The majority of people desire change; many know what they would like to see different in the world, and even some know how it might be done best. However, there are an emerging group of local entrepreneurs who act to make change happen in their communities, these people are called local changemakers. Using a combination of knowledge, resources, and determination, changemakers push through adversity, using creative problems solving, until their vision becomes reality. Changemakers are the force of social evolution; everyone can become one, and everyone should. Join us as we introduce you to several local changemakers from our community who are attempting to make a difference.
Marina is a well-rounded design strategist with a deep love for service design, innovation, strength-based leadership, and all things human-centered. With an emphasis on storytelling and customer journey, she employs the design thinking process to help organizations of all sizes create sustainable growth. She hosts a weekly podcast called Why Service Design Thinking, which is streamed worldwide in more than 70 countries.
She believes that the world would be a better place if every person worked by the principles of design thinking and lived by the principles of jazz improvisation
Nuevo South emerged from the notion that a community could thrive given the right blend of resources and support. With this vision NTS Creative Group (“NTS”) Owner and Creative Director, Jorge Nuño, relocated his marketing and advertising business to a three-story craftsman house in South Los Angeles; only a few blocks away from his childhood home. Keeping true to his connection with the community, Nuño sought to develop a vehicle through which others could also benefit from his success. NTS intentionally began to engage the community with the ultimate goal of elevating the relationship between the youth, education and technology. This effort transformed the NTS offices into much more than a business; it became a community hub. The neighborhood youth utilize the space for various purposes, including study hall, recreation area, and a place to complete school projects.
Rudy Espinoza is the Executive Director of Leadership for Urban Renewal (LURN) and an urban planner with a passion for neighborhoods, entrepreneurism, and financial empowerment. He specializes in designing and managing place-based initiatives, identifying profitable investment opportunities in low-income communities, building private/nonprofit partnerships and training the working poor to participate in the socio-economic revitalization of their neighborhoods. Rudy holds a Masters in Urban Planning from UCLA and a B.S. in Business Administration.
Mike Blockstein, Principal, is a visual artist and educator. He has created and led projects nationally, working with youth, community leaders and organizations to reflect on, understand and shape their physical, social and political geographies, including A Chinatown Banquet in Boston Chinatown, Market Makeovers’ work on healthy food access, and PDUB Productions in Los Angeles’ Historic Filipinotown. He has a long track of pushing paradigms in the visual arts, as Director of Southern Exposure, a San Francisco artists’ organization, through the National Association of Artists Organizations, and as a rare visual artist with a Master in Public Administration from Harvard’s Kennedy School.
Oscar is a first generation college student who's ambition for business, product design, and entrepreneurship has given him the opportunity to be an emerging local leader in his community. As an undergraduate at Cal State L.A., Oscar successfully led his team, Conaxion, to a stunning 1st place victory over USC & LMU at L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti's first ever Civic Entrepreneurship Competition, The Mayor's Cup. In addition, Oscar is the current president of the Entrepreneurship Club on campus and is an extremely active contributor to South L.A.'s community social enterprise, The Big House.