ABOUT US

The Basics

Brightline is an environmental justice non-profit that works to empower communities and create sustainable environments. We work to promote sustainable policies that allow low-income residents to remain and work in developing urban communities, focusing on local hiring policies and access to environmental benefits such as solar and energy efficiency.  Our team of community-oriented lawyers connects communities most in need to critical policymaking levers at the local and state level, which can be then modeled nationwide.

Brightline was founded on November 22, 2005 and received tax-exempt status as an IRS-recognized 501(c)(3) designated public charity on November 8, 2006.

Our Story

Brightline Defense Project began operation in 2006 as a traditional legal aid organization, but a chance 2007 City Hall meeting with community leader Espanola Jackson (pictured above) led the organization on a path to becoming a strong voice in the advocacy movement to bring environmental justice and quality-of-life improvements to San Francisco’s Bayview-Hunters Point community. A high-profile campaign to close San Francisco's Potrero Power Plant without building new dirty power plants among the city's southeast sector low-income communities of color built Brightline's capacity to promote renewable energy programs in San Francisco and beyond. Subsequent efforts to develop green-collar job opportunities for those historically burdened by power plant pollution led to Brightline's leadership role in working with Supervisor John Avalos and other community advocates to craft San Francisco's local hiring policy for construction, now celebrated as the most successful of its kind in the country.

The evolution from environmental justice activism, to clean energy support, to green job promotion, to local hiring policy development has elevated Brightline’s reputation as a capable advocate for underserved and underrepresented communities.

Our Mission

Brightline’s mandate is simple: empowering communities, sustainable environments. Our mission is to promote sustainability and opportunity in traditionally underserved communities through public policy advocacy and partnerships. Our focus is on three pathways to protect and empower communities in need: advancing environmental justice, ensuring job creation and retention, and advocating for the development of fair, affordable, and sustainable housing.

OUR TEAM

Eddie Ahn, Executive Director

Eddie Ahn has been engaged in policy and legal advocacy since 2009. Prior to being a nonprofit attorney, he was an AmeriCorps member, teaching public speaking and arts workshops in Oakland’s Chinatown. While working toward his law degree, he continued to teach art and public speaking workshops for youth and worked for the Assembly Judiciary Committee in Sacramento. His workforce development expertise and analysis of federal constitutional law has also assisted multiple municipalities in Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, and New York. In December 2021, Eddie was inducted into the State of California’s Clean Energy Hall of Fame for his work in equity and clean energy.

In addition to his work for Brightline, Eddie serves on three commissions for local and state government agencies related to environmental policymaking. In 2017, Eddie was appointed to the SF Commission on the Environment, which sets policy for the SF Department of Environment and advises the City and County on environmental matters. In 2018, he was appointed to the SF Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC), a state planning and regulatory agency with regional authority over the Bay Area. In June 2020, he was appointed to the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC), which plans and finances transit in the nine Bay Area counties. In 2022, he was elected by his peers to serve as President of the SF Commission on the Environment. He has also served on the boards of Asian Pacific Environmental Network (APEN) and Mission Housing Development Corporation.

Eddie has received his J.D. from University of California, Hastings College of the Law and his B.A. from Brown University. He is also a member of the California State Bar.

More about Eddie’s Brightline work can be found here.

Cecilia Mejia, Program Coordinator

Cecilia Mejia coordinates Brightline’s Construction on Ramp Program and the Brightline Air Quality Monitoring Program. Cecilia is a recent graduate of the University of California, Berkeley where she majored in Conservation and Resource Studies. At UC Berkeley, Cecilia was the earth week associate at the Student Environmental Resource Center and a research associate for a zero waste research lab to help develop a zero waste guide for the university. Cecilia is interested in the intersection of environmental justice and gender as well as equitable environmental restoration. She hopes to develop her community building skills on a deeper level to empower communities that are affected by environmental injustices.

Sarah Xu, Policy Associate

Sarah Xu is a Brightline policy associate working on environmental and local issues. Some of Sarah’s projects include planning for California’s offshore wind future and data analysis for the Brightline Air Quality Monitoring Program. Sarah is a recent graduate of the University of California, Berkeley where she majored in Environmental Economics and Policy. At UC Berkeley, Sarah was the community engagement associate at the Student Environmental Resource Center and a core student organizer with the Students of Color Environmental Collective. She has worked at Brightline Defense previously as a Summer 2020 Policy Fellow. Sarah hopes to continue building her skills and knowledge on environmental policy to help make the world a more equitable and sustainable place.

Dilini Lankachandra, Policy Counsel

Dilini Lankachandra supports Brightline as policy counsel after serving as Brightline’s legal fellow from 2015-2016. She also works as staff attorney for A Better Balance in the Defending Local Democracy Project. Throughout law school, she worked for the Green-Collar Communities Clinic (GC3) at the East Bay Community Law Center. She has continued to work at GC3 as a legislative advocate promoting worker cooperatives as a vehicle for community-based economic growth. Her workforce development expertise has specifically benefited multiple municipal jurisdictions in New Jersey.   

Dilini has received her J.D. from University of California, Berkeley, School of Law, and her B.A. from Columbia University.  She is also a member of the New York and California State Bars.

Peter Ton, Legal Advisor

Peter supports Brightline as outside legal counsel. He is a shareholder at Ton Law P.C. where his practice is devoted to environmental counseling and litigation relating to hazardous substances, hazardous wastes, water quality, air quality, endangered species, and environmental health & safety compliance. He represents private and public sector clients in state and federal court, and before administrative bodies. Peter also has an active pro bono practice focused on issues of equity. 

Peter received his J.D. from UCLA School of Law and his B.A. from U.C. Berkeley. He is a member of the Executive Committee for the Environment Law Section of the California Lawyers Association and is the former chair of Environmental Law Section of the Alameda County Bar Association. Peter currently serves on the board of GRID Alternatives Bay Area, a nonprofit whose work focuses on ensuring an inclusive and just clean energy transition.

Daniela Cortes, Climate Data & Policy Analyst

Daniela is an MPH Candidate in Environmental Health Sciences at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health and holds a B.A in International Studies. She is supporting Brightline’s work as a Climate Data and Policy Analyst throughout Summer 2022. From 2019-2021, Daniela served as Program Coordinator for Brightline, leading its programs in air quality monitoring, job training, and youth leadership. Currently, Daniela also works at the National Center for Disaster Preparedness as a Graduate Research Assistant and at Clarity as a Project Manager Intern. Working at the intersection of policy, public health, and climate science, she hopes to protect the health of people and the planet.

Emily Shambaugh, Climate Data & Policy Analyst

Emily is an MPH Candidate in Environmental Health Sciences at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health. She received her B.S. at Georgetown University in Global Health and Biotechnology. Emily is furthering Brightline's mission as a Climate Data and Policy Analyst for the Summer of 2022. She is passionate about furthering climate-oriented goals through scientifically-informed policymaking that reflects the values and concerns of the most affected groups.

Merhawit Mehzun, Policy Fellow

Merhawit Mehzun is a junior at the University of San Francisco majoring in International Studies and minoring in Architecture. She is a part of the Honors College at the university and serves in many leadership positions on campus, including serving as a peer advisor in the International Studies Department, being a member of the orientation team, and acting on the E-Board of the African Student Association and Ethiopian and Eritrean Student Association. She has previously served as a Youth Ambassador for the city of Los Angeles and is passionate about community service and mentoring. She hopes to work in the sustainable development and environmental justice field.

Jakob Evans, Policy Fellow

Jakob Evans is a junior at the University of California, Berkeley majoring in Political Science and Environmental Studies. He is fascinated by the role that community-building plays in environmental justice. He works at the Student Environmental Resource Center at UCB making the student environmental community more resilient through institutional support. He is excited to be researching the intersection of policy and community at Brightline this summer.

Angel More, Policy Fellow

Angel More is joining Brightline as a Summer Policy Fellow. She is studying Environmental Science and Music Industry at UCLA. She is a coordinator for the UCLA Green New Deal and Environmentalist of Color Collective. Angel is a fellow for the UC Carbon Neutrality Initiative where she developed an interactive campus installation to engage the UCLA community with imagining an innovative, equitable, and sustainable next 100 years. She is interested in intersectional environmentalism, community engagement, and sustainability in the music industry.

Audrey Mallah, Policy Fellow

Audrey is studying Environmental Economics at Scripps College where she participates in climate action through school-specific divestment advocacy and political campaigning through the Sunrise Movement. She has conducted research on environmental health damage in the Greater Los Angeles Area and previously served as a member of the Albany, CA Board of Education for three years. She greatly looks forward to working with Brightline as a Policy Fellow for the summer of 2022.

OUR BOARD