efforts in solving the world’s most pressing issues. Their online platform, Open Impact, brings together community leaders, experts, funders, and community members to coordinate, measure, resource, and document solutions to complex coordinative challenges in over 60 countries.

Open Future Coalition

Jamaica is the Co-Founder and Chief Culture Office for the Open Future Coalition, connecting communities of place and practice with access to the resources, tools, and partnerships they need ensure their own resilience and thriving. Through programs like our Regional Resilience Fellowship, we bolster local action while facilitating global learning towards thriving social ecosystems restoring planetary wellbeing.