about

I work at the intersection of housing policy, community change, and public narrative. Over the past three decades, I’ve organized at the grassroots level, helped advance equity-focused, evidence-based reforms inside local government, advised public agencies and nonprofits on housing policy and development, and written and spoken nationally about housing equity and segregation.

I am the co-author of Just Action: How to Challenge Segregation Enacted Under the Color of Law (2023), written with Richard Rothstein as a follow-up to The Color of Law. While The Color of Law documented how government policy created residential segregation, Just Action explores how communities can begin to address those harms through local action, particularly in housing, land use, and related systems.

Since the book’s publication, I’ve spoken with a wide range of audiences — including community groups, housing professionals, real estate and banking audiences, faith communities, civil rights organizations, and universities — about the history of segregation and today’s opportunities for advancing fair and inclusive housing. I regularly deliver keynote talks and facilitate conversations that aim to be honest, accessible, and inspirational while grounded in what’s possible.

Alongside my writing and speaking, I continue to advise local governments, housing advocates, and community organizations on housing and fair housing strategies. Earlier in my career, I worked inside local government on equity-focused reform efforts and as a consultant to nonprofit housing developers and public agencies on community development and affordable housing policy.

I hold a B.A. with honors from the University of California, Santa Cruz and a Master of Public Policy from the Goldman School of Public Policy at UC Berkeley. I currently serve on the board of the Greenline Housing Foundation and previously served on the board of Rebuilding Together Oakland.

I live in Oakland, California, where my partner and I share a small co-housing compound with friends — an everyday experiment in resisting the isolation of single-family living.