SP2 Minute: Alumni Working in Environmental Justice

Kiasha Huling graduated from the Citizens Planning Institute in the Fall of 2019, where she learned how planning can help her achieve her goal of a greener and fairer Philadelphia. Trees and green spaces are central to Kiasha's sense of community. As the Executive Director of UC Green, Kiasha’s number one goal is to plant trees in low canopy communities. Over the last 22 years, UC Green has planted more than 4,000 trees in West and Southwest Philadelphia. CPI has helped Kiasha connect her passion for greenery with city planning. Kiasha views green spaces and tree canopy as equity issues. Some neighborhoods have none at all, while others have plenty. Trees and greenery improve air quality. Thus, neighborhoods that have less greenery have more polluted air. Kiasha works to distribute trees fairly across the University City area. By adding trees to areas in need, Kiasha is improving the air quality across the city.

Lauren is the Director of Operations of City Blossoms, a grassroots community development nonprofit in Washington, DC. She received her BA in International Studies from American University in 2012 and her MS in Nonprofit Leadership from the University of Pennsylvania in 2017. Lauren is an expert fundraiser and spends a lot of her time writing grant proposals. She is passionate about the nonprofit sector, environmental justice, and community-led development. Lauren enjoys cooking with garden-fresh veggies, politicking, and bike touring.

Gavriela is a program associate at the Pisces Foundation, focusing on the Climate and Energy Program. Gavi’s commitment to building climate justice and people-centered climate solutions started in 2003 when her community challenged its local private utility for proposing infrastructure near schools. They won, and the state passed legislation to protect children’s health across the whole state. Prior to joining Pisces, she worked as a distributed organizer at Lead Locally. In this role, Gavi supported local community and environmental justice organizations to elect down-ballot leaders who will stop fossil fuel infrastructure and create good, green jobs. During the 2020 election cycle, they coached and trained 20 organizers on the ground in Texas and Louisiana in community, digital, and electoral organizing skills, and supported down-ballot campaigns in Georgia and North Carolina. Gavi has served as an emergency manager for the COVID-19 Emergency Activation at New York City Emergency Management, where she was also a Strategic Operations Consultant and NYC Urban Fellow. Gavi is an active member of SustainUS, a front-line youth led organization that empowers young people to advocate for justice and sustainability at domestic and international levels. With SustainUS, Gavi created and led a delegation of young New Yorkers impacted by the climate crisis to the UN Secretary General’s 2019 Climate Action Summit, and attended both the 24th UN Climate Negotiations (COP24) and 62nd UN Commission on the Status of Women as a U.S. Youth Delegate. Additionally, Gavi served as a Women’s Earth Alliance 2020 U.S. Leader, founded Sunrise Philly as part of the national Sunrise Movement, and organized the Rise to Resilience Coalition, a coalition of disaster prone communities in New York and New Jersey to advance just climate adaptation policies at the local, state, and federal levels. Gavi has an M.S. in nonprofit leadership and B.A in earth sciences from the University of Pennsylvania. When they’re not working, Gavi enjoys hiking, swimming, and having potlucks with friends.