Angela Islas

Angela Islas is a Community Development Specialist with Self-Help Enterprises. Angela has worked extensively on various Environmental Justice efforts across the San Joaquin Valley Region which includes air quality advocacy, energy justice work, groundwater and regional water advocacy, and transportation advocacy. Her work evolved from bringing free asthma prevention services to low-income families in two San Joaquin Valley counties to now working alongside with rural community residents to build their capacities in participating in groundwater policy efforts to elevate the Human Right to Water across beneficial users that are 100% dependent on groundwater as their drinking water resource.

Although Angela’s main focus has been currently water advocacy, she has a strong passion for continuing her involvement in energy justice work, which she actively participates as a founding member of the Disadvantaged Communities Advisory Group (DACAG) under the California Energy Commission (CEC) and California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC). This group was formed under Senate Bill 350 (the Clean Energy and Pollution Reduction Act of 2015) to review CEC and CPUC clean energy programs, policies; and ensure that disadvantaged communities, including tribal and rural communities, benefit from proposed clean energy and pollution reduction programs. Furthermore, Angela’s passion to give back to her home region remains a priority to bring the possibilities of having the San Joaquin Valley thrive through these new technology innovations and every community have the quality of life they deserve.