Robert Ogilvie directs PHLP's Planning for Healthy Places program. Over the past 15 years he has worked extensively in community development and planning to help improve low- and middle-income neighborhoods. Prior to joining PHLP, he served as a faculty member in the Department of City and Regional Planning at the University of California at Berkeley, as a consultant to city and county governments, nonprofit organizations, and neighborhood activists, and as director of volunteers at the Partnership for the Homeless in New York City. He is the author of Voluntarism, Community Life, and the American Ethic (Indiana University Press, 2004), an examination of why people volunteer and how local organizations create community. Robert holds a PhD in political science from Columbia University and is a graduate of Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, and the University of South Carolina.
As founder and executive director of Public Health Law & Policy (PHLP), Marice Ashe has launched and directs multiple pioneering efforts to improve public health outcomes through the use of law and policy. Under her leadership, PHLP builds the capacity of leaders across the nation to use practical public policy solutions as they address a range of chronic diseases. PHLP’s team of lawyers, city planners, architects, and policy specialists develop model laws and policies, consult on tough policy questions, and provide training and technical assistance to ensure strong policy initiatives that create sustainable solutions. Marice is a frequent speaker at public health conferences throughout the nation, and she consults with federal and state agencies on how best to incorporate legal and policy tools into groundbreaking public health strategies. She is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame, and received her MPH and JD from the University of California at Berkeley.
Lisa Chen is a planning and policy associate with PHLP’s Planning for Healthy Places program, where she partners with communities to incorporate public health and social equity goals into city planning. Prior to joining PHLP, she worked as an administrator and teacher at nonprofits focused on youth development, sustainable food systems, and school gardens. Her more recent projects included health impact assessments of transportation policies in California and China, and leading a team of students to develop upgrade plans for urban slums in Nairobi, Kenya. She graduated from UC Berkeley with highest honors and holds a joint master’s degree at UC Berkeley in city planning and public health.
Hannah Burton Laurison, MA, is a Senior Associate at Public Health Law & Policy (PHLP), where she leads capacity building and advocacy efforts to create healthier communities nationwide. She is also a co-convener of the national Healthy Corner Store Network. Prior to joining PHLP, Hannah staffed the Pennsylvania Fresh Food Financing Initiative, a $120 million public/private initiative to develop new grocery stores in underserved communities. In addition, she has worked with corner store owners to increase healthy choices, coordinated a hunger relief program, and organized community gardens in low-income communities. Hannah has written and spoken extensively on innovative policy solutions to public health challenges. She is the recipient of a Roots of Change fellowship for sustainable food system innovators. She graduated magna cum laude from Brown University and holds a master’s degree in planning from Tufts University.
Pilar Lorenzana-Campo is a senior associate in planning and development for PHLP's Planning for Healthy Places program. She specializes in forging partnerships among disciplines interested in leveraging their resources to improve public health conditions, and engaging community stakeholders in building common goals and priorities across agency and departmental boundaries. She also develops policies and development standards that make healthy choices possible in communities nationwide. Over the past 14 years she has worked extensively in the private sector as an architect and planning consultant, designing master planned communities and crafting specific plans for developments throughout California. She is a graduate of the University of Santo Tomas in the Philippines and received a graduate degree in urban and environmental planning from Arizona State University.
Livia Rojas is PHLP's webinar and event specialist. As part of the organization's communications team, she helps with the design and implementation of PHLP's webinars and events. Prior to joining PHLP, Livia provided technical assistance to college campuses with multidisciplinary teams of practitioners serving survivors of sexual violence in the United States and Puerto Rico. In addition, she has experience working with immigrant communities around issues of HIV, substance use, incarceration/detention and gender-based violence. She is a graduate of UC Berkeley and Columbia University School of Social Work.
Scott Watkins is a program assistant for PHLP's Planning for Healthy Places program and supports finance and operations. He previously worked for the City of Alameda’s planning and building department, where among other projects he developed a master plan for city facilities, overhauled the records management system, and wrote several new ordinances that promote the public’s health and safety. Scott is certified in building code enforcement as well as permit and zoning inspection. As a licensed California General Contractor, and accredited LEED professional, Scott works to identify practical green building techniques that implement an integrated approach from design to operation. Scott is a graduate of San Diego State University with a degree in public administration, City Planning emphasis.
Ben Winig is a senior staff attorney at PHLP focused on land use regulation and related public policies. Before joining PHLP, Ben practiced municipal law at a private firm and served as general counsel and assistant city attorney for several public agencies throughout Northern California. He regularly advised local government officials and public agency staff on land use and zoning regulations, development and regulatory fees, open government, and conflicts of interest. Ben graduated from the University of Michigan with a degree in social anthropology. He received both his law degree and a master’s in public affairs, with a concentration in public policy analysis, from the University of Wisconsin at Madison.
Heather Wooten is a senior planning and policy associate with PHLP's Planning for Healthy Places program, where she researches best practices, develops tools, and works with communities to connect land use, economic development, and health. She is a co-author of one of the premier publications on developing and implementing health policy language in land use plans, How to Create and Implement Healthy General Plans. Prior to joining PHLP, she co-authored the Oakland Food System Assessment: Towards a Sustainable Food Plan through the Oakland Mayor's Office of Sustainability; she also currently serves on the Oakland Food Policy Council. She is a graduate of the University of Minnesota and earned a Masters of City Planning from the University of California at Berkeley.
Leslie Zellers is PHLP’s director of programs. She also directs PHLP’s tobacco control work, including the Technical Assistance Legal Center (TALC), a California-based project providing technical assistance to communities seeking to reduce exposure to secondhand smoke and limit tobacco marketing and sales. Prior to joining PHLP, Leslie conducted legal and policy work on tobacco prevention and childhood lead poisoning prevention for Contra Costa County and several nonprofit organizations. She is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of California at Berkeley, and a graduate of the UC Hastings College of the Law.
In the last few years, a new understanding of the built environment’s impact on health has brought the public health community and planners together to develop a variety of innovative land use policies that promote health.