I have a proven track record of effective, empathetic advocacy and communication. I'm excited to help your organization connect with the audiences and communities that matter most.
VTA Strike
In March 2025, I highlighted the impacts of the 17-day VTA strike on riders by documenting life without transit—walking over 10 miles per day to get to work, and elevating the voices of other stranded riders. My goal was to encourage service restoration and highlight the importance of transit to our communities.
When VTA board members refused to personally acknowledge the disruption to riders, I spearheaded a public pressure campaign that forced greater transparency and improved communications. Through consistent on-the-ground storytelling and social media advocacy, I helped shift the conversation, making it impossible for leadership to ignore the experiences of the people most affected.
I created 100+ social media posts and daily TikToks documenting my journey, generating a total of 37,000+ views on TikTok and 130,000+ impressions. My work was featured in The New York Times, NBC Bay Area, KTVU News, San Jose Spotlight, and Streetsblog California.
After service was restored, I continued supporting the recovery effort by providing updates on the phased restoration and encouraging residents to return to transit — helping to boost the restoration without damaging public sentiment toward transit.
VTA Service Restoration and Recovery
In 2020 and 2021, I ran an advocacy and earned media campaign and successfully advocated for the restoration of pre-pandemic service levels. With this service, VTA became the first major transit agency in California to achieve pre-pandemic bus ridership levels.
I mobilized over 100 community members and highlighted the impact cuts would have on the community. Our work was featured in the San Jose Spotlight, San Jose Mercury News, KTVU News, and KRON4 News.
During the recovery process, I created 200+ posts highlighting VTA’s ridership and service recovery and visionary transit network, generating over 370,000 impressions. These efforts successfully shifted public sentiment and positioned VTA as a leader in pandemic ridership recovery.
I wrote multiple columns for the San Jose Spotlight highlighting VTA’s recovery and visionary transit network.
BART Silicon Valley Phase II
Collaborated with VTA and local leaders to successfully advocate for state, regional, and federal funding for the BART SV II extension. This effort ultimately secured a $5.1 billion federal funding commitment to extend BART service into Santa Clara County
Utilized sentiment analysis tools to monitor public opinion daily and strategically counter misinformation, effectively shifting sentiment within the transit advocacy community to be more favorable toward the project. Authored columns highlighting the project's benefits and addressing deceptive anti-transit narratives, with features in the Mercury News, San Jose Spotlight, and Supervisor Chavez’s social media funding advocacy campaign.
Created over 100 social media posts about the project, generating 240,000 impressions and significantly influencing public perception, particularly among transit advocates and Bay Area political communities.
Caltrain Electrification
In the lead up to Caltrain electrification in Fall 2024, I created a positive advocacy social media series highlighting VTA transit connections to all Caltrain stations and the benefits of electrification with 60+ posts and had a total of 160,000 impressions.
I authored multiple columns highlighting the benefits of electrification and was featured in the San Jose Spotlight, Palo Alto Online, and Mountain View Voice.
