I research public policy solutions to help California achieve housing abundance for the Possibility Lab's new Abundance Accelerator initiative. Learn more here: https://possibilitylab.berkeley.edu/the-abundance-accelerator/

As the inaugural Research Fellow at the California YIMBY Education Fund, I authored the report "The Dysfunctional Metropolis: Reforming Los Angeles’s Land Use Planning and Entitlement," which describes how the dynamics of the Los Angeles City Council influence land use planning and entitlement in LA, with a focus on the production of multifamily housing. The report documents the specific challenges that impede the entitlement of new residential developments and offers recommendations that the City of Los Angeles could implement to improve its processes. The widely circulated report is available at the link below.https://cayimby.org/research/la-the-dysfunctional-metropolis/

Developed detailed case studies of four US metro areas that are comparable to the Bay Area in terms of size, density, job growth, and political leanings but which have produced much more housing relative to job and population growth. The aim was to determine what governance reforms (at the local, regional, and state levels) will be needed to enable the Bay Area to produce sufficient housing.

Supported impact and performance evaluations of international development projects by conducting desk research, designing data collection instruments, analyzing data, presenting findings, and managing projects. - Utilized Stata to clean, code, and analyze quantitative data, including performing data quality checks.- Programmed and managed large-scale web surveys using Qualtrics, often administered in multiple languages.- Drafted qualitative interview protocols; developed code frames; and analyzed and reported on qualitative findings. - Provided technical and managerial support for projects and proposals related to gender, labor, migration, education, literacy, crime, political participation, civil society, and good governance.Select projects:- Developed an assessment framework and data collection tools for USAID to assess the state of women’s political participation and leadership in any country, focusing on individual and societal factors that facilitate or impede women’s participation. In particular, I contributed significantly to designing and writing a survey instrument that could be administered in many country contexts.- Consolidated research commissioned by the USAID’s Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance Center by producing and maintaining a document catalog with the key findings of over 120 reports, thus creating a body of knowledge to inform USAID of best practices in the sector.- Managed country case studies in South Africa and Mexico for an evaluation of a global labor rights program funded by USAID.- Led six trainings of interviewers and data collection staff (over 100 people in total) and supervised the launch of data collection activities in Guyana, St. Lucia, and St. Kitts and Nevis for two impact evaluations related to juvenile justice reforms and programming to support at-risk youth.

- Organized hundreds of campaign volunteers for the largest grassroots campaign in Texas history- Trained over 100 volunteers to be block walk and phone bank captains following a train-the-trainer model- Managed logistics, supplies, and staffing for five satellite campaign offices in south San Antonio

As a recipient of the Wagoner Foreign Study Scholarship, I spent eight months in Medellín, Colombia working on an independent sociological research project. I researched the social impacts of urban development projects in historically marginalized neighborhoods of Medellín through a gendered perspective. I met with dozens of academics, government officials, and community leaders, and I conducted interviews with women living in low-resource neighborhoods. I was invited to work with the Center for Political Analysis at the Universidad EAFIT in Medellín.

- Managed and analyzed data of over 500 clients for the pilot Mental Health Jail Diversion Program (www.mhjdp.org), which was established by Judge Ed Emmett in 2013.- Developed and administered surveys of a dozen MHJDP partner agencies to inform an evaluation of the pilot program's success.- Prepared presentations and documents shared with county officials, members of the Texas Legislature, and the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS).- Streamlined the mass shelter plan for the Harris County Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management.

As an intern with SEHTA, I led the planning of a “Pop-Up” Neighborhood Greenway event to educate the community about connectivity and to advocate for the expansion of bike and walk infrastructure in the OST/South Union neighborhood. I engaged with local stakeholders and established community partnerships. I worked with the City of Houston to secure necessary permits and police security.

While spending a semester studying abroad in Buenos Aires, Argentina, I worked as an unpaid intern in the local office of the multinational NGO TECHO, which primarily provides emergency housing and services to impoverished areas in Latin American countries. As an intern, I maintained and organized an online portal with information about the thousands of TECHO volunteers in the Buenos Aires area, and I communicated in Spanish with hundreds of potential volunteers over the phone and via email. Additionally, I volunteered with TECHO on weekends and participated in the construction of a new house for a family living in a highly underserved area.

Over the course of a semester, I worked in a team of four undergraduates to conduct a research project for the City of Houston Parks and Recreation Department. Our goal was to learn how members of underserved communities use Houston parks and how they would like to see parks improved. We wrote an original survey instrument, and surveyed over 400 individuals at parks around the city. We analyzed the data, presented our findings to the Parks department and provided recommendations on how to improve Houston parks. We published our findings in the article "More Inclusive Parks Planning" in the journal Environmental Justice in spring 2016. Our research also won three awards at the Rice Undergraduate Research Symposium in April 2016.