Advisory Council
 Rafael Aguilera, Principal, The Verde Group Rafael co-founded the Verde Group in 2007 and began offering his consulting and lobbying services to progressive non-profits who shared his vision of starting a clean energy revolution in California. He has focused on three broad areas of policy advocacy: 1) reducing toxic impacts to EJ communities from incinerators, power plants, refineries, and goods movement-related diesel emissions; 2) promoting public and private investment in “Green Assets” for disadvantaged communities such as urban parks, low-income energy efficiency and renewable energy programs, and localized economies; 3) popularizing the clean energy revolution amongst Latinos and people of color through the promotion of “green” cultural and ecological values, grassroots community activism, and applied ecological economics. Rafael has a B.A. in Economics and Environmental Studies (Sustainable Development in Developing Nations) from UC Santa Cruz; and has completed all course work towards obtaining his Masters in Public Policy Administration (MPPA) from CSU Sacramento. Rafael walks the green talk by maintaining a community garden, defeating local incinerator proposals, and enjoying the outdoors. |
 Dean Aguillen, Senior Vice President, Ogilvy Government RelationsNamed one of the 100 Most Influential Hispanics in the United States in 2007 by Hispanic Business magazine, Dean Aguillen joined Ogilvy Government Relations after serving as a senior advisor and Director of Member Services in the Office of Speaker Nancy Pelosi. In this role Mr. Aguillen was one of the Speaker’s primary advisors on matters pertaining to members of Congress and played a key role in the formulation of the Speaker’s agenda. Mr. Aguillen joined Congresswoman Pelosi’s staff in 2002 after her election to House Democratic leadership as Democratic Whip. During this time he served as a liaison to Democratic members and their staffs and advised them on legislative strategy, parliamentary procedures and floor scheduling.Besides his work in Congress, numerous campaigns and various political and governmental organizations, Mr. Aguillen had the privilege of working for the Clinton Administration. On July 5, 1999, President Clinton appointed Aguillen to the position of Special Assistant in the Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs at the U.S. Department of Labor and later promoted to Director of Intergovernmental Affairs and Chief of Staff for Congressional Affairs. In these various capacities at the Department, Aguillen reviewed and analyzed significant congressional and executive administration proposals and issues pertaining to or affecting the nation’s workforce. In addition, he served as a liaison between the Department and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and intergovernmental organizations including the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the National Conference of State Legislators. A native Texan, Mr. Aguillen received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas, with double majors in political science and communications, radio-television. He later went on to complete his Master of Arts degree in public communication at the American University in Washington, DC. |
Teri Duarte, Executive Director, WALKSacramento |
| Mary Helen Doherty, Resource Development Consultant & Community VolunteerMary Helen has a unique combination of experience with community based non-profits, public service agencies and volunteer organizations. She moved to Sacramento in the fall of 2005 and immersed herself in local initiatives regarding food access and community development. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of Alchemist Community Development Corporation and is involved in the implementation of the Urban Farm Stand initiative. In addition she is engaged as a resource development consultant for non-profit organizations and works as interfaith organizer for CA Faith for Equality to support marriage equality for same sex couples.Prior to 2005 she served as the Executive Director of Child Advocates of Santa Clara & San Mateo Counties and as an Associate Director at the Emergency Housing Consortium in San Jose CA. She spent fifteen years working for Santa Clara County in a variety of executive management positions, including Director of Governmental Relations & Planning for the Social Services Agency, Director of the Department of Alcohol Services and Deputy Health Services Administrator. Her work in the non-profit sector also includes director of a community health clinic in Santa Barbara CA and as an advocate for youth in the Youth Services Bureau in Indiana where she also served as a VISTA community organizer. Her civic engagement work has included serving as Chair and member of the Housing Advisory Commission for the City of San Jose, as teacher and coordinator of a volunteer-based ESL program, member of the Bond Oversight Committee of San Jose Unified School District, and member of Board of Directors of the Third Street Community Center in downtown San Jose.She has a Bachelor’s of Science from Edgewood College in Madison, Wisconsin; a Masters in Public Policy & Administration from California State University, Sacramento, and holds a certificate in Fund Raising Management from Indiana University Center on Philanthropy-Fundraising School and a certificate from the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University-Executive Program for Non-Profit Leaders. |
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broadcast journalist and later began working in California’s state capitol as a policy consultant, district director and press secretary. He is currently the Executive Director of the Sacramento Green Technical Education program. He provides introductory courses to high school students and site visits to companies that incorporate clean energy principles in their business model. He is a published writer appearing in the Sacramento Observer Newspaper, Today’s Supervisor Magazine (ACSS) and J’ADORE Magazine. Simeon has two daughters, Yahcarah and Zora. |
 Mindy Romero, Project Director, CA Civic Engagement Project, The Center for Regional Change Mindy Romero is a sociologist contributing ten years of research on numerous social phenomena including political behavior, social stratification and community engagement. Mindy serves as the Project Director for the California Civic Engagement Project (CCEP), a statewide resource for civic engagement and voter data, housed at the UC Davis Center for Regional Change. She is also a member of the research team on Healthy Youth/Healthy Regions, an innovative two-year initiative also conducted by the UC Davis Center for Regional Change, examining youth well-being in the Sacramento Capital region. As a current doctoral candidate in the department of Sociology at UC Davis, she specializes in the sub-fields of political sociology and race/ethnicity. She has taught courses at UC Davis including social psychology and field research methods. Mindy is also the Chair of the Board of Directors of Sacramento/Yolo Mutual Housing Association, a non-profit organization that develops and manages affordable multiple family housing for nearly 3,000 low-income residents within the Sacramento Region. |
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Rachel Iskow, Executive Director, Sacramento-Yolo Mutual Housing
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 Stephen MillerStephen graduated in Soil Science & Engineering at the California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo in 1978. Stephen’s career has included stints with Pacific Gas & Electric at their Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant (mechanical engineering group), Atlantic Richfield at their Sepulveda refinery, Gas & Chemical Engineering group with Chevron USA, Lehigh Cement Company in Concord California, and Teichert Construction in Sacramento California. Through Stephen’s varied career he has held progressive positions of responsibility.Throughout his career Stephen has been involved with community projects and programs including Youth sports programs with the Board of Supervisors in Kern County Calif., an Urban League Development Committee in Bakersfield CA., Board of Directors with the Kern County Economic Opportunity Corp. in Bakersfield CA. (senior weatherization, food delivery, senior centers etc.), Commissioner for Crossover Christian Youth Basketball League in Sacramento CA, Coaching youth sports for over 25 years (baseball, softball, track & field, football, basketball) in both California and North Carolina, and currently on the Board of Directors with Rebuilding Together in Sacramento CA.Stephen brings a long history working with community activists focused on the development of meaningful programs to assist the under-represented within our society. |
 Carol Ramirez, Lilliput Children’s ServicesCarol is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and serves as the Assistant Director of Lilliput Children’s Services. She joined the agency in 1994 as a social worker. Carol oversees Lilliput’s Clinical Services, Quality Assurance, Program Operations and works closely with community/strategic development as well as public relations. She represents Lilliput at the local, state and national level in advocacy and legislative efforts. She has played an integral role in developing and implementing sustainable programs which focus on prevention, early intervention and permanency for children in foster care. She has assisted in initiating and maintaining public private partnerships within several child welfare jurisdictions.Due to her experience in child welfare, she has also served as a consultant to other non-profit agencies and presented at national conferences. She served on the Board of Directors for MAAP, Inc. for nine years and currently serves on several committees geared toward legislative advocacy dedicated to the safety and wellbeing of children in foster care. Carol is currently a member of the California Alliance of Child and Family Services and serves on the Recruitment Committee. She is an alumni of the Metro Chamber of Commerce, Leadership Program and currently a fellow in the Sierra Health Leadership Program. Carol holds her Bachelors of Arts degree in Psychology and Master in Social Work from California State University, Sacramento. |
| Darnell Robinson, Community Development Director, Clearinghouse CDFI |
| Adrian Ruiz, Co-Executive Director, Youth Development Network |
 Raquel Ruiz, Freelance WriterRaquel Ruiz is a bilingual (Spanish/English) independent writer based in Sacramento, California. Currently, she is writing a non-fiction book about seven USA women boxers, contenders to gain one of the three available spots for the 2012 Summer Olympic team. She is also a facilitator for writers groups in Spanish and English based in the Amherst Writers & Artist method. In her native Colombia, she worked for several media outlets, films, TV, radio, magazines and publishing. She was also a teacher at the university in journalism and other subjects. In the United States, after completing her Masters Degree in Communications in 2000, she worked for Alamo Community College in San Antonio, Texas before picking up her first U.S. print media job as a general assignment reporter in 2004. She quickly became a lead investigative reporter, and her other coverage topics included sports. Raquel’s journalistic awards and honors include being a lead member of the Que Pasa Media Network of Charlotte, NC, which won the 2008 Jose Marti Gold Award for best U.S.-based Spanish-language newspaper; and part of the reporter team of El Exodo, a finalist for the 2008 Marti award for best radio program.Raquel’s community work has involved a wide range of activities, from being a volunteer with the San Antonio Police Department’s Domestic Violence Unit, leading a support group in Spanish. She also served as a volunteer spokesperson to the Spanish media, public speaker at many public events, different universities, and was instrumental in the translation to Spanish of the training manual for volunteers. While in San Antonio, she was also a Colombian community leader helping other Colombians find resources and information. She started a non-profit organization that helped children orphaned by the violence in Colombia. While living in New Jersey with her husband, she helped unify the Hispanic businesses into one cohesive political and economic organization that became the Camden County Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. In North Carolina, as a reporter, she helped the Grassroots Leadership successfully fight the construction of a prison to detain the undocumented population. |
 Constance Slider |
 Aubry Stone, President and CEO, California Black Chamber of Commerce |
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katie@ubuntugreen.org* 916-669-0671Raised as a community activist in the Central Valley of California, Katie has experienced youth advocacy and environmental justice at both a grassroots and structural level. After helping to start the first youth-planned youth conference in the region, Katie became an active representative of the youth voice on several committees, and trained to be a youth advocate with the National Young Leaders Conference in Washington D.C. Since high school, Katie has become active in Native American community development programs throughout the state, focusing her research on Native American identity formation and regional nonprofit networking. She has presented her work community and academic settings throughout the nation, and continues to participate in several groups regarding transportation justice, environmental advocacy, and youth engagement throughout the Sacramento and Central Valley regions. Currently, Katie and a team of collaborators are starting the Kern Youth Advocacy Project, a youth civic engagement initiative that seeks to bring research and training to youth who can become advocates for other youth in decisions regarding policy and service provision in their region. Katie has a MS in Community Development and BS in Community and Regional Development, both received from the University of California at Davis. |
| Clarence Williams, President of California Capital |
