Rachele Gardner is the Manager of Strategic Partnerships and Civic Impact at the Engagement Lab and the lead organizer of the People’s Collaborative Governance Network. Rachele describes her personal mission as working to bring about greater equity in Boston by equipping and empowering youth and adult residents as drivers of change in their own communities. She lives out this mission at eLab by working closely with community-based partners, Emerson faculty and staff, and other stakeholders, to ensure that those who are most directly impacted by the issues and projects explored at eLab remain centralized in the work. Rachele is helping to develop new partnered initiatives at eLab, such as Transforming Narratives of Gun Violence, that will measure sustained impact in Boston communities over time. Before joining the Engagement Lab, Rachele was the lead organizer of the 2019 Boston Civic Leaders Summit, and an independent consultant in program design and development to local nonprofits. She was also the founder and director of Youth Hub, a community-based organization in Dorchester. Rachele has her Masters in Social Work with a focus in Macro practice from Boston College.