Helen Chin, Senior Fellow, Communities First
Helen Chin joins Race Forward as Senior Fellow to launch and lead Communities First, a joint partnership between Race Forward and Amalgamated Foundation. Prior to joining Race Forward, Helen worked at the Surdna Foundation as Program Director and as Program Officer for Sustainable Environments, leading the program’s work to develop and support people of color and low-wealth communities in promoting infrastructure development to achieve racial equity, and economic, environmental and climate justice.
Her previous experience includes leading initiatives on land use planning and transportation to advance sustainability at WE ACT for Environmental Justice, and serving as Acting Deputy Director at the International Fund for Animal Welfare, where she managed a grant portfolio that designed and supported programs to provide Indigenous communities with the skills and resources needed to preserve and protect natural resources and wildlife habitat in over 15 countries. She has also spent a significant amount of time in Africa, Asia, and India, working directly with communities.