2012 MPP Alumna of the Year Kathryn Phillips, MPP 2001
Kathryn Phillips leads lobbying and regulatory advocacy and overall administration of Sierra Club California. She began this role in August 2011.
She previously directed transportation and air pollution work in California for Environmental Defense Fund, where she worked on regional, state and federal policy, and gained experience in agriculture policy and water policy. Before joining EDF, she was a senior policy advisor at the Center for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Technologies, where she focused on air quality and transportation issues. Kathryn has been based in Sacramento since 2001.
Kathryn holds a B.A in history from the University of California, Berkeley, an M.A. in Journalism from the University of Missouri, Columbia, and a Master of Public Policy degree, with a dual focus on natural resources and transportation, from the University of California, Los Angeles. A former journalist, she is the author of two books about environmental issues.
Employer: Sierra Club California
Profile: linkedin.com/in/kathryn-phillips-37653113
Twitter: @KPatSierraClub
Media: Sierra Club California, CapRadio, KCRW, Cal Matters, Earth Justice
William R. “Rusty” Bailey III is a Riverside native who has served as Mayor of his hometown since 2012, having previously been a member of the City Council. His family came to Riverside in 1914 and has a long history of service to the community. Mayor Bailey is proud to be part of the fourth generation of Baileys working for the advancement of Riverside.
Nathalie Rayes is the President and CEO, of the Latino Victory Project, a nationwide political organization dedicated to making sure Latino voices are heard by empowering Latino voters, developing a pipeline of Latino donors, and developing Latino candidates through three entities: Latino Victory Fund, Latino Victory Project and the Latino Victory Foundation. Most recently Nathalie was the Vice President of Public Affairs for Grupo Salinas in the U.S., a Mexican conglomerate with US$6 billion in annual sales and 90,000 employees in Mexico, the United States, and Central and South America, and with operations in the broadcasting, retail, banking and financial services, telecommunications and internet. Nathalie was also in charge of Grupo Salinas’ philanthropic activities in the United States, which seek to improve the quality of life of Latinos by partnering with existing nonprofits to empower, create awareness and motivate change on social and civic issues. She previously served as Deputy Chief of Staff to Los Angeles’ Mayor James K. Hahn, under whom she directed the Mayor’s Office of Intergovernmental Relations and helped establish the city’s Office of Immigrant Affairs, and as Senior Advisor to Los Angeles Councilmember Mike Feuer.
UCLA’s first Chief Sustainability Officer, Nurit Katz is working to foster partnerships among academic, research, and operational departments to facilitate creating a world class living laboratory for sustainability at UCLA. As Executive Officer for UCLA Facilities Management, Nurit provides strategy support to make the university more operationally efficient and coordinates with Emergency Management on resilience planning. Facilities Management provides energy to the campus through a 
Tanzila “Taz” Ahmed is an activist, storyteller, and politico based in Los Angeles, California.
Fresno City Councilmember Nelson Esparza is a 2015 MPP Alumnus of the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs. He was elected to the Fresno City Council in November of 2018, and prior to that he served his community as an elected representative on the Fresno County Board of Education, where he was elected in 2016. On the City Council, Nelson serves as Chairman of both the Finance & Audit Committee and the School Liaison Subcommittee. Outside of Fresno City Hall: Nelson continues to teach Economics part-time at Fresno City College, he is the PAC Chair of his faculty union (State Center Federation of Teachers, Local 1533), he serves as the Political Director of the Fresno County Young Democrats, and is a Delegate to the California Democratic Party. In addition to attending the UCLA Luskin School, Nelson received his BA in Economics (Cum Laude) with a minor in Public Policy at UC Riverside, and is an alumnus of the PPIA Fellowship Program at UC Berkeley.
Jaime Nack is a double Bruin who is the President of Three Squares Inc. (TSI) – an award-winning sustainability consulting firm specializing in creating strategies for corporations, events, and communities. Nack is one of the nation’s most prominent environmental experts and has advised many Fortune 500 companies, cities, and large-scale events. Most notably, Nack served as the Director of Sustainability for the 2008 Democratic National Convention, marking the first time in history where measures were taken to reduce the environmental impact of the event on the host city. In 2011, Nack was named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum. She also received an appointment under the Obama administration to serve on the National Women’s Business Council, an advisory council to the President, Congress and the SBA on economic issues of importance to women business owners. In 2013, Nack was named the “Environmental Conservator of the Year” by the L.A. Area Chamber of Commerce. Nack speaks to audiences around the world about the business case for sustainability and its impact on the future of the global marketplace. Nack has a Master’s in Public Policy from UCLA, where she also earned her Bachelor’s in International Economics, with a specialization in Latin America.
Janine N’jie David is Deputy Director of the Global Lab for Research in Action, an active UCLA research institute that pursues evidence-based solutions to critical health, education and economic challenges faced by children, adolescents and women around the world.