In this episode we'll hear from Vidal Marquez, Edna Ely-Ledesma and Adrian Diaz about their successful mobile workshop at this year's national planning conference which took place back in may in Minneapolis Minnesota.

The workshop, Puentes: Bridging Healing and Revitalization in Latine neighborhoods, took participants to the East Lake Street Corridor, the largest Hispanic/Latinx neighborhood in the twin cities and a diverse community with immigrants from all over the world.

Vidal F. Márquez is an urban planner born and raised in the Highland Park community of Los Angeles, California. He is the immediate Past Chair of the APA Latinos and Planning Division. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Urban Studies and Planning from the California State University Northridge in Los Angeles. A division member since 2009, Vidal assisted in creating programming and educational opportunities within the Division beginning in 2012. During the fall of 2020, Vidal was proud to lead and produce the Division’s inaugural multi-part conference event entitled L.U.G.A.R.E.S.: Latinidad, Unity, Gente, Advocacy, Resiliencia, Equity, Spaces. A key objective of the conference was to highlight ways in which planners within and outside of formal planning processes are addressing challenges and issues in their communities. Vidal is excited to showcase more resources and achievements for Latine planners who are working to make their communities a better place for all.

Adrian Diaz Jr, is a Planner and Public Engagement Specialist with Short Elliot Hendrickson Inc, has worked with dozens of urban and rural communities throughout the Midwest. He earned two Bachelors of Science in Sustainable Community Development and Sociology with emphasis on social justice and sustainability. Adrian has focused on developing plans that provide equitable solutions and address community needs. Additional to his planning career, he has designed and launched multiple youth programs focused on career development, secondary education, community leadership, and cultural empowerment for Latine youth. Adrian was awarded the United States Presidential Environmental Youth Award for a stewardship project he led in his hometown, Waukegan, Illinois.

Edna Ely-Ledesma is an assistant professor in the Department of Planning and Landscape Architecture at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she directs the Kaufman Lab for the Study and Design of Food Systems and Marketplaces. The corpus of her research, teaching, and mentoring focuses on understanding the development of the smart, green, and just 21st century city. Her work seeks to bridge the gap between communities and city governments to help define the planning and design agency of Latinos, a traditionally under-represented group.

She holds a Ph.D. in Urban and Regional Science from Texas A&M University, a Master of Architecture and a Master of Urban Design from the University of Texas at Austin, and a Bachelor of Environmental Design from Texas A&M University. She was a Ford Foundation Dissertation Fellow. She served as a lecturer in the Urban Design program at the University of Texas School of Architecture (UTSOA) from 2014-2018. In 2017, she was the Emerging Scholar of Race & Gender Fellow in the School of Architecture at the University of Texas at Austin, and in 2018 she was the Carlos E. Castañeda Postdoctoral Fellow for the Center for Mexican American Studies at the University of Texas at Austin.

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Puentes: Bridging Healing and Revitalization in Latine Neighborhoods