Dr. Jennifer Martinez is the Director of Policy for the Chan Zuckerberg Inititiative’s Housing Affordability Program. She joined the GRIP board in 2022. Jennifer has 20 years of experience in community organizing and advocacy for racial and economic justice, and she is a recognized leader in the arena of housing justice in California. Prior to joining CZI in 2021, Jennifer spent 15 years as a local Organizer, local Executive Director, and then Chief Strategy Officer for the PICO California network, the largest faith-based community organizing network in California, where she worked on a broad range of issues, including housing justice, immigrant rights, police reform, restorative justice, and quality education. Jennifer has a BA from Stanford University and an MA and PhD from the University of Nottingham, England. Her graduate research focused on social movement strategies in the struggle for housing and land rights in Venezuela and South Africa, and in 2011, her PhD won the British International Studies Association thesis of the year award. Born into a Mexican-Irish family in Southern California, Jennifer now calls the San Francisco Bay Area home where she enjoys running, cycling, hiking, and walking her dog.