Good afternoon. My name is Sequoia Erasmus, and I would be honored to serve in the professional seat on the City of Sacramento Active Transportation Commission.
As a candidate, I bring a great deal of personal and professional experience to the position. In 2015, I was inspired to consider leadership within a board or commission when I was selected as a fellow with the Urban Habitat Boards and Commissions leadership program based in Oakland, California. Prior to that time, I had no understanding of how government worked, or how I could make the changes that I yearned to see in my community. That experience served as a catalyst to forming an 'inside-outside strategy' that empowered me to claim a seat at the table within government and spaces of power as an advocate and public servant.
As a young person living in the Bay Area, I deeply worried about the impacts of a changing climate on my community and the world around me. Each day, I witnessed the impacts of limited safe, active, and sustainable transportation options on our health, community connections, and air quality. Through encouragement with leadership training, I became active in my bicycle and pedestrian advocacy community in Richmond. Additionally, I joined the Safe Routes to Schools organizing team with Contra Costa Health Services in West Contra Costa County and learned how to develop, fund, and implement transportation infrastructure improvement plans in partnership with parent leadership at elementary schools throughout the area.
From there, I took on leadership as Secretary and then Chair of the Richmond Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee. I participated in bringing the imagined reality of a world safe for all types of cyclists and pedestrians through community events organized by Rich City Rides, East Bay Bike Party, Urban Tilth, and Bike East Bay. As I made connections, I became more involved in parks and open space improvement projects, soon taking on leadership as a Parks and Recreation Commissioner with the City of Richmond. While working as the Director of Community Engagement in the Office of the Mayor for the City of Richmond, I was able to leverage the power of my position while developing deeper connections and elevating active transportation goals within the city.
In 2018, I moved to Davis to pursue dual master's degrees in Community Development and Transportation Technology and Policy, with the goal of focusing on transportation equity and mobility justice. Upon completion of my degrees, I joined the planning team at the California Transportation Commission where I currently serve as the first Associate Deputy Director of Equity and Engagement for the organization. I now have the opportunity to bring my passion for elevating underrepresented and marginalized voices into state transportation planning, policy and programs. Serving as staff to the Commission has also given me a unique perspective into the inner workings of Commissions and a deep respect for the multitude of time sensitive activities that must occur while producing meetings, reports, strategies, and related items.
Moving to Sacramento in 2019, I was initially excited to see so much active transportation infrastructure and possibilities within the midtown and downtown grids. Now, as a resident of Hollywood Park, it is clear to me that there are severe gaps within our active networks that have been caused by decades of car-focused planning along with the development of super blocks and transportation networks designed and funded by the Federal Highways Administration. These disparities are especially noticeable traveling between affluent neighborhoods and historically redlined areas, such as when we travel south along Freeport Boulevard, Franklin Boulevard, Stockton Boulevard, etc.
As a Commissioner, I will weave together my experience as a dedicated and passionate community advocate with my current role in state government where I strategize to co-create improved transportation funding policies that aim to improve equitable outcomes in communities historically harmed by government policies. While acknowledging and atoning for past harms enacted by our transportation systems, I will continue to work to connect communities throughout Sacramento with access to and knowledge of transformative local, state, and federal planning and funding programs that can continue to provide resources for planning and infrastructure costs. My goal is to help our city transform into a safer, healthier, more connected, and more resilient community. I will help support my colleagues on the Commission with ideas and strategies for engagement, project prioritization, and improving connectivity throughout our city, especially in North and South Sacramento. I will uplift the great work and strategies already enacted by the City of Sacramento Active Transportation team and other passionate leaders such as Ali Doerr and Amy Lee, and continue to bring diverse voices and perspectives to the table.
I am grateful for the opportunity to share my intentions to the Personnel and Public Employees Committee, and I sincerely hope to serve with you all as an Active Transportation Commissioner with the City of Sacramento. Please consider me, Sequoia Erasmus, as your next Commissioner. Thank you.
Our transportation agencies are bloated and need to be reduced.
Good afternoon. My name is Sequoia Erasmus, and I would be honored to serve in the professional seat on the City of Sacramento Active Transportation Commission.
As a candidate, I bring a great deal of personal and professional experience to the position. In 2015, I was inspired to consider leadership within a board or commission when I was selected as a fellow with the Urban Habitat Boards and Commissions leadership program based in Oakland, California. Prior to that time, I had no understanding of how government worked, or how I could make the changes that I yearned to see in my community. That experience served as a catalyst to forming an 'inside-outside strategy' that empowered me to claim a seat at the table within government and spaces of power as an advocate and public servant.
As a young person living in the Bay Area, I deeply worried about the impacts of a changing climate on my community and the world around me. Each day, I witnessed the impacts of limited safe, active, and sustainable transportation options on our health, community connections, and air quality. Through encouragement with leadership training, I became active in my bicycle and pedestrian advocacy community in Richmond. Additionally, I joined the Safe Routes to Schools organizing team with Contra Costa Health Services in West Contra Costa County and learned how to develop, fund, and implement transportation infrastructure improvement plans in partnership with parent leadership at elementary schools throughout the area.
From there, I took on leadership as Secretary and then Chair of the Richmond Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee. I participated in bringing the imagined reality of a world safe for all types of cyclists and pedestrians through community events organized by Rich City Rides, East Bay Bike Party, Urban Tilth, and Bike East Bay. As I made connections, I became more involved in parks and open space improvement projects, soon taking on leadership as a Parks and Recreation Commissioner with the City of Richmond. While working as the Director of Community Engagement in the Office of the Mayor for the City of Richmond, I was able to leverage the power of my position while developing deeper connections and elevating active transportation goals within the city.
In 2018, I moved to Davis to pursue dual master's degrees in Community Development and Transportation Technology and Policy, with the goal of focusing on transportation equity and mobility justice. Upon completion of my degrees, I joined the planning team at the California Transportation Commission where I currently serve as the first Associate Deputy Director of Equity and Engagement for the organization. I now have the opportunity to bring my passion for elevating underrepresented and marginalized voices into state transportation planning, policy and programs. Serving as staff to the Commission has also given me a unique perspective into the inner workings of Commissions and a deep respect for the multitude of time sensitive activities that must occur while producing meetings, reports, strategies, and related items.
Moving to Sacramento in 2019, I was initially excited to see so much active transportation infrastructure and possibilities within the midtown and downtown grids. Now, as a resident of Hollywood Park, it is clear to me that there are severe gaps within our active networks that have been caused by decades of car-focused planning along with the development of super blocks and transportation networks designed and funded by the Federal Highways Administration. These disparities are especially noticeable traveling between affluent neighborhoods and historically redlined areas, such as when we travel south along Freeport Boulevard, Franklin Boulevard, Stockton Boulevard, etc.
As a Commissioner, I will weave together my experience as a dedicated and passionate community advocate with my current role in state government where I strategize to co-create improved transportation funding policies that aim to improve equitable outcomes in communities historically harmed by government policies. While acknowledging and atoning for past harms enacted by our transportation systems, I will continue to work to connect communities throughout Sacramento with access to and knowledge of transformative local, state, and federal planning and funding programs that can continue to provide resources for planning and infrastructure costs. My goal is to help our city transform into a safer, healthier, more connected, and more resilient community. I will help support my colleagues on the Commission with ideas and strategies for engagement, project prioritization, and improving connectivity throughout our city, especially in North and South Sacramento. I will uplift the great work and strategies already enacted by the City of Sacramento Active Transportation team and other passionate leaders such as Ali Doerr and Amy Lee, and continue to bring diverse voices and perspectives to the table.
I am grateful for the opportunity to share my intentions to the Personnel and Public Employees Committee, and I sincerely hope to serve with you all as an Active Transportation Commissioner with the City of Sacramento. Please consider me, Sequoia Erasmus, as your next Commissioner. Thank you.