TSTC - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Vice President of State Government & Public Affairs, UPS
Dana joined the Tri-State Transportation Campaign as the South Jersey Advocate in October 2015 to advocate for healthier, safer and more equitable communities throughout southern New Jersey and the Greater Philadelphia area. Dana's work is connects sustainable transportation policies and opportunities to improve access to safe, reliable modes of transportation to a wide range of stakeholder groups, elected officials and the media. Dana also works to secure funding and support for multi-use trails in southern New Jersey as member of the Circuit Trails Coalition. Prior to working at TSTC, Dana worked in the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission's Transit, Bicycle, and Pedestrian Planning division, as well as at Pennsylvania Environmental Council as an advocate for better trail and water resources. Dana received a Master's of City and Regional Planning at the University of Pennsylvania and a B.A. in Geography and Urban Studies, as well as Sociology at Temple University.
Job Titles:
- Research and Policy Manager
Darwin approaches transportation through the lens of climate, health, and environmental justice and specializes in advancing policy through data and GIS analysis. Before TSTC, Darwin worked with the NY State Office of the Attorney General, the Natural Resources Defense Council, and as a researcher at Columbia University collecting data on biking and air pollution in NYC. Darwin received a Masters of Public Health from the Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University with a certificate in Environmental Health Policy, and a B.S. in Biology & Environmental Studies from Haverford College.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Executive Director, General Contractors Association of New York
Job Titles:
- Office and Administrative Consultant
With 20 years of non-profit sector work experience, Dona is dedicated to community engagement with a focus on connecting resources and creating support systems. She can navigate and facilitate projects and relationships that support the growth of an organization. With her commitment to diversity and equity, she has led efforts to eliminate structural racism, gender, and age discrimination through her work around developing strategies and processes for Public Allies New York as the Director of Recruitment. The impact of this work led her to receive the Breaking Barriers Award: Excellence in recruitment & retention of LGBTQ Allies in 2016. Her tireless effort to advocate for diversity has also led her to New York Urban League as the Education Director, where she led multiple programs and events that advanced Black and Brown youth by connecting them to resources and mentors. From 2018 to 2020, her leadership helped over 1000 high school students receive on-site college admissions, and college scholarships, and offer STEAM programming. Dona joined TSTC as a consultant in September 2022 to support in areas of administrative, operational, and office management.
Dana joined the Tri-State Transportation Campaign as the South Jersey Advocate in October 2015 to advocate for healthier, safer and more equitable communities throughout southern New Jersey and the Greater Philadelphia area. Dana's work is connects sustainable transportation policies and opportunities to improve access to safe, reliable modes of transportation to a wide range of stakeholder groups, elected officials and the media. Dana also works to secure funding and support for multi-use trails in southern New Jersey as member of the Circuit Trails Coalition. Prior to working at TSTC, Dana worked in the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission's Transit, Bicycle, and Pedestrian Planning division, as well as at Pennsylvania Environmental Council as an advocate for better trail and water resources. Dana received a Master's of City and Regional Planning at the University of Pennsylvania and a B.A. in Geography and Urban Studies, as well as Sociology at Temple University.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Executive Director, Vision Long Island
Job Titles:
- Director of Regional Infrastructure Projects
Felicia is Tri-State Transportation Campaign's Director of Regional Infrastructure Projects. Her focus is two-fold -federal outreach and large-scale infrastructure projects, including the Cross-Harbor Freight Tunnel, Amtrak's Gateway Program, Sunnyside Yards Development, New York Penn Station, and the Port Authority Bus Terminal. Previously, Felicia served as Senior Field Deputy to Supervisor Sheila Kuehl of Los Angeles, where her portfolio included serving as liaison to the Jewish and LGBTQ communities; the LA Veterans Administration campus overhaul; subway expansion; and serving on the Homeless to Housing interagency task force, which successfully raised LA's minimum wage to $15 per hour in 2015. She has worked in the Jewish community and the LGBTQ rights movement, having served a combined 15 years as executive director of COLAGE, the national support and advocacy member-based organization for people with LGBTQ parents, and Beth Chayim Chadashim, an LGBT-founded synagogue. Felicia recently completed her Master's degree in Urban Planning & Policy at Hunter College with a concentration in transportation and infrastructure. She attended Macalester College in St. Paul, MN and graduated cum laude from San Francisco State University.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Partner, Szaferman, Lakind, Blumstein & Blader, P.C
Job Titles:
- Director, New Jersey Policy
- Senior New Jersey Policy Analyst
Janna Chernetz joined TSTC in 2011. As TSTC's Senior New Jersey Policy Analyst, Janna focuses on issues related to sustainable funding of the New Jersey Transportation Trust Fund and the state budget, responsible transportation spending and investment decisions, pedestrian and bicycle safety, and enhancing economic development through the connection of land use and transportation. While at TSTC, Janna lead a successful campaign to include bike accommodations on the entire 12.5 mile NJDOT rebuild of Route 35 in Ocean County, serving as a national example of how Completes Streets can be implemented. Janna played an integral role in the creation of the 2014 NJDOT's Pedestrian Safety Action Plan and currently serves as an Executive Council member of New Jersey's Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC). Janna received her B.A. in Political Science from Rutgers University in 1999, and her Juris Doctor from Vermont Law School in 2002 where she was an Environmental Dean's Fellow. Janna was admitted to practice law in New Jersey in 2002 and is currently a registered Governmental Affairs Agent.
Job Titles:
- Director of Climate & Equity Policy
- Tri - State Transportation Campaign As the Director
Jaqi joined Tri-State Transportation Campaign as the Director of Climate and Equity Policy in September 2021. She got her start as an organizer in local electoral politics, and has gone on to work on advocacy campaigns both as a community organizer and policy expert. Previously, Jaqi worked at the New York Public Interest Research Group, most recently as Campaign Director of the NYPIRG Straphangers Campaign, where she helped bring about wins to transform New York City's streets, improve bus service within the five boroughs, and make MTA service more accessible. She recently sat on the New York City Mayor's Surface Transportation Advisory Council to aid and advise the City's transportation recovery efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, Jaqi was listed number 42 in City and State's Transportation Power 100 and received the NYC Press Club Award in 2016 for Best Radio Commentary for her work on WHCR's Let Your Voice Be Heard. Jaqi graduated from SUNY Albany with a B.A. in Political Science.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Chief Executive Officer, NorthStar Strategies
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- State Program Director, Evergreen Action
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Vice President, AECOM
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Director of Strategy Consulting, Intersection
- Principal, UrbanSense
Nick Sifuentes comes to Tri-State Transportation Campaign from the Riders Alliance, where he served as Deputy Director. There, he led campaigns to call on the State Legislature to fix and fund New York City's public transit, create a half-priced MetroCard program for low-income residents known as Fair Fares, and revamp ailing bus service in New York City.
Prior to the Riders Alliance, Nick worked in the National Issue Advocacy Practice at BerlinRosen Public Affairs, where he spearheaded communications strategies to promote environmental protection, LGBT rights, arts and culture, and good jobs. Nick also served as the Sierra Club's Press Secretary for the Northeastern United States, where he led advocacy and communications efforts in thirteen states.
Before moving to New York, Nick was a led communications for campaigns at the Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy (LAANE), helping win a series of innovative organizing and legislative campaigns on mass transit, infrastructure development, and energy efficiency. While in Los Angeles, he volunteered his skills in media relations and organizing to various political candidates and progressive organizations, including the Los Angeles Community Redevelopment Agency and the Los Angeles LGBT Center. Prior to his work at LAANE, Nick was a journalist with the Center for American Progress. He is a graduate of the University of California, Los Angeles.
Renae comes to Tri-State Transportation Campaign from the New York City Environmental Justice Alliance (NYC-EJA), where she managed the organization's transportation advocacy efforts aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions and the harmful impacts of transportation pollution in New York's most vulnerable communities. At NYC-EJA, Renae led the development of ElectrifyNY, a statewide coalition united in the fight for an equitable, electric transportation future. Under her leadership, the coalition successfully engaged the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to commit to an all-electric bus fleet by 2040. Renae was also a key advocacy partner in the successful passage of the NYC congestion pricing program, the first of its kind in North America.
Before NYC-EJA, Renae worked with the United States Forest Service in the New York City Urban Field Station (USFS), where she conducted participatory research and community engagement on social and ecological resilience on the Rockaway Peninsula in the devastating wake of Superstorm Sandy. She also managed the Science of the Living City program during her time with the USFS. Components of her work are detailed in a co-authored chapter of the technical report, Green Readiness and Response: A Collaborative Synthesis. Renae also worked on community and youth development with the Rockaway Waterfront Alliance. She received her Master's in the Theories of Urban Practice at Parsons School of Design.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Executive Vice President, Capalino Company
- Senior Vice President, Gladstein, Neandross & Associates
Job Titles:
- Advocacy & Organizing Manager
Talia joined Tri-State Transportation Campaign in July 2021. She graduated from McGill University in Montreal, QC with a BA in Political Science and minors in Geography and Communications. Talia gained a strong interest in local government and community development through her experience working for NY State Assemblymember Harvey Epstein, where she was first exposed to transportation policy at the local level. She has worked on implementing protected bike lanes in needed areas and ensuring that community members' voices are elevated. Talia has also worked with the NY Working Families Party on the Mobilization team, where she helped organize campaigns and empower volunteers, specifically focusing on the India Walton for Buffalo mayoral race.
Vincent's work involves both legal and policy issues. Vincent's legal work involves organization-related legal issues as well as legal support and analysis for all areas of the Campaign's advocacy. Vincent is also involved in policy and advocacy for the Campaign, including work related to the New NY Bridge and Sheridan Expressway. Vincent joined the Campaign in March 2011 after living in China, where he studied Chinese and worked with the World Wildlife Fund on the 2010 China Ecological Footprint Report and Green Earth Volunteers editing environment-related news articles. Prior to living in China, Vincent spent several years working in private practice focusing on commercial and bankruptcy law. Vincent holds a B.S. in Environmental Engineering from Manhattan College and a J.D. from The George Washington University Law School.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Executive Director, Friends of the Brooklyn Queens Connector