RDA Strategies

On June 25 and 27, 2019, Goodwill Southern California in Fletcher Square served as a gathering space for conversations centered on housing, employment, and community support.

During Hired, Housed & Hopeful, leaders working across housing and homelessness shared information on affordable housing, permanent supportive housing, and resources intended to help people experiencing homelessness navigate available supports.

The same week, LA:RISE partners convened for an Academy Meeting focused on workforce development, collaboration, and strengthening employment pathways for individuals navigating barriers to economic opportunity.

Together, the gatherings reflected an important reality: Housing, employment, and stability do not exist in isolation.

Addressing homelessness requires coordinated efforts among nonprofit organizations, government agencies, workforce partners, businesses, and communities willing to work across traditional silos.

The events reinforced the value of bringing people together around shared challenges and creating stronger connections between information, resources, and opportunity.

From June 10 to 13, 2019, employment social enterprise leaders gathered in Boston to exchange ideas, strengthen partnerships, and explore strategies for expanding employment opportunities for people navigating barriers to work.

Organizations including More Than Words, UTEC, and Roca demonstrated how employment, mentorship, and community investment can influence long-term outcomes.

The conversations reinforced the role social enterprises play in creating jobs, strengthening communities, and expanding economic mobility nationwide.

On May 11, 2019, I moderated the Economic Empowerment panel at the City of West Hollywood’s 13th Annual Women’s Leadership Conference, a full-day gathering bringing together hundreds of attendees for leadership workshops, advocacy training, networking, and conversations on advancing equity and opportunity.

Presented in partnership with the City’s advisory boards and community organizations, the conference explored topics ranging from civic engagement and media representation to social impact, entrepreneurship, and public leadership.

Panelists included Elisabeth Caren and Heather Hope-Allison, who shared reflections on leadership, entrepreneurship, and navigating career growth.

The discussion centered on an important question: What helps create conditions where women can succeed economically and lead with greater agency?

Economic empowerment influences more than income. It can shape opportunity, decision-making, representation, and participation across communities.

The conference reflected the City of West Hollywood’s broader commitment to invest in leadership development, advocacy, and spaces where diverse perspectives shape community conversations.

On April 21, 2019, I delivered a keynote at Impact Hacks at UCLA, an event bringing together students to develop solutions to social issues affecting Los Angeles.

Hosted through Net Impact, the gathering emphasized innovation, leadership, and practical approaches to creating more equitable and sustainable communities. Net Impact connects a global network of more than 100,000 students and professionals committed to using their careers, business, and civic engagement to drive positive social and environmental impact.

The event created space for emerging leaders to test ideas, challenge assumptions, and explore how collaboration can influence community outcomes.

Student-led spaces like these matter because today’s ideas often shape tomorrow’s policies, organizations, and solutions.

On April 1, 2019, I delivered the keynote address at an LA:RISE graduation at the Downtown Women’s Center, celebrating women who continue to build pathways toward employment, stability, and new opportunities.

The Downtown Women’s Center works to end homelessness for women through safe housing and supportive services centered on wellness, employment, and advocacy, reflecting a holistic approach to long-term stability and community support.

The gathering was a reminder that past experiences may shape a person’s journey, but should not determine what is possible moving forward.

Also located in Skid Row, MADE by DWC demonstrates how employment social enterprises can create paid work, skill-building opportunities, and pathways toward economic stability for women transitioning out of homelessness. Through its Home & Gift Collection, Resale Boutique, and Café, every purchase supports employment opportunities and services designed to strengthen long-term outcomes.

DWC continue to illustrate how housing, employment, wellness, and community are often interconnected.

On February 13, 2019, regional leaders gathered at the L.A. Hotel in Downtown Los Angeles for Tapping the Talents of Unique Populations, a breakfast forum hosted by Goodwill Southern California focused on employment pathways for people experiencing homelessness. The event sought to keep attention on untapped talent, scalable solutions, and collaborative approaches to expanding economic opportunity.

The gathering brought together workforce agencies, employment social enterprises, housing organizations, employers, and public leaders, including representatives from the City and County workforce systems, the Mayor’s Office, and LA:RISE partners. The remarks included Mayor Eric Garcetti, alongside leaders advancing regional strategies around employment and homelessness.

One of the most memorable moments came near the close of the event, when dozens of individuals who were formerly or currently experiencing homelessness and were now employed were invited to stand and be recognized. The message was simple: Every person has value. Every person has talent.

The commitment required public agencies, employers, nonprofit organizations, and community partners willing to work toward shared outcomes rather than isolated solutions.

Events like this reflected a growing shift in Los Angeles, recognizing that addressing homelessness includes expanding access to employment, dignity, and opportunity.

On January 31, 2019, I attended the 4th Annual MakeChange Awards at the Skirball Cultural Center, celebrating organizations and leaders advancing social impact, innovation, and community change.

The year’s theme, Speaking Truth to Power: How to Be Values Driven in Your Purpose and Be Bold, coincided with Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, an exhibition honoring the legacy of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and her influence on equity, advocacy, and civic participation.

One of her reminders remains relevant across sectors:

“Fight for the things that you care about, but do it in a way that will lead others to join you,”~ Ruth Bader Ginsburg

The conversations centered on leadership, courage, and what it means to remain grounded in values while advancing change.

Progress rarely happens through one voice alone. Sustainable impact often depends on building coalitions, inviting participation, and creating pathways for others to contribute.

In January 2019, Los Angeles leaders and community members convened around the Prison to Employment (P2E) initiative, focused on improving workforce outcomes for formerly incarcerated and justice-involved individuals.

The California program was designed to strengthen pathways to employment by supporting career coaching, interview preparation, on-the-job training, and wraparound services that address barriers such as housing instability, educational gaps, substance use, and mental health needs.

The conversations centered on regional planning, implementation strategies, supportive services, and earn-and-learn opportunities identified as priorities by workforce providers and communities.

Reentry is rarely shaped solely by employment. Long-term stability often depends on whether systems coordinate around the broader conditions influencing opportunity.

Much of this work happens outside public recognition, through planning sessions, partnerships, and conversations that eventually shape programs reaching communities.

On December 12, 2018, Winter Homeless Connect Day brought together the City of Los Angeles, LA:RISE, nonprofit organizations, WorkSource Centers, and government agencies to provide complimentary services, resources, and employment connections for more than 500 people experiencing homelessness.

Designed as a one-stop shop to reduce barriers, the event offered resource navigation, assistance with securing identification documents, healthcare screenings, employment services, transitional job opportunities, hygiene resources, meals, and other direct supports.

The coordinated effort reflected a broader recognition that housing instability is often connected to employment, healthcare access, disability, documentation, transportation, and other systems influencing long-term stability.

The day also created opportunities to connect with leaders working across these issues, including Jaime Pacheco-Orozco, then Assistant Executive Director for the City of Los Angeles Department on Disability, Christina Miller, who served as the City’s first Deputy Mayor for Homelessness, and leaders within Mayor Eric Garcetti’s administration advancing coordinated responses to homelessness.

Events like these demonstrate what becomes possible when public agencies, workforce systems, disability leaders, and community organizations align around practical support while working toward longer-term solutions.

Connection to resources can influence whether barriers remain barriers or become pathways forward.

On October 4, 2018, more than 200 workforce leaders, policymakers, service providers, researchers, and community stakeholders gathered at Los Angeles City Hall for From Homelessness to Employment, a convening designed to examine lessons from LA:RISE and to explore strategies to expand employment opportunities for people navigating significant barriers to work.

As the lead coordinating the event in partnership with the Mayor’s Office and regional workforce leaders, my role included agenda development, speaker coordination, logistics, participant engagement, and the creation of opportunities for dialogue across sectors.

The gathering centered on preliminary findings from an independent evaluation of LA:RISE, an initiative uniting City and County workforce systems with employment social enterprises to support individuals experiencing homelessness, reentry populations, opportunity youth, and others facing employment barriers.

Speakers and panelists represented organizations including REDF, LAHSA, supportive housing leaders, workforce agencies, and local government, exploring questions still relevant today: How do communities strengthen pathways to employment while addressing housing instability, reentry, and long-term economic mobility?

The room was full because the conversation extended beyond one program. It reflected growing recognition that sustainable solutions require collaboration among workforce systems, housing providers, employers, philanthropy, government agencies, and community organizations.

One of the most meaningful parts of the event came through participant stories, reminders that data matters, but lived outcomes matter too.