Participation barrier
People may experience the consequences of policy without understanding how an issue moves from a community problem to legislation, implementation, oversight, and change.
CASE STUDY · GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS AND PUBLIC PROGRAMMING
Policy Convenings, Civic Education & Coalition Work
Creating public-facing programs that make complex policy understandable, bring the right stakeholders into the room, and connect conversation to civic or organizational action.
- ROLE
- Producer, consultant, and policy-education partner
- SETTINGS
- National conferences, Capitol Hill, U.S. Capitol Visitor Center, and virtual forums
- AUDIENCES
- Policymakers, advocates, entrepreneurs, institutions, and communities
- FOCUS
- Access, education, representation, and action
At a glance. My government-affairs work sits at the intersection of policy education, advocacy, coalition building, and production. I have helped identify issues, frame public conversations, develop programs, recruit participants, coordinate speakers and stakeholders, prepare materials, manage logistics, and create pathways for continued engagement. My legal cannabis work addressed regulation, equity, Black economic participation, patient access, public education, and government accountability within a broader portfolio spanning civic participation, workforce, community development, and public policy.
01 THE CHALLENGE
Policy becomes inaccessible when people cannot see how it touches their lives
Production barrier
A productive policy forum requires more than speakers. The issue, audience, decision-makers, partners, content, logistics, messaging, and call to action all have to align.
PUBLIC-AFFAIRS QUESTIONHow do we create a credible space where lived experience, policy expertise, institutional authority, and community action can meet?
02 SELECTED PRODUCTION PORTFOLIO
Programs positioned at the intersection of policy and public understanding
Congressional Black Caucus Foundation ALC
Produced the first cannabis-focused plenary session for the Annual Legislative Conference, positioning the issue within a major national policy forum.
Policy inclusion session
Produced a government-facing session that brought together policy voices, legal-industry stakeholders, advocates, and public education around equitable participation and access.
Policy symposium
Developed a symposium and coordinated programming, participants, and stakeholder relationships in a high-visibility federal setting.
Get Up, Get Out and Vote
Designed and produced a week-long virtual conference during the pandemic, coordinating content, speakers, digital access, facilitation, and audience participation.
Task forces and issue networks
Supported relationships among policymakers, advocates, licensed cannabis operators, industry professionals, institutions, community organizations, and subject-matter experts.
Policy and civics education
Recognized the need for workshops that help participants understand how government works, connect local problems to policy pathways, and identify practical next actions.
03 HOW I APPROACH THE WORK
Production architecture for public impact
01IssueDefine the public problem, affected communities, policy context, and purpose
02VoicesIdentify lived experience, technical expertise, influence, and decision-making access
03ProgramDesign sessions, questions, speakers, materials, pacing, and calls to action
04CoalitionBuild relationships across government, institutions, industry, and community
05DeliveryCoordinate contracts, logistics, communications, participant access, and live execution
06ActionConnect participants to advocacy, resources, relationships, task forces, or local work
04 EVIDENCE OF VALUE
A broader government-affairs capability
Issue visibility
Elevated policy subjects and community perspectives within national and federal-facing forums.
Cross-sector participation
Connected public officials, advocates, industry voices, community organizations, educators, and institutions around shared issues.
Ideas made operational
Converted concepts into agendas, speakers, sponsorships, materials, logistics, participant experiences, and follow-through.
SCOPE NOTE
This case describes my production and policy-education work. It does not claim authorship of legislation, lobbying outcomes, or organization-wide results that were produced by broader coalitions.
LEADERSHIP PRINCIPLE
Public engagement works when people understand the issue, recognize their role, and leave with a route to action.
This work demonstrates government-facing program development, policy education, coalition engagement, stakeholder coordination, and high-visibility production.