Adele James, Consultant

• A native of Trinidad, West Indies, Adele James has spend more than 20 years working in the philanthropy, nonprofit, and public sectors.  Adele recently began her own consulting business to which she brings a comprehensive expertise in nonprofit culture and organizational development issues.  Prior, Adele served as a Program Officer to The California Endowment's Community Health & Elimination of Disparities Goal. As a Program Officer to The Women's Foundation of California based in San Francisco, Adele managed three California-wide gender-based funds benefiting low-income women and girls.  She also developed and implemented the foundation's statewide Technical Assistance Program inclusive of mini-grants, training retreats, staff led workshops, and consultant services to support the capacity building and organizational effectiveness of grantees.  In 2006 Adele was appointed by then State Health Director Sandra Shewry to the California Women's Health Council.  Adele continues to serve on that Council, and is also the Valley Vision Executive Fellow to the Sacramento Regional Food Access Project.  Adele's interest in international issues includes serving as a Women's Institute for Leadership Development National Working Group Delegate to the World Conference Against Racism in Durban, South Africa.  She also conceived and produced the radio documentary "Grenada Remembered" on socioeconomic conditions in Grenada after the U.S. invasion which included interviews with then Prime Minister Herbert Blaize, former Prime Minister Eric Gairy, Ministers of Education, Health, and other heads of state.  Adele holds a masters degree in International Development Education from Stanford University and a bachelors degree in Political Science from Barnard College, Columbia University.

Bill Camp, Sacramento Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO

• I am the Executive Secretary of the Sacramento Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO. This umbrella organization of local AFL-CIO unions represents 160,000 union families in the Sacramento Region. I am the Vice-Chair of Sacramento Works, Inc., the Sacramento Workforce Investment Board, which sets the policy for directing millions of dollars of job training money for high wage/high skilled jobs in the critical growth industries in Sacramento County. I have been an active United Way Board member since 2000 and am the past Chair of the United Way Board for the Sacramento region.  I was born in Anderson, South Carolina - a cotton mill town in the red hills at the foot of the Smokey Mountains in the northwest corner of the state. I started my college education in Jackson, Mississippi in 1962, where I joined the Civil Rights Movement there and had to get out of the state one day before dark: the Mississippi White Citizens Council had targeted me for assassination. I moved to Oregon and received my BA Degree in Sociology at the University of Oregon in 1966. I received an MA Degree in Sociology at Duke University in 1968. I left Duke's graduate program after playing an active role in organizing an integrated union among the blue-collar workers at Duke University in 1968; the organization drive was successful, and the workers got a contract, however the Sociology Department had to eliminate my PhD fellowship and my enrollment at Duke because of the fierce opposition of the University President to the integrated unionization of the University's workforce. I served as an elected member of the Sacramento County Unified School Board for 5 years. I am currently an elected member of the Sacramento County Democratic Central Committee. I worked at the California Agricultural Labor Relations Board from 1975 until 1985. This agency served as the "NLRB" for agricultural workers in California after the conflicts in the early 1970's regarding the unionization of farm workers in California. I worked for the California State Senate Rules Committee from 1985 until 1991. During my tenure, I worked successfully with the California School Employees Association to obtain the passage and Governor's signature on the "California Para-Professional Teacher Training Act" authored by my employer, Senator David Roberti. I worked as the COPE Director of the California Labor Federation, AFL-CIO, from 1991 through 1999. In December, 1999, I became the Executive Secretary (Chief Executive Officer) of the Sacramento Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO. This council is the political, policy, and public voice for the 160,000 AFL-CIO Working Families of Sacramento and the five surrounding counties including Yolo, Placer, El Dorado, Nevada, and Amador counties. I am married to Catherine Camp, and we have two sons, a daughter-in-law, a son-in-law, two grandaughters named Catherine and Elizabeth, and a grandson named John Daniel.

Bill Mueller, Valley Vision

• Bill came to Valley Vision in 2005 and became CEO in 2008.  During his tenure he’s helped manage different parts of the organization and facilitated the Hmong Health Collaborative, the 2007 Community Health Needs Assessment, and the creation of “CareerGPS.com,” a powerful new economic development tool that links a new regional jobs forecast with training and education providers in six counties.  He brings 20 years of experience in strategic planning, process design, group facilitation, public policy development, media relations, project management, finance, and business operations.  Prior to Valley Vision, Bill was a global business manager with Intel Corporation, the V.P. of Public Policy for the Sacramento Metro Chamber, and served in local government roles for six years.  He is a Sacramento State graduate, a Class XII graduate of the American Leadership Forum, and serves on the board of the Metro Chamber.  In addition to overseeing the organization, Bill is responsible for managing the Cleaner Air Partnership and the new Regional Food Collaborative.

Bill Myers, Independent Scholar

Carl Anthony, Earth House Center

• Carl Anthony is the founder and for 12 years was executive director of the Urban Habitat Program, one of the oldest environmental justice organizations in the country. Until recently he was a Ford Foundation program officer in the Community and Resource Development unit. He is currently a Visiting Scholar/Ford Foundation Senior Fellow in the Department of Geography at the University of California Berkeley. With a colleague, Luke Cole at the California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation, he published and edited the Race, Poverty and Environment Journal, the only environmental justice periodical in the country. From 1991 through 1997, Anthony served as President of Earth Island Institute, an international environmental organization to protect and conserve the global biosphere. Congressman Ron Dellums appointed Carl Anthony Chair and Principal Administrative Officer of the East Bay Conversion and Reinvestment Commission in 1993. He has taught at the Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture and Planning, the University of California Colleges of Environmental Design and Natural Resources. He has been an Advisor to the Stanford University Law School on issues of environmental justice. Anthony has a professional degree in architecture from Columbia University. In 1996, he was appointed Fellow at the Institute of Politics, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University.

Christy Getz, UC Cooperative Extension

• As a Cooperative Extension Specialist in the Division of Society and Environment, Christy conducts research and extension that links natural resource-dependent people, activities, enterprises and organizations in California with teaching and research programs in ESPM.  Specifically, Christy conducts applied research and outreach that promotes socially-just sustainable development in California.  Her program focuses on the following areas: community and economic development in natural resource dependent communities; social justice and labor in natural resource dependent industries; and sustainable food systems and community food security.

Darryl Rutherford, Federal Reserve Bank of San Fransisco

• Darryl joined the Community Development Department at UC Davis in September of 2008 as the Regional Manager for the San Joaquin Valley for the Federal Reserve Bank of San Fransisco.  He provides technical assistance and training on community development initiatives and programs.  His primary initiatives include rural community development, affordable housing, neighborhood revitalization, asset building, small business development and access to financial services.  Prior to joining the Fed, Darryl worked as an affordable housing advocate providing public policy research and analysis, on-site training and technical assistance to both local governments and grassroots community-based organizations focused on issues related to affordable housing.  Darryle earned a BA in Social and Behavioral Sciences from CSU Monterey Bay and a MS in Community Development from the University of California at Davis.

Deb Marois, Consultant

• Deb offers more than 15 years experience as a project manager, educator, group facilitator, and community researcher. Her areas of expertise include collaboration, asset-based community development, participatory strategic planning, qualitative research and leadership development. As an independent consultant, she supports nonprofit organizations and government agencies in areas related to creating healthy communities, civic engagement, planning and organizational development. As a graduate student of community development at UC Davis, Deb master’s thesis Beyond Polarities: Collaboration and Conflict in Community Health Partnerships explored how collaborative groups handle conflict when the membership is comprised of both grassroots and agency representatives.  While at UCD, she designed and taught a graduate seminar in asset based community development, served as a teaching assistant, and interned with the Collaborative Governance Initiative, a project of the League of CA Cities' Institute for Local Government. Deb worked with Public Health Institute's Center for Collaborative Planning for nearly seven years, providing training and consultation to health departments, school districts, First 5 commissions, nonprofits, and grassroots community groups. She played a key role in creating a statewide workshop series and regional train-the-trainer program. After training with the Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) Institute founders, she led dozens of these workshops throughout California. Deb also coordinated several countywide planning efforts that included visioning processes and community health assessments. Additionally, Deb provided technical assistance for two long-term projects: the Community Partnerships for Healthy Children initiative, a 10-year effort to improve young children’s health and Women’s Health Leadership, a statewide capacity-building program for emerging leaders. She also authored Making the Path: A Guidebook to Collaboration for School Readiness, published in partnership with UCLA Center for Healthier Children, Families and Communities for First 5 California.

Dennis Pendleton, UC Davis Extension

• Dennis Pendleton has served as dean of UC Davis Extension, the continuing education division of UC Davis, since January, 2001.  He held a joint appointment from 1992-2001 as director of the UC Davis Public Service Research Program and associate dean of UC Davis Extension.  He has served as coordinator/facilitator of cooperative resource management projects in northern and central California and the Sierra Nevada.  Dennis was one of the founders of the Putah-Cache Bioregion Project based at UC Davis.  University engagement and interaction with the regional community have been important emphases of his professional activities for more than 25 years.  He has held research and teaching appointments at UC Davis, Colorado State University and California Polytechnic State University, with emphases in ecology, ecological simulation, and natural resource planning and policy.  Pendleton was a post-doctoral fellow at UC Berkeley and has a Ph.D. in regional resource planning and M.S. in ecology from Colorado State University, and a B.A. in economics from Colorado College.

David Hosley, Great Valley Center

• Dr. David Hosley is president of the Great Valley Center, a regional planning and action organization associated with UC Merced.  As a member of the Dean's Advisory Committee of the College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences at UC Davis, Dr. Hosley was on the steering committee that developed the concept for the Center for Regional Change.  He has served on the boards of Valley Vision, the Sacramento Asian-Pacific Chamber of Commerce and the Sacramento Metro Chamber of Commerce and was involved with the Sacramento Regional Blueprint and Partnership for Prosperity, both efforts to improve the well-being of residents in the area.  He currently is a member of the executive committee of the California Partnership for the San Joaquin Valley, an economic development effort serving eight counties.  The Great Valley Center supports several of the Partnership's work groups as well as aspects of the implementation phase of the San Joaquin Valley Blueprint.  The Great Valley Center and the Center for Regional Change have cooperated on annual convenings about regional issues and promotion of academic research on Central Valley economic and social justice issues.

Gary Dymski, UC Sacramento Center

• Gary Dymski is the founding Executive Director of the University of California Center, Sacramento, and professor of economics at the University of California, Riverside (on leave).  He received his B.A. in urban studies from the University of Pennsylvania in 1975, an MPA from Syracuse University in 1977, and his Ph.D. in economics from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst in 1987.  He was a research fellow in economic studies at the Brookings Institution in 1985-86, and then taught economics at the University of Southern California from 1986 to 1991 before joining the UCR faculty.  Gary has been a visiting scholar at the University of Sao Paulo, the Graduate Program in Development, Agriculture, and Society in Rio de Janeiro, the Federal University of Minas Gerais, Newcastle University, and the University of Athens.  Gary's most recent books are Capture and Exclude: Developing Nations and the Poor in Global Finance (Tulika Books, New Delhi, 2007), co-edited with Amiya Bagchi, and Reimagining Growth: Toward a Renewal of the Idea of Development, co-edited with Silvana DePaula (Zed, London, 2005). Gary has published articles and chapters in banking, financial fragility, urban development, credit-market discrimination, the Latin American and Asian financial crises, economic exploitation, housing finance, and the subprime lending crisis.

Gary Nakamura, UC Cooperative Extension

• Gary is currently an Area Forestry Specialist with the UC Cooperative Extension in Redding, CA, and has extensive experience with both forestry and education activities.

Gary Sandy, UC Davis Local Government Relations

• Gary Sandy serves as the Director of Local Government Relations for UC Davis.  Gary is a long-time resident of Yolo County with extensive roots in the community.  His record of public service includes election as mayor of the City of Woodland and a wide variety of other positions including an appointment by Governor Gray Davis to the Yolo County Fair Board.  He was a founding member of the Yolo Basin Foundation Board where he continues to serve.  He also sits on the Woodland Community College Community Advisory Board and the board of the Yolo County Visitors Bureau.  For nearly a decade Gary wrote an opinion column for the Woodland Daily Democrat.  His record of community service has been recognized by a variety of organizations including the County of Yolo, the California Teachers Association, the Concilio of Yolo County and the City of Woodland.  He currently resides in Woodland.

Graham Brownstein, Environmental Council of Sacramento (ECOS)

• Graham has been a community organizer and policy advocate for 17 years, with experience on campaigns and issues relating to the environment, labor, community development, public health, and essential services infrastructure (utilities, food, water, transportation).  After majoring in Environmental Studies and American Studies and receiving his BA from Yale University in 1996, Graham worked for nearly six years as Director of Community Organizing and Outreach for The Utility Reform Network (TURN), a statewide utility consumer advocacy organization based in San Francisco.  During those years, Graham helped communities and individuals across the state navigate the California energy crisis, spearheaded endorsement efforts for the "Yes on Prop 9 - Block the Bailout" initiative, and organized a successful campaign to stop a major increase in telephone rates for rural customers.  Graham left TURN in 2002 to pursue a JD at the University of California at Davis School of Law (King Hall), with particular focus on administrative, regulatory and environmental law and policy.  Upon completing his law degree in 2005, Graham accepted the Executive Directorship at ECOS, where he has focused on augmenting the organization's internal and political resources.

Jay Ziegler, Ziegler Associates

• Jay is the founder and principal of Ziegler Associates, a multi-disciplinary public affairs firm focusing on environmental issues, land use, clean technology, education and health care.  Jay has extensive experience working on public policy initiatives and political campaigns, and has serves as a senior counselor to policy makers in the State Capitol and Washington, D.C. Prior to launching Ziegler Associates in 2003, Jay served as managing director of Burson-Marsteller's California public affairs group where he was responsible for overall strategic direction of the firm's California public affairs practice.  In 2000, he serves as the California State Director for the Gore-Lieberman presidential campaign.  Additionally, he was Vice President of Corporate Communications for COMSAT Corporation in 1999 and 2000.  From 1993 through 1999, Jay worked in senior communications and government affairs roles within the Clinton Administration.  He served as the Assistance United States Trade Representative for Public Affairs at the Office of the United States Trade Representative, where he was responsible for all aspects of planning and executing the agency's public affairs agenda. Jay also served as Special Assistant to Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt for Intergovernmental Affairs and Deputy Director of Communications at Department of the Interior.  In 1992, he served as the California press secretary for the Clinton-Gore presidential campaign.  In the '80s and then 1992, he served in several policy and communications roles in state government including: Deputy State Controller and Communications Director for Controller Gray Davis.  He also worked in communications and policy roles for State Senator John Garamendi, and he serves on the Board of the Sacramento Valley Conservancy.  Jay holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science-Public Service from the University of California, Davis.

Jeff Loux, UNEX Land Use and Natural Resources Program

• Jeff Loux divides his time between managing the Land Use and Natural Resources Program for UC Davis Extension, serving as an Adjunct Faculty in Landscape Architecture and serving as a Mediator for the Sacramento Regional Water Forum under the auspices of the Center for Collaborative Policy.  Jeff has over 20 years of experience and expertise in the public, private and university sectors in Urban and Environmental Planning/Design, Water Resources Policy and Community Participation.  In addition, Jeff has worked as a practicing environmental and urban planner and designer in the private sector and for the public sector, and has managed over 200 planning and resource management projects and authored over 100 community plans.  Jeff has received over 20 peer-reviewed awards and honors for his professional planning and resource management work, as well as for teaching and academic work.  He was past Vice President for Policy and Legislation for the California Chapter of the APA, and helped author several State statutes including AB 857 addressing "Smart Growth" principles in California.  This past year, Jeff was elected to the prestigious California Planner's Roundtable, and is a past board member of Urban Ecology.  Jeff is a frequent speaker or moderator at statewide, national or international conferences and workshops.

Jonathan Kusel, Sierra Institute for Communities and the Environment

Joyce Gutstein, UC Davis Public Service Research Program

• Joyce Gutstein, Public Service Research Program, John Muir Institute of the Environment, focuses on environmental learning and outreach, community engagement, and place-based studies. She promotes research, communication, and education on critical environmental issues with particular emphasis on collaborative, interdisciplinary approaches. She directs the JMIE graduate student Environmental Leaders Program.

Julia Lave Johnston, Governor's Office of Planning and Research

• Julia Lave Johnston is the Deputy Director for Planning Policy in the State Clearinghouse and Planning Unit of the Governor's Office of Planning and Research (OPR). She focuses on land use, regional, and community planning policy. Currently she works on the state's Blueprint Planning Program, climate change activities, and updating the OPR's General Plan Guidelines. Julia is acting coordinator for the Strategic Growth Council. Previous positions include Senior Policy Analyst at the California Research Bureau (CRB) and Project Manager with the Local Government Commission (LGC). She has work experience in public outreach and education, as well as with community nonprofit organizations, local political campaigns, bookstores, and she has done a stint as a barista. In her spare time, Julia is the Section Director of the Sacramento Valley Section of the American Planning Association (APA) and serves on the state APA board, a Brownie Troop Leader, co-chair of her neighborhood association's children's committee, and works to promote a grant program that she cofounded at the University of Oregon called the Catalyst Award, which encourages students to make the world a better place. She has a Bachelor's degree in English Literature from the University of California, Berkeley and a Master's in Community and Regional Planning from the University of Oregon.

Kerri Timmer, Sierra Nevada Conservancy

• Kerri is a communications and management specialist with 20 years of experience in the fields of business communications, land and water conservation, community relations and nonprofit management and capacity building. Prior to joining the SNC in April 2007, Kerri operated her own consulting practice, cultivating relationships with watershed organizations, land trusts and other community groups both within and outside the Sierra. Before moving to the Sierra in 1993, Kerri spent six years as account executive and creative director with a community and government relations firm in San Francisco. Kerri holds a B.A. in English Literature from San Francisco State University and is finishing a certificate program in Land Use and Natural Resources through UC Davis Extension. Kerri has also authored a number of publications addressing land and water conservation and community sustainability issues in the Sierra Nevada. Kerri is responsible for overseeing implementation of the SNC's grant program and other strategic plan actions, as well as serving as the Conservancy's point person on issues related to climate change.

Kimberly Rodrigues, UC Cooperative Extension

• As Regional Director of the North Coast and Mountain Region, Kim is responsible for the Cooperative Extension programs in 23 Northern California counties. Kim continues to facilitate meetings and workshops designed to share knowledge and reach agreements, as well as develop research and educational projects addressing forest resource management issues.  Kim's UC Cooperative Extension career began in 1991 as a Forest Adviser. In 1999, she became the Regional Director for the North Coast and Mountain Region. Before that, she served as a Tree Improvement Specialist with Simpson Timber Company from 1985-1991 and from 1984-1985, she was a Chief Forester with Applied Forest Genetics. Kim's diverse work experiences, combined with her technical training, have allowed her to develop innovative research and educational programs in forestry.  While working for Simpson Timber Company, she participated in numerous educational activities including teacher tours, a Japanese television documentary and the development of a Nature Trail. Kim's commitment to education as a tool to resolve conflicts related to forest management resulted in her career change to the University of California Cooperative Extension. Through applied research, innovative workshops and other educational activities, Kim began to build partnerships among diverse segments of the forest communities. A California Native, Kim's education began with a B.S. in Forest Management from the University of California, Berkeley in 1981. Her M.S. in Forest Genetics was earned at Colorado State University in 1984. In 2008, Kim completed her Ph.D. in Environmental Science and Management through the University of California, Berkeley.

Marilee Mortenson, California Department of Transportation

• Marilee Mortenson leads the Collaborative Planning Branch in Caltrans’ Division of Transportation Planning.  This is fitting, since collaboration is a theme that weaves through her career.  Her unit administers the Regional Blueprint Program, coordinating grants and support services to urban and rural transportation planning agencies, with the ultimate vision of fostering improved mobility, more housing and transportation choices, access to jobs, healthy communities, and a thriving economy.  She also assists interagency staff supporting the Strategic Growth Council as it coordinates and integrates state planning activities.  Her career began in environmental planning, and even then her work was collaborative: notable examples include serving on the interagency team that prepared Caltrans’ award-winning guidance for analyzing cumulative and indirect impacts; and coordinating team activities to prepare environmental documents for the seismic retrofit of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge.  Ms. Mortenson is a graduate of the University of the Pacific and the University of California at Davis.

Marta Frausto, California Department of Transportation

• Marta Frausto is a Transportation Planner at the California Department of Transportation's Office of Transportation Planning and Local Assistance in Fresno, CA.  Previously, she served as a Student Intern at the Fresno County Community Development Department.  She has experience in Regional Transportation Planning, environmental review of local development projects, System Planning, and Transit Planning.  Ms. Frausto manages the San Joaquin Valley Regional Blueprint Project for District 06, and addresses land use and transportation planning issues related to Smart Growth, Livable Communities, Sustainable Communities, Environmental Justice and her primary role as the Native American Liaison works in the area of consultation and coordination with Tribal Governments and communities.  Ms. Frausto was born in Tempe, Arizona and grew up in Madera County. Madera County is said to have one of the highest concentrations of Mexican indigenous community members and the Otomi is one of the numerous indigenous Mexican ethnic groups of farmworker communities.  She is a member of the Frausto Clan of Otomi represented by the California Otomi Coordination Project which in turn is affiliated with the Consejo de la Nacion Otomi in Mexico.  Her involvement as an Otomi spans from clan membership to organizational activities of the Consejo de la Nacion Otomi, the national and ceremonial authority of the Otomi in Mexico. Her involvement with these communities spans decades.  Her BA is from the Native American Studies Program at the University of California, Berkeley, and her graduate studies at the Masters in City and Regional Planning Program at California State University, Fresno.

Mike McKeever, Sacramento Area Council of Governments

• Mike McKeever, AICP, was appointed Executive Director of the Sacramento Area Council of Governments Board of Directors on December 17, 2004. Previously, Mr. McKeever, was project manager of the Blueprint Project at SACOG. Mr. McKeever was the founder and President of McKeever/Morris for 13 years and then a Senior Supervising Planner for Parsons Brinckerhoff, before joining SACOG as Blueprint Project Manager in 2001. More recently, Mr. McKeever was the principal creator of PLACE3S planning method and software, designed to help professional and citizen planners to understand the connections between land use, transportation, and air quality issues. He has authored several manuals and guidebooks on various aspects of local government collaboration, and has taught Stretching Community Dollars seminars throughout California for the City, County, Schools Partnership to help these units of government find creative ways to work together. Mr. McKeever has also been involved in projects with the Sacramento Regional Transit District, and regional planning projects in Portland, Oregon; Salem, Oregon; San Diego, California; San Francisco, California; Chicago, Illinois; Albuquerque, New Mexico; Austin, Texas; and Victoria, British Columbia. He is a native of Nampa, Idaho and received his B.A. with Honors from the University of Oregon. He lives in Sacramento with his wife and stepchildren.

M. Paloma Pavel, Earth House Center

• Dr. Margaret Paloma Pavel works in the Bay Area and internationally consulting to individuals, communities, and organizations in areas such as strategic visioning, communication, diversity, and leadership development. Dr. Pavel's organizational clients reflect a core values commitment in areas of health, justice, education, and sustainable development. Her academic background includes graduate study at the London School of Economics and Harvard University. Her dissertation (Organizational Culture and Career Development: Gender and Leadership) was part of a five-year study of the workplace in America sponsored by the Carnegie Foundation, which culminated in the publication GOOD WORK. Dr. Pavel is a keynote presenter at national and international conferences, and her current research focuses on the shift from mechanistic models (pyramids) to biological models (webs) for organizational development and the restoring of sustainable communities. Earth House was founded in 1990 by Dr. Pavel and currently conducts local, national and international projects in a variety of print and visual media.

Rene Guerrero, Planning and Conservation League

• René Guerrero is a Program Manager and Legislative Advocate on issues that intersect the environment and public health. In 2003, he joined PCL as in intern and was later hired to manage PCLF’s lead poisoning prevention program from 2003-2006. He has since been a Legislative Advocate focusing on policy that addresses health impacts due to environmental degradation, imprudent land use decisions, and exposure to toxic chemicals.René earned a B.A. in International Relations from UC Davis, and worked for the CA Technology, Trade and Commerce Agency. He is the Co-Chair of the Central Valley Air Quality Coalition’s Legislative Committee, and serves the City of West Sacramento as a Planning Commissioner. He spends his leisure time running after and from his two young boys.

Rich Fowler, Catholic Charities of Stockton

Rob Wiener, California Rural Housing

• Since 1993, I have been a lecturer in the UC Davis Department of Human and Community Development, where I teach housing and social policy. In 2004, I was recognized as a "Distinguished Educator" by the UCD student government. In the summer of 2006, I first led a group of students to Barcelona for an intensive course on housing and neighborhood revitalization strategies in Spain. I also lecture on poverty issues at small liberal arts colleges as a Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation Fellow and have published books and articles on various housing justice issues, including a book on Housing in Rural America in 1999. Besides my academic work, I am the Executive Director of the California Coalition for Rural Housing (CCRH), one of the oldest state low-income housing coalitions in the county. Under my leadership, CCRH has played a major role in federal and state housing policy and program efforts in rural housing, farm labor housing, housing preservation, and other housing areas for over 28 years, most recently gaining voter approval of more than $5 billion for affordable housing. In 2006, I was honored as the "Inspirational Nonprofit Housing Leader of the Year" by the Nonprofit Housing Association of Northern California and as a "Housing Hero" by the Cabrillo Economic Development Association. I completed my doctoral work in 1992 at UCLA. Additionally, I have traveled extensively to about 50 countries throughout Europe, South and Central America, and Asia, and lived in Israel for four years.

Ron Strochlic, California Institute for Rural Studies

Sarah Treuhaft, PolicyLink

• A trained city planner, Ms. Treuhaft is an authority on the use of data and mapping in policy analysis, organizing, and advocacy. She works with local partners and coalitions to develop and implement equitable development strategies such as employer assisted housing and transit oriented development.

Sarah Zimmerman, SEIU Local 1000

• Sarah Zimmerman is the Deputy Chief of Staff for SEIU Local 1000, California's largest state employee union representing 95,000 people.  Her responsibilities include research, policy, and political programs.  SEIU Local 1000 focuses on electing politicians and holding them accountable to an agenda developed with expertise by their members on improving services for the people of California.  Their members include teaching and vocational staff in prisons, nursing home inspectors, auditors, information technology workers, disability evaluators, and unemployment insurance program specialists, among hundreds of others.  Recent publications by SEIU 1000 include, The Hidden Branch of Government: Pulling back the curtain on State of California contract spending and performance.  From 1999 to 2004, Ms. Zimmerman held a variety of research, policy and development positions at Working Partnerships, USA.  Her co-authored publications include, Shared Inclusion and Prosperity, the Future of Economic Development Strategies in Silicon Valley and Everyone's Valley, a report on the affordable housing crisis in Silicon Valley.  She contributed regularly to a series of reports by Working Partnerships prepared for the local Workforce Investment Board on linking job quality with growth strategies for specific local industries.  Ms. Zimmerman started with Working Partnerships in 1999 after completing dual masters degrees in Economics and History from the New School for Social Research.  At the New School, she co-authored an article on health policy in Nicaragua, published in the International Journal of Health Services.  She graduated with honors from the University of Chicago with a BA in Political Science in 1992.

Seth Miller, Consultant

• Seth Miller currently serves as a Senior Consultant to the California Regional Blueprint Planning Program, an initiative of Caltrans, the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research and the Air Resource Board. From 2001 - 2007, Seth worked with the California Center for Regional Leadership directing the Strategic Growth Program to enhance growth planning policies and practice statewide. In this capacity, he served as manager of the California Policy Reform Network; a Technical Adviser to the California Department of Resources; member of the Stakeholder Leadership Group for the CA Office of Planning and Research; Working Group member for the Social Equity Caucus in the Bay Area; and facilitator of dozens of outreach sessions with business leaders and social equity champions to support the 2006 Infrastructure Bond.  He co-authored The California Regional Quality of Life Indicators Report in 2003, The California Story Report in 2004, The Challenge of California’s Housing Supply and Affordability Crisis in 2005, and numerous other publications related to public infrastructure policy and practice. Seth has 15 years of experience in community development, infrastructure investment policy, and resource planning. He was co-founder of the Rocky Mountain Youth Corps in Taos, New Mexico and served as Executive Director of ASAP Online and NetDay - two social ventures designed to address the economic sustainability in Oakland, California.  He has served on numerous regional and local boards and currently serves Board Member for Root Cause Institute, Management Team Member for ClimatePlan, and Strategic Advisor for Technology Against World Blindness. He is nationally recognized leader in the area of social entrepreneurship, regional planning, and land use. He has a BA in History from The Colorado College.

Shamus Roller, Sacramento Housing Alliance, Coalition on Regional Equity

• Shamus Roller is the Executive Director of the Sacramento Housing Alliance (SHA).  SHA is in its 20th year promoting affordable homes and increased opportunities for low income people and the homeless.  In 2007 the Housing Alliance, Legal Services of Northern California and the Environmental Council of Sacramento and other organizations launched the Coalition on Regional Equity (CORE).  CORE is a coalition building, organizing and policy advocacy project.  CORE focuses on how land use decision and the built environment impact the lives of disadvantaged and minority communities in the Sacramento Region.  CORE includes over 20 organizations and many individuals working strategically to improve the pattern of development and investment in the Sacramento Region.

Sharon Huntsman, California Edge Campaign

• Sharon is a skilled project director and facilitator specializing in complex policy change initiatives. As the Executive Director of the California EDGE Campaign, Sharon has helped to elevate workforce skills as a critical issue facing California. Prior to EDGE, Sharon was a senior project manager at Valley Vision where she facilitated a network of ten organizations working to improve health care systems serving Hmong communities from Fresno to Sacramento. Sharon has 15 years of experience serving communities, nonprofits and local governments as a facilitator, mediator and project manager for the Center for Collaborative Policy, the Environmental Careers Organization, Joint Venture: Silicon Valley Network and as a private consultant. Her accomplishments include managing the Silicon Valley 2010 visioning project, launching the Sustainable Communities Leadership Program, and facilitating numerous community change efforts through community forums, strategic planning workshops, and capacity building initiatives. Sharon is also an experienced trainer in collaborative problem solving, having taught classes through UC Davis Extension and community organizations. Huntsman received a M.S. in Community Development from UC Davis. Her research centered on evaluating the impact of training civic leaders in collaboration skills. In 2003, Sharon received the Sacramento League of Women Voters Anne Rudin Scholarship for her commitment to informed participation in public policy. In Spring of 2009 Sharon also became the first recipient of the Ted Bradshaw Memorial Alumni Award from the Community Development Graduate Group at UC Davis. She received her undergraduate degree from University of California at Santa Cruz with highest honors in Politics.

Sheila Steiburg, California Center for Rural Policy

• Sheila Lakshmi Steinberg, PhD, is a Professor of Sociology and Director of Community Research for the California Center for Rural Policy at Humboldt State University in Arcata, California. She completed her bachelor's at the University of California, Santa Barbara; her master's at the University of California, Berkeley; and her doctorate at The Pennsylvania State University. Her research interests include sociospatial research, community and economic development, research methods, rural entrepreneurship, applied sociology, and environmental sociology. She has conducted field research in Nepal, Guatemala, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, and northern California. The theme throughout this research has been the examination of people and their relationship to space and place. She has co-authored a book entitled, GIS For the Social Sciences: Investigating Space and Place, Sage Publications (2006) and various book chapters on social inequality, people and place such as “A Sociospatial Approach to Globalization: Mapping Ecologies of Inequality,” Book Chapter in: Understanding the Global Environment, Samir Dasgupta, Editor (2009) and Steinberg, S.J. and S.L. Steinberg, Geospatial Analysis Technology and Social Science Research, in: Handbook of Emergent Technologies, Sharlene Hesse-Biber, Editor, Oxford University Press, 2010 (forthcoming). Her current research examines social networks role in space, place and time related to community development. In 2000, she joined Humboldt State University, where she now teaches courses on human interactions with the physical environment at the local, national, and global levels.

Sibella Kraus, Sustainable Agriculture Education, UC Berkeley

• Kraus has been involved in sustainable agriculture issues and has promoted urban-rural linkages for 20 years. From 1992 until recently, she was the founding executive director of the Center for Urban Education about Sustainable Agriculture (CUESA). CUESA's long-term goal has been to develop a permanent public market and education center on the San Francisco waterfront dedicated to sustainable agriculture. As the director of CUESA, Kraus established the Ferry Plaza Farmers' Market, which has become the Saturday morning town square for Bay Area food lovers and a highly successful market for participating farmers. In 1983, while working as a cook at Chez Panisse restaurant in Berkeley, Kraus initiated and directed the Farm Restaurant Project to establish a link between Bay Area restaurants and local farmers who produce high-quality fresh produce. The Farm Restaurant Project culminated in the Tasting of Summer Produce, a gathering of farmers, chefs and other food and agricultural professionals. The tasting became an annual event that is nationally acclaimed for promoting an urban-rural link. From 1983 to 1990, Kraus worked as the developer and operations manager of a successful organic and specialty produce department for Greenleaf Produce Company, a San Francisco produce wholesaler.

Tim Youmans, Economic and Planning System

• Tim was a founding partner of the Economic and Planning System (EPS) in 1983, and is currently the managing principal.  His areas of expertise are public finance, capital improvement financing, real estate economics and school facilities financing.  He received his master of management from UCLA in 1973 and his bachelor of arts in economics from UC Santa Barbara in 1969.

Trish Kelley, Consultant

Vic Yellowhawk White, American Friends Service Committee