How Daisy Alvarez’s fellowship helped expand community-centered urban planning and created new opportunities for future leaders.
When Daisy Alvarez started at Canal Alliance in October 2025, she was eager to learn and excited to gain real-world experience on a community-oriented planning project. As an aspiring urban planner, she knew she was sure to gain invaluable insights in the field, but she had no idea just how much the experience would shape not just her professional career, but her academic and personal journey as well.
As Canal Alliance’s first-ever CivicSpark Fellow, Daisy stepped into a role that connected her interest in urban planning with community-driven advocacy and environmental resilience work through Canal Alliance’s Policy, Advocacy, and Civic Engagement program’s Nuestro Canal, Nuestro Futuro (NCNF) Initiative, a project aimed at equitably and sustainably developing the Canal neighborhood in the vision of its historically underrepresented residents.
Growing up in Lancaster, California, she was fascinated by how different communities experienced their built environments differently. While studying History and Environmental Analysis at Scripps College, her childhood interest in architecture and design evolved into a passion for urban planning and environmental justice.
“When I was in high school, I learned about the inevitability of climate change [and] while earning my dual degree in History and Environmental Analysis at Scripps, I learned about urban planning. In particular, there was one course taught by the co-founder of Kounkeuy Design Initiative, Chelina Odbert, that I took in my final semester and it taught me how planning can be directed by communities. It totally changed my perspective which made me gravitate more toward the environmental analysis side of my studies,” Daisy said.
After graduation, she searched for opportunities in major metropolitan areas through CivicSpark, an AmeriCorps program that “builds local workforce capacity to advance community planning priorities while launching the careers of young professionals.” But even then, Canal Alliance was not initially on her list.
That changed when Canal Alliance’s Planning Manager, Nayre Herrera, reached out to discuss the fellowship. Once she realized the role brought together urban planning, community engagement, advocacy, and environmental resilience — exactly the kind of work she had hoped to pursue – Daisy knew it was a perfect fit.
“When I received the email from Nayre, I looked into the role and saw how focused it was on the Latino community, I knew it was for me,” she recalled. “It was very serendipitous in that way. Canal Alliance found me, and it ended up being exactly what I wanted: urban planning with a community lens.”
As Canal Alliance’s inaugural CivicSpark Fellow, Daisy quickly became involved across the organization. Within her first month, she attended her first conference with the 2025 State of the Estuary Conference in Oakland, supported her first major event with High Tide Day, and join in the discussions of community leaders through Canal’s Resident Advisory Committee (RAC).
Then, what began as a fellowship focused primarily on NCNF soon became much more.
“I thought I was only coming in to do NCNF things, but instead I got to do a whole lot more,” Daisy said. “I audited a class at UC Berkeley, led a focus group aimed at increasing access to food and direct services, and organized a passion-project to plant native trees at historically underserved elementary school.”
For Daisy, the fellowship was also an opportunity to explore many sides of nonprofit work, from policy advocacy and environmental planning to fundraising and organizational development. That curiosity and willingness to learn also stood out to her supervisor, Nayre Herrera, who saw Daisy bring energy and care to the role.
“Our CivicSpark Fellow’s passion, curiosity, and dedication made a lasting impact at Canal Alliance. Her eagerness to learn and commitment to community-centered work brought new energy and thoughtful contributions to our team,” Nayre said.
“Everyone on the Policy, Advocacy, and Civic Engagement team was very supportive,” Daisy said. “They want to see you succeed and will help you if you make a mistake. They understand that you’re learning as an individual.”
Beyond work, Daisy formed relationships that became one of the most meaningful parts of her time at Canal Alliance.
“I got to know my colleagues in and outside of work,” she said. “I think it helps that most of us share cultural identities and are close in age, but also they’re just so easy to get along with. From getting ice-cream on my 23rd birthday to watching a Valkyries game, the people made my experience all the more special.”
As her fellowship comes to an end, Daisy hopes to pursue a master’s degree and continue a career in urban planning, either in local government or with a mission-driven organization like Canal Alliance.
As the first CivicSpark Fellow at Canal Alliance, Daisy hopes future fellows will embrace every opportunity available to them and continue building on the foundation established through this pioneering partnership.
“My time at Canal Alliance has provided me with invaluable work experience and exposure to the environmental justice field, especially in the Bay Area,” Daisy concluded. “The skills and contacts I’ve made have helped me land two-part time jobs in community-centered work.”
“It’s been so formative to my professional and personal development, I’ve been so lucky to have this opportunity so early in my career. I would recommend it to anyone trying to break into the planning field.”