We are excited to welcome Ryan Tanaka to the Steering Committee as Online Director!
Ryan now leads AHLA’s online engagement strategies, working with the Social Media and Projects teams to coordinate and organize the organization’s presence and activities online.
He was working in the San Francisco/Bay Area until 2018, where he was exposed to the inner-workings of California’s housing crisis through his work at the Mayor’s Office of Housing and Community Development under the direction of Mayor Ed Lee. He has been involved with the activities of YIMBY Action and San Francisco and Abundant Housing LA in Los Angeles ever since. Ryan’s has a diverse background working in music, music composition/improvisation/history, academic research, data and product management, librarianship, civic technology, YouTube/Twitch streaming, video game development, and more. (Up in the Bay Area where the rents are sky high, you do whatever you can to survive.)
He’s also an avid cryptocurrency enthusiast, which will show up in his work from time to time. Ryan is also a regular volunteer at Code for America’s Hack for LA, and is the founder of the YIMBY Arts (yimbyarts.org) project, an attempt at helping Americans overcome their fear of density as a lifestyle choice. He also hosts weekly music jam sessions at his place in the Arts District just for fun — contact him if you’re interested in participating at contact@yimbyarts.org!