Bernadette Austin

Bernadette Austin cultivates cross-sector partnerships to address the greatest challenges facing communities. As Chief Executive Officer of CivicWell, Bernadette Austin leads an organization with a 40-year track record of supporting leaders responding to the climate crisis and its impact on their communities. In her prior role as Executive Director of the UC Davis Center for Regional Change, she participated in statewide efforts to reduce barriers to community engaged learning and research. Prior to her work at UC Davis, Bernadette spent a decade developing and financing affordable housing and other community development projects. Bernadette has served on city and county commissions for 15 years and currently serves on the Yolo County Climate Action Commission. She has also advised several state agencies and currently serves as Co-Chair of the Advisory Committee to the Office of Health Equity at the California Department of Public Health. She holds a Master of Science in Community Development from UC Davis.