Aurora Martin
She/her/hers
Co-Executive Director, Capacity Building
Languages: English, Tagalog
Aurora shares the leadership of Front and Centered, with a focus on supporting the team’s capacity building and community engagement efforts. She has been involved in social justice work as a nonprofit lawyer, community organization leader, and creative producer. Aurora brings an eclectic spirit to the Front and Centered team, and looks forward to advancing equity, environmental, and climate justice with our community coalition.
Deric Gruen
He/him/anything
Co-Executive Director, Programs and Policy
Languages: English, Portuguese, Spanish, and enough Arabic to impress his auntie
Deric shares the leadership of Front and Centered, with a focus on programs and policy. Deric has created and led diverse initiatives for climate/environmental justice and community economic development, from idea through fruition, for community-based organizations, in education, and government. A graduate of Garfield High school and the UW School of Public Policy, Deric is from a family full of social workers, has a new baby, and is the descendant of refugees from Germany and Lebanon — where he started his work in environmental justice.
Esther Min
She/her/hers
Director of Environmental Health Research Partnerships
Languages: English, Korean
Esther serves as the Environmental Health Lead, supporting evidenced based and data driven work across Front and Centered programs. She brings experience developing environmental justice maps and supporting community-driven research with communities, for communities. In her free time, Esther enjoys traveling, cooking, and fishing with her family.
“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” — Helen Keller
Melina Rivera
She/her/hers
Operations Director
Languages: English, Spanish
Melina oversees Front and Centered administrative and operations functions while providing project support. Melina comes to Front and Centered with operations experience in non-profit community health where she pursued her commitment to addressing health disparities, especially among some of our most vulnerable communities. As a resident of the Duwamish Valley in Seattle, she is excited to continue her work to engage frontline communities in addressing environmental injustice.
Mariel Thuraisingham
She/her/hers
Clean Energy Policy Lead
Languages: English, French, Spanish
Mariel is an environmental law and policy specialist leading Front and Centered’s commitment to advancing the clean energy interests of frontline communities in Washington that are historically disproportionately harmed by climate change. After completing her law degree she worked on justice sector strengthening and rule of law in Central America, Central and Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe, and West Africa, where she observed the important interplay of communities, institutions and infrastructure in supporting resilient and equitable socioeconomic systems. Through coalition-building, outreach and advocacy, Mariel works at the intersection between progressive policies and their translation into an effective and enforceable legal and regulatory framework for environmental justice, climate change mitigation, and sustainable living. She enjoys gardening.
Rebecca Rosado
She/her/hers
Membership Lead
Languages: English
Rebecca leads the resource and communication development that guides the membership experience at Front and Centered. She has a background in project management with a history of community engagement. In her role as Membership Lead, Rebecca coordinates member events, oversees the annual summit and implements programs to serve the members of Front and Centered and the communities they serve. She looks forward to finding new ways to bring the conversation of Just Transition to a neighborhood near you. In her free time, Rebecca enjoys traveling, camping and spending time with her family and two wonderful dogs.
Guillermo Rogel Jr.
He/him/his
Legislative Advocate
Languages: English, Spanish
Guillermo works with the policy team to advance the legislative priorities of Front and Centered. Guillermo has worked with students over the last six years to make public college more affordable, accessible, and diverses and is excited to jump into the climate justice movement. As the lobbyist for Front and Centered, Guillermo is responsible for educating lawmakers in Olympia urgency of tackling climate change and investing in the needs of those most impacted by our changing climate. In his free time Guillermo enjoys discovering new music, playing online video games, and playing tennis.
James Lee
He/him/his
Communications Lead
Languages: English, Korean (conversational), Japanese (conversational)
James is a communications specialist and marine ecologist dedicated to supporting community priorities through storytelling that challenges dominant narratives and advances the perspectives of those on the frontlines of environmental change. He is a past communications fellow for Washington Sea Grant and past editor-in-chief of a graduate student publication on environmental science and policy. Prior to completing his master’s degree in marine and environmental affairs, he was a research technician in a wetland ecology lab and a community advocate in the San Francisco Bay Area, organizing around shoreline restoration, eviction defense, and public access to green spaces. He loves hiking, tidepooling, and trying new restaurants.
Sierra Suafoa-McClain
They/them, she/her
Program Engagement Lead
Languages: English, minimal Spanish, some French
Sierra is from Tacoma, the City of Destiny and their beloved home! They recieved a Bachelors of Art in business management with minors of philosphy and entreprenuership from Seattle University; and a Juris Doctor degree from Vermont Law School. Sierra and their family draw roots from American Samoa which drives their passion to work with Pacific Island communities and other indigenous communities. Outside of FC, Sierra is learning Spanish (and brushing up on French), creating art, frequenting farmers markets, and exploring all the beauty that WA has to offer!
Juliette Randazza
She/her/hers
Environmental and Climate Justice Research Fellow
Languages: English
Juliette joins Front and Centered as a Research Fellow, assisting in integrating evidence-based work and data analysis into programs, policies, and capacity building. Her background lies in environmental public health, disaster resilience, and policy analysis, and she is excited to apply these skills working with communities on the climate crisis. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, climbing, and exploring the outdoors of the Pacific Northwest.
Davin Diaz
He/him/his
Policy Coordinator
Languages: English
Davin works with a collaborative cross-sector programs team and our statewide membership to advance the development and implementation of Front and Centered’s agenda for climate and environmental justice. He brings transportation, land use, and environmental justice policy experience to the team. Davin also has experience working with arts and culture organizations and is interested in the intersection of art and social justice. In his spare time, he enjoys hiking with his family and working with artists in his community.
Nico Wedekind
He/him/his
Attorney
Languages: English, Spanish
Nico joins Front and Centered as a public interest environmental attorney with a background in regulatory and legislative affairs. Following the completion of his law degree, he served as the inaugural Diehl Clinical Fellow for the University of Washington Regulatory Environmental Law and Policy Clinic, where he focused on providing legal assistance to historically underrepresented communities in Washington State. Now that he has joined the Front and Centered team, Nico looks forward to continuing to work on energy justice, environmental justice, and climate change mitigation. In his free time, he enjoys cooking, music, skiing, mountain biking, surfing, and generally exploring as much of the Pacific Northwest as he can.
Isabel Carrera Zamanillo
She/her/ella
Community Education Coordinator
Languages: English, Spanish
Isabel is a Mexican biologist supporting community education efforts at Front and Centered. She has supported various climate justice projects in Mexico and the United States, incorporating ethnobiology and community-based participatory research methods. Isabel has also collaborated with a wide range of organizations in the design and management of STEM outreach programs and independent social justice projects, incorporating community and culturally responsive models. After completing her environmental science doctoral degree, Isabel worked on institutional change within higher education institutions through diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. In her free time, she loves cooking, listening to music, and playing board games.
CORE CONSULTANTS
Ruby Love
She/her/hers
Organization Strategist
Languages: English
Ruby Love is a transformational business leader. She is an entrepreneur and strategist known for advocating for socially responsible business and community organizations. Her career has afforded relationships that have brought millions of much needed philanthropic support to the arts, education, STEM, social services, and advancing philanthropy. From an early age growing up with parents who led civil rights in her community, she honed her skills as an activist, organizer and leader for racial justice. She enjoys advising emerging entrepreneurs and nonprofit leaders to unlock the keys to building a better world with racial equity and social justice always front and center. Her love of artists in live performance, jazz, a great book, golf and her active family fill her days.
“Encouraging generosity everyday”
Sharon Chen
She/her/hers
Resource Manager
Languages: English, Mandarin Chinese (conversational)
Sharon Chen is a results-oriented executive board member and non-profit sector strategist committed to transforming our democratic systems and policies to center the voices of highly impacted communities. She has expertise in organizational development, policy, campaign development and equity strategies, and is a tested programs and teams leader trained in the tech sector.
Paulo Nunes-Ueno
He/him/his
Transportation Consultant
Languages: English, Portuguese, Spanish, and a little bit of Japanese
Paulo is an expert in sustainable transportation. He has worked with cities, transit agencies and campuses across the country to create healthy communities through safe and effective mobility strategies.
Richard Stolz
He/him/his
Senior Strategic Advisor, Organizing and Innovation
Languages: English
Rich joins the Front and Centered team, having been one of the founding members of the coalition and recently serving a nine-year term as the Executive Director of One America. He brings deep expertise in statewide and national organizing and community innovation. Rich is deeply influenced by the civil rights movement and liberation theology. His work has focused on the intersection of policy, politics, and organizing across a broad spectrum of issues impacting low-income communities and communities of color, including jobs and income support policy, immigration policy, infrastructure investment, and environmental justice.
