Our Staff
Core Staff
Paul L. Watson, Jr., MSHS
President/CEO
Formerly Executive Director of the Training and Research Institute for Residential Youth Centers in New Haven, CT; San Diego Youth and Community Services; and Watson and Associates International. Paul began his career as a youth organizer at the age of 17. He has a Master's degree from Springfield College. He began a consultant organization in 1998 and specialized in Community Development, Youth Development, Child Welfare, and Organizational Development. He successfully completed International projects in Central Asia (Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan), The Netherlands, Brazil, Jamaica, and Egypt. He is a national trainer in Youth Development and a member of the Community Youth Development Design Team. He was trained as an ICA Participatory Facilitator. Paul has also served as faculty at Springfield College, New School of Architecture and Design, San Diego City College, and UC San Diego. Paul has won numerous awards and has published both books and articles.
Bill Oswald
Associate Executive Director for Research and Evaluation
Bill received his Ph.D. from the University of Rhode Island in 1988 where he studied Community Psychology. While his work has varied over the years, it has remained focused on fighting the structural causes of poverty by working side-by-side with people in poverty to support them in bringing their voice into the public dialogue. This work has ranged from direct, grassroots community organizing to running a regional training center for Community Organizers to serving as Dean/faculty at Springfield College, School of Human Services that focused on providing access to postsecondary education to communities that have historically been denied that access. Bill’s more recent work includes conducting Participatory Action/Civically Engaged Research and providing support to immigrant/refugee communities and their organizations. Bill’s responsibilities at the Global ARC include overseeing and managing projects related to Community Youth Development, Environmental Justice, and Research and Evaluation.
Marina Ibarra
Community Engagement Coordinator
Marina has been with the Global ARC since 2015, starting as a volunteer at Ocean View Growing Grounds. Later she started working as the Community Outreach Coordinator at the OVGG, promoting health and connecting community members to the Global Food Justice Movement through the urban garden and giving them the opportunity to connect with professors, researchers, students, community knowledge, and residents. Marina has also helped with teaching UCSD students interested in community organizing, taking them to do field work canvasing the community, creating surveys, and more. Additionally, Marina works as an advocate for residents, students, and parents, informing them about the opportunities that the San Diego Unified School District has for our children in school and giving advice to parents on advocating for their children's education. As a member of the Global ARC who is fluent in both English and Spanish, Marina helps with translation on projects with San Diego’s hispanic populations. For 15 years Marina has been a member of a non-profit organization Latinos y Latinas En Acción, and currently serves on their board of directors, promoting the immigrant vote, filling out immigration forms, providing citizenship classes, and more.
Kristopher Garcia Raudales
Research Associate
Kristopher started at the Global Action Resource Center as a student intern assisting the YEJA program with research, participating in a PSRO event and working at the Ocean View Growing Grounds. After graduating from UC San Diego in 2022 with a Bachelor’s in Urban Studies and Planning, he became an official member of the Global ARC as the Research Associate. He now serves the organization by providing research under environmental justice issues and funding opportunities, along with supervising our team of university interns and managing the organization’s social media platforms. He values the idea of serving others and hopes to be of service to the community of San Diego in improving equity and quality of life for all community members. Kristopher enjoys photography and is fluent in English and Spanish.
Ocean View Growing Grounds
Thi Vo
Environmental Justice Learning Hub Manager
Thi is a UC Berkeley Alumna originally from San Diego, Thi is currently our Environmental Justice Learning hub Manager. Her focus is on OVGG’s crop production, soil health management, and does research on environmentally sustainable urban agriculture methodology. She was also a fellow in the Multinational Exchange for Sustainable Agriculture’s (MESA) Applied Agroecology Program and received her certificate in applied agroecology in 2022. Thi sees San Diego as a rising community in the conversation on food systems with Black, indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) voices leading the way and is truly excited to see communities coming together to support that movement.
Lily McCann
Agriculture Specialist / Administrative Assistant
Lily is a UCSD alum with a bachelor’s degree in Anthropology with a focus in Climate Change and Human Solutions. With an interest in cooking and a passion for sustainable agriculture, Lily is excited to be involved in food production from planting the seeds in the soil, to improving access to healthy, sustainably produced, and culturally relevant foods. Her focus is on food production and seed saving, with a special interest in supporting local ecology, native plants and pollinators. Lily sees food sovereignty as a vital aspect of environmental justice, and believes in the power of transforming our food system to strengthen our relationship to the planet and one another.
Omar Guerra
Landscape Specialist
As the Landscape Specialist at OVGG, I am passionate about the intersection of food, people, and the environment. With a deep love for nature and its systems, I enjoy teaching others about the relationship between human infrastructure and natural ecosystems. Currently co-managing the Ocean View Growing Grounds (OVGG), I am dedicated to beautifying and nurturing this space. Whether it’s composting or building meaningful relationships within the community, I believe in trusting the process and fostering collaboration with colleagues to create sustainable, vibrant spaces for all.
Young Environmental Justice Advocates Academy
Catherine Parker
YEJAA Program Manager
Catherine is a UCSD alum with a bachelor's in Anthropology of Climate Change and Human Solutions, and a minor in Human Rights and Migration. With a professional background in fine art and film, Catherine is interested in the ways in which creative arts serve as a medium to bridge the gap between climate science, its related intersectional social issues, and people's lived experiences. Catherine started working with the Global ARC as a fellow of the College Corps program and assisted the previous Academy director, Raphael Lagoc, before transitioning into the role of Program Manager. What excites Catherine most about leading the Academy is the chance to provide support and mentorship for San Diego's upcoming generation of Climate advocates.
Research Associates
Men Nguyen
Research Associate (Weaver)
Men has received a B.A. in English language teaching, an M.A in English linguistics from the Vietnam National University, and a Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction majoring in second language acquisition – ESL from the Texas Tech University. She has 14 years of experience working as an ESL lecturer and interpreter in Vietnam and 7 years of experience working as a research assistant at Texas Tech University. She loves working for the Vietnamese community development and has a great passion for work related to education, research, communication, and interpretation. Today, under her own business: B Learning LLC, cooperates with the Global Action Research Center as a community weaver to assist with community engagement to increase COVID-19 vaccination and participation in preventive care such as flu vaccines, mammograms, diabetes screenings, and blood pressure management.
Interns and Fellows
Hibah Rafiq
Intern
Hi! My name is Hibah Rafiq and I am a fourth year student at UC San Diego, majoring in Urban Studies and Planning. I am currently interning with the Global ARC, driven by my passion for addressing socio-environmental challenges and uplifting marginalized communities. I am eager to align my passion with my career goals to help create healthier environments. In my free time, I enjoy trying new foods and cuisines, thrifting and taking road trips to national parks. I am excited to be part of the Global ARC team and work alongside the San Diego community.
Autumn Hughes
Fellow
Hello! My name is Autumn and I am a fourth-year Public Health major at UCSD! I joined The Global ARC as a fellow last year, and chose to return due to the committed and inspiring atmosphere of the staff and the programs they run. This year I am excited to graduate with my bachelors, and get out into the community I so eagerly want to work in. I aspire to run my own non-profit one day, and see where the wind takes me after graduating! Some of my hobbies include reading, music, and cooking.
Arnold Villagrana
Fellow
Hi My name is Arnold Villagrana, I joined The Global ARC to experience new opportunities with new people, while also gaining knowledge from these opportunities. My interest revolves around helping people; lending a hand to whoever needs it. While Global Arc isn’t directly related to my career aspirations, it does help me get a view from different perspectives of issues I wasn’t aware of before, and how I can help to make a change. I hope to gain knowledge from opportunities given to me and from the people that surround me, unlocking my full potential and growing as an individual.
Chau Anh Nguyen
Fellow
Chau Anh Nguyen is a NorCal native and a CollegeCorps Fellow currently studying Cognitive Science, with a Specialization in Human-Computer Interaction at UCSD. With a mixed background of environmental advocacy through Little Manila Rising and a long-held interest in technology, she is dedicated to exploring the intersection of environmentalism, education, and their unique impact on the San Diego community. By expanding her knowledge, she aims to infuse humanity into technology and enhance her local community’s welfare.
Diana Hernandez De Leon
Fellow
Hi, my name is Diana and I am a fourth year at UC San Diego majoring in Political Science with a concentration in Public Policy and minoring in Public Service. My lived experiences and non-profit work are the grounds for my ambition to behold positive change in the communities that need it the most. Possessing a passion for social justice, community mobilization, and activism, the Global ARC was the perfect place to continue to grow in my service. Working alongside the Global ARC, I am further inspired to continue uplifting communities and advocate for social equity, climate justice, and immigrant rights.
Lorraine Lucas Scott
Fellow
Hi everyone :). My name is Lorraine and I’m currently a 3rd year student. I am majoring in Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences with a minor in Environmental Systems at UCSD. I love being outside and I enjoy backpacking, surfing and started rock climbing recently. In joining the Global ARC, the mission sparked my interest in learning more about nature based climate solutions. I’ve always been passionate about climate and environmental justice and saw this as a perfect opportunity to not only gain experience but to be able to help in any capacity I can to support the mission of building social capital through this experience. My goal at this point in time is to gain the necessary skills to build my capacity for what environmental justice means and what be proactive in what I can possibly do to contribute on a local level.
Savir Nangia
Fellow
Hi! My name is Savir Nangia, and I am a current 2nd year Neurobiology Student at UC San Diego. I am currently a member at the Global ARC where I work towards creating more equitable communities, fighting climate change on both the local and national level, and finding other organizations that can help with our mission of helping create a safe environment for future generations. Some things I like to do in my free time are to read, watch movies, play board games, and do art. I am a part of Sixth College and the College Corps Program at UC San Diego. I love the work that I have completed and look forward to continuing to help the community around me.
Urmi Queen
Fellow
My name is Urmi Queen, I am a Business Economics student at UC San Diego College. I am a chronic sugar craving night owl from Los Angeles and my life consists of boba drinks and late night activities. I love stargazing, late night drives, and psychological horror movies. I joined Global Arc to find a way to give back to the community that makes me connect with the local San Diego community.
Yuxin Wu
Fellow
Hi! My name is Yuxin Wu, and I am a second-year student at UC San Diego majoring in Molecular Cell Biology and Business Psychology. I joined the Global ARC to contribute to initiatives focused on sustainability and equity, and to collaborate with like-minded individuals to tackle global challenges. My career goals are to go into research, particularly exploring how biology and psychology intersect in health. In my free time, I enjoy hiking, photography, and trying out new recipes. I am excited to work with the Global ARC and make a positive impact in our community!