Our Team

Urban Semillas is a Los Angeles-based firm committed to community-led planning, sustainability, and resilient infrastructure. Our goal is to empower people at the grassroots-level and across sectors to participate in local and statewide issues that impact the communities they live in.

 

Miguel Angel Luna, CEO

 
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“There’s no denying that we have to plan for the long-term, but we also must understand that there are issues taking place on a daily basis at the local level that impede participation and thoughtful community opinions. Making sure that those issues are heard and acknowledged are key to building trust.”

Miguel Luna is the CEO of Urban Semillas, a Los Angeles-based firm committed to community-led planning, sustainability, and resilient infrastructure. Originally from Colombia, Miguel grew up in a city shaped by its river, where he developed an early and lasting kinship with water. After immigrating to Los Angeles in the late 1970s, he found that same connection in the LA River, a relationship that continues to inform and inspire his work today.

For more than two decades, Miguel has led citywide and regional master planning initiatives that have expanded urban green space, strengthened water supply reliability, and improved water quality across underresourced communities. He has also advised on major public and private development and infrastructure projects, integrating technical expertise with deep community engagement to build public trust and advance long-term sustainability and equitable access.

He is sought after and respected locally, regionally, and statewide for his expertise in working with diverse communities on social justice issues and advocacy, and for his ability to utilize community reconnaissance to develop and implement effective outreach tools and mechanisms for grass-roots coalition and consensus building.

Miguel serves as Chief Administrative Officer of the Fernandeño Tataviam Band of Mission Indians, where he works with tribal leadership to oversee the administration and strategic direction of tribal departments. He is Chairman of the Board of the Tiüvac’a’ai Tribal Conservation Corps and serves as Chair of the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy. His leadership extends to the boards of the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority, Water Education for Latino Leaders, and the Council for Watershed Health.

Miguel Luna Named to Alta’s 100, Honoring Social Change in Los Angeles

PROJECT EXPERIENCE

CIVIC

Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, Chairman - Appointed by Speaker of the Assembly

Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority, Boardmember

Council for Watershed Health, Boardmember

Tiüvac’a’ai Tribal Conservation Corps, Chairman

Upper LA River Watershed Area Steering Committee, Member, Appointed by Supervisor Hilda L. Solis

Water Education for Latino Leaders, Boardmember

Proposition O Community Oversight Advisory Committee, Boardmember, Appointed by City of Los Angeles Mayor

Upper LA River & Tributaries Working Group, Member, Appointed by Speaker of the Assembly

LA Development Fund, Advisory Board Member – Appointed by City of Los Angeles Mayor

 

Brigette Calderon, Engagement Director

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“Taking the time to understand the relationships and the connections to spaces that people have and the history around these spaces are essential to engaging community.”

Brigette Calderon was born and raised in Los Angeles. Raised by a single mother she always strived to be independent and determined to do her best in anything she sets her mind to.

She started her career working as an intern for Los Angeles City Councilmember Ed P. Reyes under his environmental sector. There she got to experience the day-to-day City Hall operations but also work on the pilot project for banning plastic bag use. Having studied Environmental Science in school she got to incorporate what she was passionate about and learn the behind the scenes of legislation and programs.

Ms. Calderon is an expert in working with the community at the grass-roots level and managing community engagement staff and projects. She can work with community members, business leaders, and elected officials alike. Brigette handles all outreach logistics from coordinating sponsorships, staffing booths at events, event planning, constituency building and stakeholder project education.

PROJECT EXPERIENCE