Amanda Padilla

Amanda Padilla
Amanda Padilla is the Senior Manager of Strategic Engagement and Creative Direction at Namati, an organization advancing social and environmental justice globally. She partners with Namati teams on strategic initiatives and partnerships, advocacy campaigns, digital content and operations, and impact filmmaking to engage global audiences around grassroots justice. Throughout her career, Amanda has developed and executed measurable partnership and engagement strategies to drive land, environmental and climate justice, citizenship justice, health justice, eradicating modern-day slavery, and dignity for people experiencing homelessness. While at Humanity United, she was on a team that worked with US government agencies and foundations to launch the Partnership for Freedom, announced by President Obama in 2012. She has her M.A. in Political Science and resides in Costa Rica with her family.
Padilla, A., et al., 2023. People Rising: Ivy City, Washington DC [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/smoWAJRjrIw?si=_f8Z3z99VoPjnXi7
Padilla A., et al., 2023. People Rising: Beside the Water [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/I53mUMoiEso?si=wJPY6pWPoc---i4j
Padilla, A., et al., 2022. Namati: Bending the Arc Toward Social & Environmental Justice [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/kjF1BbPAqDo?si=7W6T0xZae3vhexMz
Amanda partners with Namati teams of 180+ people across 10 countries on strategic initiatives and partnerships, advocacy campaigns, digital content, operations, and impact filmmaking to engage global audiences around social and environmental justice. In direct support of Namati's strategy, she spearheads the development of creative assets and messaging that resonates with key stakeholders, including governments, funders, corporations, media, local communities, ally organizations, and justice defenders.
Some of the films she co-directed and produced have been screened at the Smithsonian's Museum of African Art, the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, the DC Environmental Film Festival, and in Oxford during the Skoll World Forum.
In 2023, she spoke at the Women's Environmental Leadership Summit hosted by the Smithsonian's Anacostia Museum. She has been recognized by Yale University's School of the Environment Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Sustainability.
Throughout her career, Amanda has developed and executed measurable partnership and engagement strategies to drive land, environmental, and climate justice, citizenship justice, health justice, eradicating modern-day slavery, and dignity for people experiencing homelessness. While at Humanity United, she was on a team that worked with US government agencies and foundations to launch the Partnership for Freedom, announced by President Obama in 2012.
Amanda was a long-time board member of Article3.org and formerly served on the advisory council at the Women's Community Clinic in San Francisco. She has her M.A. in Political Science and resides in Costa Rica with her family.
Mentoring and being mentored is an incredibly fulfilling experience. The right mentor helps you think of things outside the box and how to approach them in a way that best fits your style. Mentors don't need to be fancy-named leaders or academics. To me, they are people that inspire you. Some part of their life is the direction they also want to go.
Padilla reminds young professionals always to follow their gut. She says that "you don't have to identify what is wrong" if something does not feel right, but that "your feeling is enough to pivot or question" (2024). She suggests that you dream big and reminds you that the worst answer you can receive is no. If in the case you do get no as an answer, Padilla urges young professionals to remember that it is "not necessarily something that you should completely write off" but rather to "think of it as a parked idea for a better time" (2024). Additionally, Padilla advises young professionals to advocate for themselves, especially those underrepresented in the field. She suggests that you "let it be known in a way that people will be open to receiving" and make whatever you dream of, big or small, happen by asking questions, seeking help, and learning (2024).
Amanda Padilla. LinkedIn. (n.d.). Retrieved January 22, 2024 from https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanda-padilla-73571419/?originalSubdomain=cr
Amanda Padilla. NAMATI. (n.d.). Retrieved January 22, 2024 from https://namati.org/people/amanda-padilla/
Amanda Padilla [Photo]. NAMATI. (n.d.). Retrieved January 22, 2024 from https://namati.org/people/amanda-padilla/
(JEDSI) Survey and interviews conducted by Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Sustainability Initiative staff. 2022-2024. Yale University-School of the Environment. New Haven, Connecticut.
Amanda Padilla [Photo]. NAMATI. (n.d.). Retrieved January 22, 2024 from https://namati.org/people/amanda-padilla/