Program Manager FOR network & power Building
Pronouns: she/they
Timezone: Mountain Time
Melanie “Mel” Espinosa Pang is the program manager for network and power building at The Praxis Project. Melanie is an abolitionist and former clinical assistant professor who taught courses on social policy, environmental justice, and racial justice while exploring anti-oppressive social work practice at the organization and community levels.
Before working in higher education, she worked in a variety of social service roles, in addition to serving as a policy advocate aiming to improve policies related to LGBTQ rights and food, immigration, racial, and economic justice at the local, state, and national level. As a social worker, she has accompanied many people in times of deep grief and loss and has connected broad networks for crisis response, such as during Hurricane Harvey, COVID-19, the rise of social awareness of police brutality against Black and Brown communities, and other crises. From these experiences, she has grown to facilitate and hold spaces for joy, healing, and change.