Join EPIP Bay Area for a virtual panel on Thursday, August 27, 2020 from 11 am-12 pm. Emily Thielmann, Program Director of the Democracy Funders Network and Carla Bernal, Program Associate on the Hewlett Foundation's US Democracy team will discuss what they are learning from their work on the 2020 election and what we can do within our communities to further our participation in these efforts. 

Topics covered by Emily:

• Brief intro to Democracy Funders Network -- a cross-ideological learning and action community for donors concerned about the health of American democracy
• How we approach the work 
• What do we mean by democracy? What is included in the democracy space?

Topics covered by Carla:

• Brief intro to the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation’s U.S. Democracy Program and areas of work (evolving strategy, the 2020 Census, and DEI)
  
• How do we build an inclusive and equitable multiracial democracy? The importance of centering racial equity and BIPOC-led organizations in our grantmaking and the U.S. democracy field, especially during an election year

Additionally, the speakers will answer your questions and share a few resources that will help you with next steps.

Registration is mandatory to receive Zoom dial-in information. Please reach out if you have any questions.

Emily Thielmann is a Director with Third Plateau, where she works to support clients across the country in advancing bold visions for social change. As part of an array of client work at Third Plateau, Emily is Program Director for the Democracy Funders Network, a cross-ideological learning and action community for donors concerned about the health of American democracy. Emily comes to Third Plateau with a background in youth and community engagement and cross-sector systems change. She specializes in building inclusive decision-making processes that center the voices of those most affected by social problems, facilitating conversations toward adaptive solutions, and building networks for social change. She is energized every day by a love of people, a penchant for creative problem solving, and a vision for a more equitable world. 

Prior to Third Plateau, Emily spent seven years with the Cutler Institute’s Youth & Community Engagement team at the University of Southern Maine. There, she worked to leverage opportunities for youth and community-led systems change at the local, regional, and national levels in order to improve long-term outcomes for youth and families, especially those facing barriers to education or employment. Emily co-founded and directed the award-winning initiative, Portland Empowered, which created a platform for over 500 of the students and parents most under-represented in decision-making in Maine’s largest and most diverse school district to drive local education reform. She also worked for six years as part of the Aspen Institute’s Opportunity Youth Incentive Fund to help design and facilitate an ambitious cross-sector effort to advance policy and practice change on behalf of disconnected youth in Maine. 

Before the Cutler Institute, Emily worked in a smattering of grassroots organizing, education, and youth development roles in Maine, Virginia, New York, Michigan, and Indiana. Emily spent her childhood living in the Soviet Union, Virginia, and Brazil. Emily holds a B.A. in Philosophy from Vassar College and a Master’s in Public Policy and Management from the Muskie School of Public Service at the University of Southern Maine. She is a Speaker Emeritus with the Nellie Mae Education Foundation Speakers Bureau on Education Innovation. She is married to a musician and artist, lives in the East Bay, and strikes a busy balance of adventuring with friends and curling up with books.

Carla Bernal is a Program Associate at the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, where she launched a pilot fund to support projects on racial equity, inclusion, and diversity for the U.S. Democracy Program. She also provides strategic funding advice on the 2020 census and oversees the program’s grants and consultant management.

Previously, Carla was appointed as one of the youngest political appointees to serve in President Barack Obama's Administration. In 2016, she served as the Deputy White House Liaison at the U.S. Department of Justice for Attorney General Loretta Lynch, where she managed the transition of political appointees serving under the Obama administration and worked on community policing issues. In 2014, Carla served as the Confidential Assistant at the Office on Violence Against Women, where she worked with the White House Council on Women and Girls to enhance the federal interagency response to issues that disproportionately impact women and girls of color, including gender-based violence, criminal justice, and juvenile justice.  

Carla graduated Phi Beta Kappa with high distinction from UC Berkeley, where she holds a bachelor of arts in rhetoric with a concentration in public discourse.