Investing in Our Future: Introducing our 2024 Leadership Academy Cohort

BlogLeadership Academy

Greenlining July 16, 2024

Building a just future for all can only be accomplished through the work and vision of multi-generational changemakers. At Greenlining, amplifying the voices of the next generation of racial equity leaders is a pillar of our work and values.

For nearly 30 years, The Greenlining Institute has invested in students and early-career professionals through our Leadership Academy Fellowship and Summer Associate programs. The experience offers hands-on policy experience, networking opportunities, professional development, career guidance, and direct contribution to organizational projects. Academy alumni join a network of 1,000+ and graduate the program equipped to lead in a variety of fields, moving the work forward.

Meet our 2024 Leadership Academy Cohort

This year's Leadership Academy cohort brings passion, vision and experiences that deeply connect them to Greenlining's mission. Their perspectives and contributions are key to the efforts of the organization, and the leadership and racial equity skills they cultivate through their experience with us will support them on their paths to create a future where race is never a barrier to opportunity-a just future for all.

Andrea Nguyen, Transportation Equity Fellow

Q: What drew you to this experience at The Greenlining Institute?
I came to The Greenlining Institute to learn about the really unique niche that we sit in, as both super well-respected in policy and at the same time very clearly and specifically committed to our racial equity lens on economic and climate issues.

Andrea Nguyen (she/her/hers) is the Transportation Equity Fellow at The Greenlining Institute. Before joining Greenlining, Andrea graduated from the Transportation Technology and Policy Graduate Group at the UC Davis Institute of Transportation Studies, where her research focused on improving access to affordable transportation options for low-income communities of color at the local, state, and international levels. Her past experiences working for economic development and mobility opportunities for refugees, young adults of color, rural communities, and others facing structural access barriers were instrumental to showing her the role that transportation can play as a catalyst for socio-economic change. Andrea's academic and professional interests continue to revolve around strategies for more equitably distributing the benefits of transportation infrastructure and investments.

Q: What does a just future mean or look like to you?

A: For me, a just future is one where we have built up communities' capability to self-determine decisions by and for ourselves, and with each other. Empowered communities, repossessing the wealth, time, safety, and freedom to live our fullest lives without fear, are what I am always working towards.

Daniella Espinoza, Technology Equity Fellow

Q: What drew you to this experience at The Greenlining Institute?

A: As an emerging professional, I was drawn to Greenlining by the impressive work that the organization has done and continues to do. I knew that by joining the organization, I'd not only be able to contribute to this work and learn from the staff around me, but also move tech accessibility forward in a way that prioritizes the needs of communities of color.

Daniella Espinoza (she/her/hers) is the Tech Equity Fellow at The Greenlining Institute. Born and raised in the heart of California's Central Valley, she developed a deep understanding of digital inequity in the state through her own experiences with poverty and the digital divide. Prior to joining Greenlining, Daniella graduated from UC Berkeley as a first generation student with degrees in political science and Chicano/a studies. There, she focused on the intersections between American policies and their lasting effects on Latine communities and other communities of color. Simultaneously, Daniella was able to sustain her personal passion for tech through her work in the Student Affairs IT department. Through her positions within the department and her work on the Student Tech Council, she understood the barriers to tech equity that many Berkeley students face and used this knowledge to advocate for further equity measures on campus. She hopes to continue working on policy to close the digital divide which continues to affect those in her own community.

Q: What does a just future mean or look like to you?

A: A just future is a future where people of color are treated with dignity in all aspects of life and the systems that work to harm them are dismantled.

Emman Uy, Systems Change Climate Finance Fellow

Q: What drew you to this experience at The Greenlining Institute?

A: I was drawn to the organization because of the way Greenlining understands the importance of equity and human rights in climate issues. Many organizations fail to include a social aspect in crafting a solution for climate change and they focus solely on seeing the climate issue as a science issue - which I wholeheartedly disagree with.

Emmanuelle Uy (he/him/his) is the Systems Change Climate Finance Fellow. Being raised in Zamboanga Del Norte, one of the Philippines' most rural provinces has profoundly shaped his identity and passion for community, resilience, and the impact our actions have on the environment. Emman's journey from a rural province in the Philippines to the heart of the ESG landscape has shaped him into an advocate for a brighter, more sustainable future where ESG considerations are at the forefront of decision-making.

Q: What does a just future mean or look like to you?

A: A just future for me is a future centered on equity. Where everyone-every human being-has equitable access to food, shelter, medicine, education, and economic opportunity.

Hannah Rowntree, Capacity Building Fellow

Q: What drew you to this experience at The Greenlining Institute?

A: My life experiences as a Black woman who grew up in Utah have shaped my passion for racial equity, climate justice, and community building. Greenlining embodied the transformative work that I wanted to pursue as an emerging professional.

Hannah Rowntree (she/her/hers) is the Capacity Building Fellow at The Greenlining Institute. She is a recent undergraduate student of Utah Valley University, and one of the co-founders of R.E.C.CLAIM UTAH. Her passion for uplifting underrepresented voices through community organizing, strategy, and storytelling is also reflected in her work as a communication specialist for the nonprofit, Raising Me Foundation. R.E.C.CLAIM's mission to bring Rest and Joy in the outdoors to her Queer, Trans, Black, Indigenous, and women of color family continues to inspire her to fight for equity for her people. She will continue to bring racial equity as she works to build capacity in various projects during her fellowship at Greenlining.

Q: What does a just future mean or look like to you?

A: A just future looks like a world where past harms have been repaired, where all communities have access to clean water, air, a good education, and where they can thrive.

Isabella Carreño, Energy Equity Fellow

Q: What drew you to this experience at The Greenlining Institute?

A: Growing up in Bakersfield, California, I saw the impacts of systemic redlining firsthand. Yet I did not have the words to describe the interconnections between systemic redlining and environmental injustice, but The Greenlining Institute did. To me, Greenlining stands at the intersection of issues so close to my heart and my home, which ultimately drew me to this experience.

Isabella "Bella" Carreño (she/her/hers) is the Energy Equity Fellow at The Greenlining Institute. In her time at Greenlining, she is researching grid reliability, its ties to equity, and engaging with the community through the Leadership Institute. Growing up in Bakersfield, California, Bella became passionate about environmental and racial justice f through seeing the impacts of racial and environmental inequity firsthand. Prior to her Fellowship, Bella graduated from UC Berkeley with a major in political science and a minor in journalism. Throughout her time at UC Berkeley, she worked as an intern for an immigration law firm, an anti-sex trafficking organization, and the United States Senate, all of which taught her the importance of diverse voices in advocacy and policy. Bella believes that racial, socioeconomic, and environmental equity are vital to a better future. While at Greenlining, she hopes to grow her skills and knowledge about the intersection between the environment and policy to make her community, and others like it, a better place.

Q: What does a just future mean or look like to you?

A: A Just Future is a future where marginalized communities of color can live in healthy, connected, resilient, and joyful communities while building power. A just future is composed of communities that uproot cycles of oppression and discrimination, and center joy, resilience, health, and opportunity, all while giving us avenues for community building, healing, and connection.

Lilly Amechi, Economic Equity Fellow

Q: What drew you to this experience at The Greenlining Institute?

A: I pursued this experience at The Greenlining Institute because this is a nationally renowned fellowship program that prepares BIPOC with policy interest to become the next leaders of the policy world.

Lilly Amechi (she/her/hers) is the Economic Equity Housing Fellow at the Greenlining Institute. She is a recent graduate of the University of Oklahoma where she studied Legal Humanities, International Relations, and Constitutional Studies. In her schooling, Lilly developed a passion for human rights which drew her to the housing space. She works toward a future where everyone will have the right to shelter and will be affordably housed in their chosen communities.

Q: What does a just future mean or look like to you?

A: A just future looks like a world where communities of color's health and human rights are prioritized over corporate dollars, where communities are thriving and have the tools they need to be successful.

Ayanna Boateng, Capacity Building Summer Associate

"You can begin again, and change the ending."

This quote reminds me that through the various stages of life, there's an opportunity to take advantage of the time given to me.

Ayanna Boateng (she/her/hers) is the Capacity Building Summer Associate at The Greenlining Institute where she supports with ensuring communities disproportionately affected by climate hazards are considered in climate planning and policymaking. Ayanna is committed to raising awareness about the environmental hazards incarcerated people face and advocates for strategies and solutions that various stakeholders can implement to address these prison issues. Raised in Sacramento, California, and attending college in New Orleans, Louisiana, she learned how populations such as incarcerated and unhoused people, who are disproportionately affected by climate crises, are dehumanized and treated unjustly. Ayanna received her B.A. in Sociology with a Psychology minor from Tulane University.

Q: What does a just future mean or look like to you?

A: A just future looks like people who can access housing, education, health care, financial wellness, and mental health resources regardless of their personal beliefs, race, or economic status. A just future means celebrating diversity and having elected officials committed to advocating for a just future.

Desiree Gomez, Economic Equity Summer Associate

"Do what you can, with what you have, where you are"

-Theodore Roosevelt

Desiree Gomez (she/her/hers) joins The Greenlining Institute as an Economic Equity Summer Associate. She received her B.A. in Sociology from the University of California, Merced with minors in Political Science and Writing Studies. During her undergrad, she served as Senator At-Large for the Associated Students of UC Merced, an executive member of Merced Pre-Law Society, general member of Fiat Lux Scholars and College Track Boyle Heights, and Scholar Coordinator for the Social Justice Initiatives and Identity Programs.

Q: What does a just future mean or look like to you?

A: A just future means doing what you can to break systemic barriers that prohibit or limit one's chances of increasing their social mobility. Our life's chances and experiences are determined by the social conditions we were born into. Thus, a just future looks like a society that is inclusive, fair, and equitable for all.

Johana Bonilla, Capacity Building (Stockton) Summer Associate

"You will face many defeats in life, but never let yourself by defeated"

Maya Angelou

Johana Bonilla (She/her/hers) is the Capacity Building (Stockton) Summer Associate at The Greenlining Institute. Johana is entering her last semester at San Francisco State University in the fall and will graduate with a B.S. in Environmental Studies. She was born and raised in San Francisco but recently spent a year studying abroad in England. She is passionate about sustainable development and would like to be a part of adaptation projects in the future. Johana believes that environmental projects should be accessible to all and improve individual's quality of life.

Q: What does a just future mean or look like to you?

A: A just future to me looks like everyone having access to the same resources and opportunities. Where race or income isn't a barrier to your progress and access to opportunities. A just future looks like everyone having access to healthcare, housing, quality education, food, healthy environments (air, water, etc.), and other essential resources.

Kimari Guillory, Systems Change and Legislative Summer Associate

"I can do all things through Christ with strengthens me"

Phillipians 4:13

This quote is a scripture my mom has instilled in me since I was a child.

Kimari Guillory (she/her/hers) is the Systems Change and Legislative Summer Associate at The Greenlining Institute. Throughout her time at Greenlining, she is helping the team identify racial barriers that stand in the way of climate and economic prosperity within BIPOC communities. She was born in San Francisco and raised in the Bay area. Kimari is a recent graduate of Tulane University, where she studied Public Health and Tropical Medicine. Throughout her time at Tulane she interned with various organizations, including the non-profit Stiles Hall through the Health Career Connections cohort. There, she helped curate a health and wellness curriculum for underrepresented college students.

Q: What does a just future mean or look like to you?

A: A just future to me looks like equal opportunities for everyone regardless of race/ethnicity, gender, sexuality, etc. This means everyone has the access, resources, and means to be successful in life. In this future there is no discrimination because of our differences, rather a world where we welcome one another for who we all are!

Leander McNeely, Climate Equity and Transportation Summer Associate

"All that you touch, you change. All that you change, changes you. The only lasting truth is change."

Octavia Butler

Leander Stewart McNeely (he/him/his) is the Climate Equity and Transportation Summer Associate. Born and raised in Oakland, he developed a deep appreciation for public transportation as he grew up navigating the Bay without a car. Before joining Greenlining, he received a B.S. in Geography & Spatial Techniques at CSU East Bay where he studied wildfires' incompatibility with land use by communities in the Wildland Urban Interface and interned at GRID Alternatives as the Solar Operations Assistant.

Q: What does a just future mean or look like to you?

A: A just future looks like knowing your neighbors, walking to green spaces / third places, and having safe access to the rest of our urban fabric without a car.

Marilyn Lemus Gutierrez, Climate Equity, Energy Summer Associate

"Give yourself a chance"

Marilyn Lemus Gutierrez (she/her/hers) is the Climate Equity Energy Summer Associate at The Greenlining Institute. During her summer at Greenlining, she is writing a policy memo discussing the current barriers clean energy entrepreneurs from underrepresented groups face in accessing funding and support for their companies. She is a rising senior at the University of California, Berkeley, majoring in Conservation and Resource Studies with a concentration in Urban Studies, Environmental Justice, and Public Policy. Growing up in South Central Los Angeles, California has shown her the many injustices people of color face, and wants to pursue a career where she can help change systemic injustices. In her time at Greenlining, she hopes to gain knowledge of how policy plays a role in shaping communities and how to become a better leader.

Q: What does a just future mean or look like to you?

A: A just future means having the opportunity to live a life where people don't need to rely on luck to succeed.

Learn more about the Leadership Academy team and future opportunities here.