2016 Champions

Relating to activating public life in public space, I would like to activate public life in public spaces such as the public library! I would like to bring the library to the public with a book bike! A custom designed book bike called Speed Reader will look like the character Speed Racer to get the…

Zacharias (Zak) Mendez has worked for the City of San Jose’s Department of Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services (PRNS) since 2007. In 2013, he completed his undergraduate degree with honors from San Jose State University’s College of Social Sciences. Since leaving school he has joined PRNS full time as a member of the Department’s new…

Millennial. Creative. Catalyst. Dreamer. World Citizen. Meme Lover. Recently graduated with her Master of Public Administration Degree and currently pursuing an MBA degree, Simone does what she loves – building partnerships, engaging with the local community, and completing print and design work for Manatee County Government. In her role as Neighborhood Specialist with Manatee County…

As the Director of Planning and Senior Project Manager at Philadelphia Chinatown Development Corporation (PCDC), Sarah oversees the Neighborhood Planning & Advocacy program and coordinates all real estate and affordable housing developments. As the Director of Planning, she works with PCDC’s Planning Committee to engage, educate, and cultivate community leaders in matters of zoning and…

Sam Saunders (b.1993) is a recent graduate of the University of Michigan, with a degree in music composition and piano performance. In addition to his musical studies, Sam is the founder and director of the non-profit organization Seven Mile Music, which provides free music lessons to over 60 children in inner-city Detroit every week. Last…

At the age of 24, Richard co-founded the North Limestone Community Development Corporation, the first place-based community development corporation in Lexington. After serving on the board for a short period, Richard transitioned into the sole staff member – eventually growing the staff to three in two-and-a-half years. During that time, Richard launched several programs including…

A native of Detroit, MI, Rebecca “Bucky” Willis received her Master of Architecture degree from the University of Detroit Mercy (UDM) in 2012. Bucky has volunteered and worked for a number of non-profit organizations in Detroit, including the Foundation for Agricultural Resources in Michigan (F.A.R.M), Habitat for Humanity, Detroit Future City and the Detroit Collaborative…

Marcus first engaged with the Grand Forks community as a student at the University of North Dakota through a cartography class with a service learning project for the final. The experience deepened his interest in how the built environment came to be and after a few more years of classes and volunteering with the Near…

Kia O. Moore is the Creative Director of Hip Hop University, a non-profit mentoring organization focused on uplifting at-opportunity students (e.i. at-risk students) and the communities in which they dwell through academic tutoring, life coaching, and community outreach through the lens of hip hop culture. Moore holds a B.A. in Communication Studies with a certificate…

I’m the guy who is way too intense and passionate for his own good but will use that to solve the problems in education and one day change the world. For the past year, I have been working as Director of Business Development at an education startup called Indigo Project. Our mission is to transform…

Jason Su is the street life project manager for the San Jose Downtown Association, where he leads and implements various art, construction, and advocacy projects. In his time, downtown has seen a proliferation of art crosswalks, murals, a pedestrian count program, and the Knight Cities Challenge grant for a retail incubator on the ground floor…

Hannah Smith, Anishinaabekwewi, is a lifelong resident of Minnesota, and an enrolled member of White Earth Nation. Hannah has a science background and has built experience working as a NASA/Kiksapa geospatial intern. During this internship, she conducted a research project—Land Use Impacts on Water Quality on White Earth Nation. This project lead to the Ogichidaakwe…

Germane Barnes manages the Arts & Recreation Center for the Opa-locka Community Development Corporation as their Designer-In-Residence. A graduate of University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Woodbury University, his Master of Architecture final project, entitled “Symbiotic Dwellings: Architectural Interrogations Of Race, Identity, And Community” was awarded the Thesis Prize. Barnes’ expertise in the built environment…

Ezekiel Harris is a visionary leader who specializes in social innovation and human-centered design. He is fueled by first-hand experience confronting deeply entrenched social challenges to create positive social and economic change by transforming places, systems and communities because of his unique ability for rapid prototyping. Ezekiel currently serves as the Executive Director of MACC…

Cristina Mas is an energetic and passionate leader in commercial brokerage and Miami’s non-profit community, launching some of the city’s most innovative and important charitable fundraising initiatives. Mas is currently a Commercial Real Estate Sales Associates for Colliers International. Immediately prior to her current position, she ran Marketing and External Affairs for Pointe Group Advisors.Her…

I am an assistant professor at the Department of Geography at The Pennsylvania State University, and serve as the founder and director of the Penn State Friendly Cities Lab (FCL). My background is in geographic information systems (GIS), social systems and complexity. I study how social activity and interpersonal relationships (utility of contacts, salience of…

Brad Vassallo is the Pop Up Market Place (PUMP) Project Manager for Asociación Puertorriqueños en Marcha (APM). Despite having only recently graduated from Temple University’s Community Development program, Brad has accumulated some substantial experience along the way. Beginning with his time at Banner Neighborhoods Community Corporation as Supervisor of their Neighborhood Youth Employment Program, he…

Beth Vild is a local permaculture and health equity community organizer with 14 years of community organizing experience. She moved to Akron at the request of friends from the Pan African Studies Department at Kent State University. Once she moved to Akron and began knocking on doors she quickly realized the amount of food-related illnesses…

Amanda Zullo is a designer, community engager and food enthusiast. She has a passion for health and wellness, sustainable living and fresh food Amanda earned her Masters in Urban Design with a Post-Masters Certificate in Real Estate Development, a Bachelors of Architecture, and a Bachelors of Arts in Architecture with a Minor in Geography, all…

Alex Epstein is a co-founder of the Urban Creators, a North-Philadelphia based non-profit transform blighted inner-city landscapes into dynamic safe-spaces that cultivate connectivity, self-sufficiency, and innovation. In 2009, Alex moved to North Philadelphia to attend Temple University, but was warned never to leave campus because the surrounding neighborhoods were “too dirty and dangerous”. Deeply disturbed…