Robby Rodriguez is originally from Pico Rivera, California by way of Tucson, Arizona and has called New Mexico home for most of the last twenty-five years.
Robby started his career as a community organizer, working on issues such as youth development, corporate accountability, environmental justice and immigrant & indigenous rights. During his six years as the Executive Director of the Albuquerque based SouthWest Organizing Project (SWOP), Robby helped the organization achieve key policy changes related to economic development and environmental protection at the state and local level. During this time, he co-authored a book on generational change in the non-profit sector titled Working Across Generations: Defining The Future of Non Profit Leadership (Jossey Bass, 2008).
He’s also been a part of national and international social movements linked to ending racial discrimination and economic inequality. He represented the United States at the United Nations World Conference Against Racism in Durban, South Africa where he documented and testified on issues of racial discrimination in the United States and abroad. And he served on the national planning committee for the United States Social Forums held in Atlanta and Detroit.
For the last ten years, Robby has worked at two of the largest private foundations in the country, and has been a part of teams responsible for stewarding nearly $200 million of philanthropic dollars to help low-income and communities of color build power for racial and gender equity and social and economic justice. During this time his portfolio strengthened a movement for equity for children that has leveraged hundreds of millions of dollars in new public investments in education and healthcare; strengthened Tribal sovereignty by revitalizing Native languages; promoted immigrants rights; and increased wages and benefits for tens of thousands of low-wage workers.
Robby holds a bachelor’s degree in Sociology from Cornell University and an MBA from the University of New Mexico.