FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
LOS ANGELES, CA (September 27, 2018) – The River LA Board voted this week to name Angela Barranco the next CEO of River LA. After nearly a decade of service to River LA as founding Executive Director and CEO, Omar Brownson, with the Board’s full support will transition into the new role of Senior Advisor in the new year.
Barranco was recruited last year, when Brownson and Board Chair Harry Chandler completed a national search to find an executive who could run River LA and build broader public support. Barranco is an experienced national leader with an expertise in large-scale public engagement. A conservation biologist by training, she led public engagement and strategy for President Obama’s White House environmental policies and served as Deputy Chief of Staff at the US Department of Housing and Urban Development. Angela also has managed a number of high-profile political campaigns across the country including as senior leadership on the 2012 presidential re-election. In California, prior to running the day-to-day at River LA as COO, Angela worked as a strategic advisor for climate change and environmental initiatives including clean energy, clean cars, and protecting national monuments.
“We are thrilled to have Angela as our next CEO and fired up to continue the great momentum for reimagining the LA River,” Board Chair Chandler stated. “We are thankful to Omar for his pioneering work over the past decade for the LA River, and excited for the team to take our work to the next level.”
“I’m honored to succeed Omar Brownson as CEO of River LA,” Barranco stated. “Our shared vision for connecting 51 miles of Los Angeles through the shared public resource of the LA River can only succeed with participation and engagement from the many diverse communities across the region. I am excited to share my experience with large-scale community engagement and activation to take River LA’s mission to new heights.”
“I could not be more grateful to have served as the founding Executive Director and President,” stated Brownson. “River LA has led groundbreaking collaborations to move the vision and transformation of the LA River forward. I am proud of what we have accomplished, and I am also excited to take on a new role as Senior Advisor. In this relay, it is a privilege to pass on the baton of leadership to Angela knowing the organization is in great hands.”
This transition has already begun, with Barranco officially assuming the role of CEO as of January 1, 2019.
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River LA is a nonprofit committed to its mission to integrate design and infrastructure to bring people, water and nature together along all 51 miles of the Los Angeles River. River LA is working to build a healthier, more vibrant and resilient Los Angeles County for generations to come. To learn more about River LA’s work along all 51 miles please visit our Facebook, Twitter, and website.
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