In recent years, transportation planners have been making major strides in equitable community engagement. At the state level, Caltrans has been working on ways to be more intentional about how the agency thinks about the people and communities they serve. In this webinar, hear from state leaders on innovative approaches for enhancing community engagement efforts across various Caltrans divisions. This webinar will highlight programs like the People and Community First Action Plan (PC1AP), (previously known as the Race & Equity Action Plan), share progress on these plans to date, and welcome insights from civic and community partners.
Resources
Meet the Speaker
Nailah Pope-Harden
Deputy Director of the Director’s Office of Equity & Tribal Affairs & EEO Officer
Caltrans
Nailah Pope-Harden
Nailah Pope-Harden is born and raised in South Sacramento, despite the poor air quality, that community is where she breathes the safest. In her professional capacity she serves as the Deputy Director of the Director’s Office of Equity & Tribal Affairs & EEO Officer at Caltrans. In those roles she leads statewide efforts that advance transportation equity and strengthen partnerships with California Tribes. Her work centers on culturally informed policy development, meaningful community engagement, and expanding accessibility across the state’s transportation systems. Through initiatives stewarded across her five different offices/units (Tribal Affairs Office, Transportation Equity Office, Advancing Community Engagement Office, Discrimination Complaint Investigation Unit and Training and Resource Unit), they help shape a more inclusive, responsive, and equitable future for all Californians and Caltrans employees. In her personal life, Nailah is a part of the sandwich generation caring for aging parents and a growing son. She loves to be in community spaces, laughing loudly, with great music in the background.
