Sarai Zelada

Department: Public Health
Email: [email protected]

Biography:

Sarai joined MAPC in 2022 and is a Public Health Planner. As a member of the Public Health team, she brings a racial equity lens to her work on healthy community design projects. Before joining MAPC, Sarai supported various environmental research projects that examined the effects of climate change and urbanization locally and across the globe. She worked on local agriculture projects throughout Massachusetts and has led many organizational Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion efforts.

Sarai graduated from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resource Conservation. She completed her graduate studies at the University of Michigan, earning a Master of Urban and Regional Planning degree and a Graduate Certificate in Healthy Cities. Sarai speaks fluent Spanish and conversational Italian.

Sarai is from Lynn, Massachusetts and currently serves on the City of Lynn Affordable Housing Trust Fund. She is a board member of Lynn Main Streets, an organization that promotes a vibrant and welcoming downtown for all Lynn residents and visitors. Sarai also serves on the board of The Food Project and is on the steering committee of Lynn Grows.

Areas of Expertise: healthy community design, racial equity & inclusion, environmental sustainability, food systems, program coordination