Brisa Aviles is an Urban Futures Lab Fellow at Public Matters and a 2019 graduate of the University of California Los Angeles, where she majored in International Development Studies and minored in both Urban Planning and Environmental Systems. She is passionate about community development and environmental justice. Raised in San Ysidro, California, one of the most polluted cities in San Diego, Brisa wants to create impactful storytelling and advocacy in communities who are targets of environmental racism. She is excited to work with Public Matters to deepen her understanding of Los Angeles and explore the integration of visual arts in community development. Outside of Public Matters Brisa works as a community liaison and social media specialist with The River Project, a nonprofit organization focused on watershed restoration for the LA River. She has experience with workshop facilitation, translation and engaging with underrepresented Latinx communities. As an aspiring urban planner, Brisa aims to prioritize community voice and agency in order to build equitable and sustainable cities. Apart from saving the world, on her spare time Brisa enjoys upscaling antiques from thrift stores, tending to her plants, and going to music festivals and concerts with her friends.
An overpass bridge on City Terrace Dr. with a large banner reading “Local Community Control” Photo by Brisa Aviles While thinking about what could be the theme for my capstone project, I knew it had to involve my neighborhood of City Terrace. Is is......
Urban Futures Lab: Yearbook Edition – Ep 1: This is OUR Time Capsule: One Year in Review **For some context, this podcast and its episodes were conceived during the beginning of our quarantine season, and recorded in late April and early May—just a few weeks......
Urban Futures Lab: Yearbook Edition – Ep 2: What Do You Meme? – Breaking Down the UFL Experience **For some context, this podcast and its episodes were conceived during the beginning of our quarantine season, and recorded in late April and early May—just a few......
Urban Futures Lab: Yearbook Edition – Ep 3: The Rose that Grew from Concrete/The Lotus Rising from the Mud **For some context, this podcast and its episodes were conceived during the beginning of our quarantine season, and recorded in late April and early May—just a......
Imagine one day out of the blue somebody asks you, “What motivates you in life?” At first we stutter and think about the question so deeply that we come up with many things, or nothing at all. When I was asked that question for ABSTalk,......
As we conclude this month’s module, I realize that the topic “creative civic engagement” has come to mean many things to me. First and most importantly, it emphasizes the importance of incorporating community voice into public projects. Although this framework may seem simple, it requires......