Today we’d like to introduce you to Bennett Peji.
Bennett, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I was born in Manila, Philippines. My father enlisted in the US Navy from Subic Bay. My family and I immigrated to the United States in 1965, when I was two years old. We lived in Barrio Logan and Logan Heights. We lived back in Manila for a few years while my father was stationed there in the Navy. We returned in 1969 and later settled in Clairemont, where I went to middle and high school.
Even as immigrants, my parents were active in the Filipino-American community in San Diego and taught me the value of being involved in things bigger than yourself, helping others, and making a positive community impact. I studied at UC San Diego and SDSU, where I also later taught the senior design/communications course.
I founded and ran a community-centered design firm that realized innovative projects and programs on both sides of the US/Mexico border through design-thinking brand strategies, strategic communications planning, civic and cross-cultural brand design, web, and environmental graphic design. Clients included the City of San Diego, the City of Carlsbad, the City of National City, Scripps Research Institute, MAAC, the San Diego Workforce Partnership and Hewlett-Packard.
I became president of the San Diego Chapter of AIGA and then was the first San Diegan elected to the national AIGA board in New York. I received lifetime achievement awards from AIGA and the San Diego Ad Club/SDX. I’ve had a career-long focus on innovative design solutions, strategic brand marketing, and sustainable community engagement. Whatever the challenge, I can be counted on to solve problems creatively, anticipate emerging needs, and promote process efficiency within your organization and the wider community. I was appointed by Mayor Sanders, a commissioner for the City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture for nine years. Later, I also served for four years on the board of the La Jolla Playhouse. I was recruited to join the Jacobs Center for Neighborhood Innovation in 2014 and served as Vice President, Impact and Partnerships.
This year I was also appointed the Chairman of the Board of California Humanities based in Oakland, CA. (CalHum.org) California Humanities is the state partner of the National Endowment for the Humanities and we met with 45 legislators in Washington DC in February. I’m also deeply involved in education as VP of Urban Discovery Academy Foundation in downtown San Diego and binational issues as an advisory council member of Tijuana Innovadora (http://tjinnovation.org/).
I am a passionate advocate for a sustainable organization and community development through innovative thinking and creative design. I’ve had the honor of driving high-performance teams to succeed in mission-critical projects focused on social responsibility, impact investing, and public/private partnerships. I have received over 200 awards for the design and execution of original public campaigns that enhance brand definition and achieve breakthrough marketing results.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
I have been able to share some of my struggles and insights in 2 TEDx San Diego talks, seen at: TEDxBP.com and CivicBranding.com.
Please tell us about your work.
I am an advocate for diversity and inclusion. I’m proud to say that my employees at my own design firm over the years have come from 22 different countries and have brought their unique cultural perspectives to helping generate truly innovative solutions.
I firmly believe that innovators can come from any neighborhood, even our most underserved and overlooked neighborhoods. With that belief, on behalf of the Jacobs Center (JacobsCenter.org), I co-founded the first business accelerator focused on diverse, low-income founders in partnership with the City of San Diego and Connect. It is called Connect All @ the Jacobs Center. See ConnectAllSD.org/about and see our video at ConnectAllIntro.com.
We raised $2.8 million for this new diversity-focused accelerator, developed strategy, secured community partnerships, created budget, and co-directed implementation. We graduated 13 new companies in 2019 with 14 more scheduled this June. I believe that individuals who have had to overcome tremendous obstacles are especially suited to becoming extraordinary entrepreneurs. Along the way, I’ve helped orchestrate 50 community events, including live theater, concerts, movies and festivals as part of Jacobs Presents Performances and Cultural Events series.
This is the lead intro to my LinkedIn profile that articulates my ideals: Highly agile and adaptable executive with a passion for sustainable community development, corporate social responsibility, impact investing and public/private partnerships. Demonstrated ability to drive high-performance teams through complex, mission-critical projects. An accomplished presenter, facilitator, and communicator who enjoys nonprofit board service, public speaking and involvement in projects that make our community stronger.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
Absolutely! I’m committed to helping make the biggest community impact that I can. There is so much need and so little time, but I have always been able to scale up solutions to meet the need.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.linkedin.
com/in/bennettpeji/ - Email: bennett.peji@gmail.com
- Facebook: https://www.
facebook.com/bennett.peji - Other: SomeoneSanDiego.com, De
votedToDiversity.com, TEDxBP. com, CivicBranding.com
Image Credit:
Photo by Nico Ricoy
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