Liberty Tree Foundation

Foundation for the Democratic Revolution

David Cobb was the 2004 Green Party nominee for President of the United States. He served as General Counsel for the national Green Party until declaring his candidacy in 2003. His legal career is dedicated to challenging illegitimate corporate power and to creating democracy.

In addition to his service as a Democratizing Elections Program Director and a Fellow with Liberty Tree, David is a member of the Democracy Unlimited of Humboldt County Steering Committee, a co-founder and member of the Board of Directors for the Green Institute, and a member of the Sierra Club's national Corporate Accountability Committee

Meleiza Figueroa is a PhD Candidate in Geography at UC Berkeley, Press Director for the Stein/Baraka 2016 Presidential campaign, and Executive Producer of the Green News Network. Her experience in progressive media includes over a decade as a staff producer for Pacifica Radio, and lead researcher for the 2005 documentary "Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price," as well as on-air correspondent for Free Speech TV’s “Rising Up With Sonali.” She has contributed to Truthdig.com, Against the Current, and New Politics.

She has been a longtime political educator and organizer, involved in a wide range of movements for social and environmental justice. With Liberty Tree, she is currently serving as a co-facilitator of the Movement School for Revolutionaries with David Cobb. 

George Friday is the National Coordinator for the Independent Progressive Politics Network; an organization she has been active with since 1995, and is a co-chair of United for Peace and Justice. George grew up in a rural low income community in North Carolina in the 60s. She holds degrees in Political Science, Economics, and African American Studies from the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill.

George Friday has worked with Liberty Tree on key voting rights and local democracy campaigns. She has served on boards of The Institute for Southern Studies (current), the Grassroots Policy Project, the Economic Human Rights Project (current), the Catholic Campaign for Human Development, and the New World Foundation.

Jake Gildea is a passionate youth justice advocate who has worked within his career, as a volunteer, and as a mentor to best serve the youth advocacy space. Jake currently serves as an Advisor in UCLA's Office of Student Organizations, Leadership & Engagement. In the democracy movement space, his work within the Justice Work Group and as the Advisor to the Underground Scholars Initiative as well as the Books Beyond Bars and Incarcerated Youth Tutorial Project at UCLA informs his commitment to finding creative ways to increase democratic participation after disenfranchisement due to incarceration occurs.

Jake began his commitment to youth justice as a Criminology Major at the University of Toronto where, as a college student, he volunteered as a mentor in several programs serving incarcerated youth. These experiences helped lead him to a lifelong dedication: supporting formerly incarcerated youth excelling and thriving as much as possible inside and outside of the juvenile justice system in Canada and now in Los Angeles where he lives and raises his family.

Sarah Manski is a social entrepreneur and the CEO of a green business technology start-up, PosiPair.com. She has worked as a producer and news reporter for Air America radio, Pacifica radio network, and as the New York Bureau Editor for Workers Independent News radio. She is a specialist in public relations and has worked for various organizations and unions such as the AFSCME international, International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, National Labor Committee, American Kennel Club, and others. Sarah received a master’s degree in Life Sciences Communication with a focus on Environmental Communication at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and a B.A. in Sociology from the same school. 

Matt Nelson is the Executive Director of Presente.org. With over 15 years of experience as a community organizer, campaign strategist, and communications expert, Matt has led dozens of community anti-oppression efforts and has trained and mentored hundreds of community leaders and organizers around the country.  As a social justice entrepreneur, Matt has started four successful small businesses promoting alternative economic structures including the first fair trade, worker collective cafĂ© in Milwaukee, WI.  He has worked as a freelance journalist as well as the editor of a bilingual weekly newspaper.  Matt is also a co-founder of the Freedom Now! Collaborative, and his work related to housing justice, corporate racism, food justice and police brutality has appeared in CNN, the Associated Press, the New York Times, the Black Commentator, WireTap, the Food Network, Hispanic Vista, and the Nation magazine.

Kaitlin Sopoci-Belknap is the National Director of Move to Amend. She is the former Executive Director of Democracy Unlimited of Humboldt County. In November 2004 she was elected to serve on the Humboldt Bay Municipal Water Board, becoming one of the youngest elected officials in California. She is a founder and Secretary to the Board of the California Center for Community Democracy.

Kaitlin also serves as Project Co-coordinator for the Humboldt Exchange Community Currency Project, she belongs to the SmartMeme STORY board, is a member of the Steering Committee of the Humboldt Coalition for Community Rights and the Housing Advisory Board for the City of Eureka. She was a member of the leadership team of Women's International League for Peace and Freedom's national campaign to Challenge Corporate Power/Assert the People's Rights campaign from 2002-2004.