Equity Strategy

Steven Figueroa

Steven Figueroa is a dedicated community advocate with a lifelong commitment to service. Growing up in Compton and Paramount in the 60s and 70s, he started his involvement in politics at a young age, recognizing the importance of being engaged for change. His career has spanned various fields, including labor unions, real estate, and tax preparation. Transitioning to the private sector, he founded Figueroa Community Consulting Advocacy Businesses, assisting numerous businesses in Community and Government Relations. Steven is also an Education Advocate since 1985, having helped thousands of families with children with disabilities, making him one of the most active filers of Civil Rights complaints with the OCR. Despite health challenges, including severe chronic heart failure and injuries, he remains an active community leader, serving as President of the Inland Empire Latino Coalition, among other roles. His advocacy work has earned him numerous awards and recognitions, reflecting his unwavering dedication to making a positive impact on his community. He has also served on various boards, such as California Community Builders and the Riverside Hispanic Chambers, and has been an advocate for housing issues and civil rights.

Mauricio Blanco

Mauricio Blanco is an energy efficiency professional with over 20 years of experience designing, implementing, and managing low-income energy efficiency programs for California utility companies and the State of California. Mauricio spent 15 years at Southern California Edison where he was responsible for managing the Energy Savings Assistance Program. During his tenure with the utility, Mauricio served on the statewide standardization team that developed the Statewide Policies and Procedures Manual and the Weatherization Installation Standards Manual for the California utilities’ low-income programs.

Mauricio is currently a principal at MAROMA Energy Services which oversees the implementation of the department of community services and development’s Low-Income Weatherization Program for Farmworkers, and is the president and cheif executive officer of John Harrison Contracting, a service provider for the utilities and state of California’s low-income programs

José Atilio Hernández

José Atilio Hernández has worked for the past twenty-six years developing and implementing policy and systems solutions at the local, state, and federal levels. Currently, Mr. Hernández serves as the Founder and CEO of IDEATE California, a policy management firm, and the is the founder and Board Chair of ideateLABS, a non-profit policy think tank and training lab. In this capacity and related to energy, he works with California and Western States to advance energy and water equity issues, and in the business sector to expand access to emerging technologies. Mr. Hernandez also consults for national organizations like UnidosUS and Edison Electric Institute.

Abigail Solis

Abigail Solis is the daughter of agricultural workers and native of the San Joaquin Valley, who has dedicated her career to advancing equity and ensuring basic rights and services for disadvantaged communities across California’s Central Valley. Abigail holds the esteemed position of Central California Director of External Affairs in Governor Newsom's Office, where she plays a pivotal role in actualizing the Governor's vision for equitable access to state programs and enhancing investment in underserved communities. Her distinguished tenure at Self-Help Enterprises involved spearheading infrastructure improvements in low-income areas and leading groundbreaking climate and energy initiatives across the San Joaquin Valley. Her expansive career also encompasses impactful contributions to affordable housing and public health sectors. Renowned for her dedicated service on the Earlimart School District Board and her steadfast advocacy for small districts, Abigail was rightfully honored with the prestigious Clean Energy Champion Hall of Fame Award in 2021 by the California Energy Commission.

Violet Wulf-Saena

Violet Wulf-Saena is an acclaimed climate change expert with over ten years of international experience, notably with the UN's Least Developed Countries and Small Island States. As Samoa's first climate change officer, she led key projects including the nation's Greenhouse Gas Inventory and National Adaptation Program of Action. Based in the Bay Area, she now focuses on building community resilience against climate change and sea-level rise. In 2020, she established Climate Resilient Communities (CRC) to support communities of color facing climate challenges.

Wulf-Saena also serves as an equity program manager at BayCAN, an environmental justice advisor at BCDC, and a community advisory member at BAAQMD. She holds a Bachelor’s degree from the University of the South Pacific, Fiji, and a Masters from Duke University, along with Postgraduate Diplomas from universities in Germany, the Netherlands, and New Zealand.

Federico Castillo

Federico Castillo is an environmental/agricultural economist with a PhD and undergraduate degrees from the University of California, Berkeley. Federico’s research is centered on technology transfer and innovation, economic valuation, the socio-economic impacts of climate change, the economic aspects of protected areas and migration. He is a member of a multidisciplinary team that is developing a research agenda on climate change, agriculture and population issues in the Berkeley Campus. He is currently engaged in research with scholars from The Tropical Agricultural Research Center (CATIE), the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), The Lawrence Berkeley National Lab (LBNL) and the University of California, Davis dealing with ecosystem-based adaptation to climate change, the socio economic impact of weather extremes in California agriculture and climate change impacts on migration from Mexico to the United States. Federico has taught courses related to migration to the United States, natural resource economics, economics of climate change and sustainable business practices.

Tate Hill

Tate Hill has led Access Plus Capital as the president since July 2020. Prior to accepting the position of executive director, Mr. Hill served the organization as senior manager of administration, director of administration, and as interim chief executive officer leading fund development, strategic initiatives, and administrative functions.

Mr. Hill has also helped raise over $24 million in loan and grant funds, spearheaded the rebranding of Access Plus Capital, and brought on much needed systems for sustained growth. He has been an integral part of the expansion of Access Plus Capital, and with his guidance, what started as a program of Fresno EOC to help small refugee farmers in Fresno County has grown to provide capital to small and underserved businesses in a 14-county region throughout Central California.

An advocate for racial and economic justice, Hill is board treasurer of the Greenlining Institute and an executive committee member of the Fresno DRIVE Initiative, focusing his work on supporting low-income business owners and entrepreneurs of color.

Charlie Toledo

Charlie Toledo is of Towa descendent, native to New Mexico. Since 1992, she has been the Executive Director of the Suscol Intertribal Council, a community-based organization located in Napa, California. She has extensive experience as a public speaker, presenter, and community organizer in regional, statewide, national and international forums. Since 1982 she has worked in alternative healthcare fields, in addition to her background in mediation for individuals, families, and organizations. She has been an organic gardener with a lifelong commitment to social justice and international work on Human Rights and Environmental social justice issues.

Val Martinez

Val Martinez is the executive director of Redwood Community Action Agency, located in Eureka, California, serving rural Humboldt and Modoc counties. Val has over 40 years of experience working with low-income households in the energy and human services fields. She oversees a wide range of services including energy efficiency retrofit and home repairs programs, community planning partnerships, and many more.

Val is a firm believer in building, strengthening, and improving services for the low-income and disadvantaged members of communities through legislative, regulatory and program policy advocacy. She is a member of numerous boards such as the Board of Directors of the Association of California Community and Energy Services (ACCES); the Energy OutWest Board of Directors, a national consortium of state energy officials, technical experts and contractors that work to improve the quality and effectiveness of energy services throughout the United States and conduct a training conference every two years. She is also a member of the California State Department of Community Services Energy Council.

Luis H. Sanchez

Luis H. Sanchez has been chief executive officer of Community Resource Project (CRP) since 2016 and oversees the entire organization’s operations for their health programs, energy and educational programs with a highly skilled management team. He serves a nine-member board of directors overseeing a four-county operation with 120 employees.

With his leadership, CRP has participated in climate adaptation efforts and transformed several of their vehicle fleet to electric vans as a strategy to reduce CRP’s carbon footprint. CRP is also installing electric vehicle supply equipment charging stations for community access as CRP develops clean mobility options to meet low-income residents’ needs at their south Sacramento facility.

He has served on boards of various state, regional and national community organizations fostering better collaborations with local communities, government, and the private sector. He has also received recognition and awards from various organizations throughout his career.

Joe Coto

Joe Coto is an educator and an elected official. Mr. Coto served three terms as a member of the California State Assembly from 2004 to 2010, representing the 23rd district. Coto began his career as a teacher in the Oakland Unified School District. He worked in a variety of administrative positions and left the school district to serve as a city council member for the City of Oakland. After his four-year term on the city council, he ran for Mayor of Oakland. He returned to the school district and ultimately became Superintendent of the Oakland Public Schools in 1984. In 1988, he was recruited to serve as superintendent of the East Side Union High School District in San Jose and served in that position for the next 14 years. In recognition of his contributions as superintendent of East Side Union High School District, the Association of California School Administrators named him the 2003 Superintendent of the Year. As superintendent in San Jose, Coto supported Senate Bill 1051, promoting diversity in San Jose's school system. The legislation has since brought significant additional funding for school districts in East San Jose over the years. Coto was also able to bring nearly half a billion dollars in grant monies and improvement bonds to the East Side Union High School District.

Darlene Mar

Darlene Mar is a dedicated advocate with over 25 years of experience championing the concerns of small to medium-sized businesses and minority entrepreneurs at the local, state, and federal levels. Her extensive background and vast network have shaped her into a versatile consultant, nonprofit event planner, and proficient networking organizer. Currently, she holds significant roles, such as being a Greenlining Board Director, President of Friends of On Lok, and an advisor to the Asian Business Association of Silicon Valley. Her past endeavors include influential positions in nonprofits, public service roles, and corporate sector advisory roles, where she emphasized the importance of equal opportunities and open access. Darlene has received numerous awards for her leadership, and her educational background includes certifications and degrees from prestigious institutions. Her lifelong dedication to advocacy and community engagement makes her a true leader and advocate for positive change in society.