Policy + Campaign Strategist
Welcome.
I believe that everyday people—low-income workers, immigrants, artists, renters, parents, people of color—make our cities work.
For nearly 20 years, I’ve been committed to making our cities work for these communities, too.
An Academic Expat
My career as a researcher started amid the anti-displacement movement in the Bay Area, where I lived from 2009 to 2022. During that time, I received a PhD in Geography and Global Metropolitan Studies at UC Berkeley. But my experience moving back and forth between campus and community—where I was deeply involved in cultural organizing and policy, including as a core researcher for the City of Oakland’s 2018 Cultural Plan—convinced me that the most meaningful place to use my skills as a scholar was in service of policy change.
Finding My Home in Housing Justice
After graduating from Berkeley, I joined the policy team of an East Bay housing justice organization just weeks before the start of COVID-19. Seeing the pandemic’s devastating impact on low-income renters, I supported tenant-centered coalitions fighting to stem a tidal wave of eviction and homelessness.
Here, I learned to balance the detail-oriented rigor of my technical training and the human-oriented ethics of community organizing—the head and the heart—to improve the material conditions of everyday people. Although I had over a decade of experience in social science research methods, my most valuable training came from working across sectors with diverse coalitions and grassroots leaders to translate the lived expertise of impacted communities into the language of policy.
As Policy and Research Advisor to the Raise the Roof Coalition in Contra Costa County, I’ve supported successful campaigns to protect renters from eviction and harassment, stabilize rents and communities, level the playing field in eviction court, place reasonable guardrails on real estate speculation, and shift land and resources toward nonprofit- and community-controlled affordable housing for the long term.
Partnering with Progressive Organizations
Over the past several years, I’ve continued to advance strategic policy solutions and campaigns as a consultant for community groups, nonprofit organizations, and aligned government agencies. See here for a select list of clients and projects.
Although I’ve worked extensively on housing justice and tenants’ rights, my core competencies translate to a range of organizations and issue areas, including land use and urban planning; arts and culture; and economic, racial, and immigrant justice. I’m currently available to support clients in any related policy realm, remotely or with limited travel.
Regardless of the project, as your consultant I’m committed to:
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Diving deep into data and best practices.
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Centering values and strategy throughout the research process
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Translating data to get to the heart of the matter.
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Collaborating across diverse stakeholder groups.
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Managing complex processes across remote teams.
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Leveraging text, media, and design to reach key audiences.
More About Me: Parent, Author + Artist
In 2023, I moved back to my hometown, Northampton, MA, to raise my daughter near my parents.
In 2025, I published On Loop: Black Sonic Politics in Oakland (UC Press). It explores the importance of Black dance music and sonic practices to the everyday social movements that have shaped this iconic and contested city—my beloved second home. You can learn more about the book here.
I’m a dancer and DJ. If you’re in Western Mass, sign up for updates on local gigs, including the quarterly party series Village Disco.
Contact.
If you're interested in learning more about my services, please email me to schedule a free discovery call at contact@alexwerth.me.