Emi Yoko-Young

At the young age of three, Emi (she/her) was introduced to the joys of growing food through her grandparents who both worked as gardeners. Now as an adult, the time she spends in her urban garden is a key source of grounding and reflection for her, despite the fact that her attempts to grow food do not always result in the most bountiful harvest. As an East Oakland resident, Emi is deeply invested in the health of her community. So she is excited to leverage her enthusiasm for cultivation to support the actualization of Acta Non Verba’s vision, and to ensure that the organization has the resources that are needed to thrive. 

Emi is committed to fighting for our collective liberation through multiracial solidarity, a regenerative economy, and organizing for the abolition of harmful institutions and a future of self-determination. Through her role as the Manager of Policy and Advocacy at Race Forward, Emi facilitates and supports grassroot collectives in centering racial justice in their organizing work and creating a community-centered policy process. This primarily involves nerding out over creating project management systems that are values-aligned and that leverage power for equitable decision-making. Emi holds a Master of Public Health degree from the University of Washington in the Community-Oriented Public Health Practice program.

Outside of work, Emi enjoys backpacking with her spouse to places where she can get lost reading sci-fi and speculative fiction, spending too much time trying to win the affection of their two cats, and building deep relationships with her family and friends (until her introversion forces her to hide). She owes her stubbornness and intentionality to the collective of Japanese women who raised her, including her mother, aunties, sister, and grandmother.