Creative Policy Network is a nonprofit organization dedicated to cultivating sustainable, resilient, and culturally vibrant ecosystems. We revitalize cultural heritage sites into dynamic hubs and create initiatives that support artists and cultural enterprises. By providing equitable live-work spaces and generating cultural engagement, we amplify diverse voices, celebrate local heritage, and increase accessibility to arts and culture.

Our vision is to establish and foster enduring institutions for the preservation of culture and creativity—vibrant hubs integrating culture-making spaces and experiences tailored to each community. These places honor local histories, promote sustainability, and nurture resilient communities where cultural expression is threatened. We aim to influence regional and national dialogues through impactful strategies, enrich cultural landscapes, and empower communities to flourish.

To fulfill our vision and mission, we engage in social enterprise in the following fields:

  • Community engagement and cultural programming

  • Policy consulting and advocacy

  • Cultural site revitalization

  • Artistic collaborations and project management

  • Creative economic and entrepreneurship support

The Network.

Meet the Board

  • Laura Esparza is currently the Executive Director of A3: Art Alliance Austin, the City’s first non-profit Local Art Agency she facilitates a re-granting program for local artists, musicians and performers.

    She retired after 17 years as the Division Manager of the City’s 12 Museums and Cultural Centers that she ran for the City of Austin’s Parks and Recreation Department

    Ms. Esparza’s training is in theater; she was the recipient of the esteemed San Diego Fellowship at UCSD, where she received her Master of Fine Arts in Latino Theater and Direction. In 1994, she received the NEA-TCG Director’s Fellowship, a national honor given to only four theater directors in the nation every other year. Her undergraduate degree from Fairhaven College, Western Washington University was entitled “Community Arts Development,” which brought her to her work with the City of Austin’s museums and cultural centers.

  • Trent Lethco is a transportation principal with Arup’s New York-based planning team and has a background in transportation planning, land use policy, and urban design.  With 26 years of experience in the public and private sector, of which 22 have been with Arup, focusing on livable, sustainable, and equitable cities.

    Trent Lethco leads a diverse range of planning projects within the CPD portfolio. His focus is on the New York Tri-State area, but he is also actively involved with Planning across the US, Canada, and Brazil. When working in the Tri-State area, his activities span transport strategies and business case analysis, multimodal corridor studies, Bus Rapid Transit studies, downtown and station area plans, technology and the transport sector, and capital plans and programs. Working internationally, his projects focus on infill development, transportation strategies, and master planning activities. His strong background in transportation planning, land use policy, and infrastructure funding allows him to effectively link transportation and land use policy to create sustainable fiscal, social, and environmental outcomes for his clients. He has worked in both the public and sectors which gives him a unique perspective as a consultant in the Planning field. In addition to his responsibilities at Arup, Trent regularly teaches at Pratt Institute, serves as a Board Member to the Regional Plan Association and guest lectures worldwide.

    Trent has worked on re-envisioning highway infrastructure over those 22 years, starting with Doyle Drive, now known as Presidio Parkway in San Francisco, and continuing to the St. Louis Arch in St. Louis, I-35 in Austin, Texas, the East River Waterfront in New York,  examining proposals for the BQE on behalf of New York City Council, and other projects throughout the world.  Finding better ways to provide access to our cities that allow us to live with smaller highway facilities or the removal of highway facilities in our downtowns is a career-long focus.

  • Anne Gatling Haynes AIA (US) is an accomplished urban development expert with over 25 years of experience in architecture, planning, and community-focused economic development. She is currently the Chief Transactions Officer at Rally Austin (formerly the Austin Economic Development Corporation), where she leads project development and fosters collaborative partnerships.

    Anne's career highlights include serving as the first CEO of the Houston Land Bank, where she restructured the organization to enhance affordable housing and community development initiatives. She also designed and led the Transformative Development Initiative (TDI) for MassDevelopment, an innovative urban development program that has significantly impacted second-tier markets in Massachusetts.

    Her previous roles include CEO of the Economic Development Corporation of New Haven, where she managed business development and long-term planning, and Design Director/Program Manager for the City of New York under Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Anne began her career as a Senior Associate at Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects, leading various institutional and mixed-use projects.

    Anne is a founding member of MakeHaven, a maker space, and a co-founder of CitySeed, which operates farmers markets and directs food policy initiatives in New Haven. She holds a Master’s in Architecture from Yale University, a Bachelor of Science in Architecture from the University of Virginia, and an MBA from the MIT Sloan Fellows Program. Her work focuses on the intersection of city design and development, emphasizing the role of people in shaping urban spaces.

  • Lisa Byrd’s interest lies in exploring the intersection of the arts, civic engagement, community activism and cultural preservation. Lisa has a 30+ year career in the arts with roles ranging from audio engineering and production management to providing organizational leadership as production director for dance companies and executive leadership for community based arts organizations. Lisa has an undergraduate degree in Philosophy from Penn State University and a Masters Degree in Theater History and Criticism from Texas State University. She continued her studies in leadership and organizing with Marshall Ganz’s Leadership, Organizing and Action, an Executive Education program at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Public Policy.

    Utilizing her leadership skills as well as her skills as a community organizer, Lisa developed what is now Texas’ only African American cultural district, Six Square: Austin’s Black Cultural Heritage District. Lisa continues her work using a collaborative learning model in partnership with artists and arts organizations and those interested in public policy and civic action. Her current collaborative partnerships include Civic Arts and Forklift Danceworks on projects that center the arts as an organizing pathway to addressing civic life.

    Over the years Lisa’s work has been recognized for its positive impact on communities she has engaged. In 2015 she received the Dewey Award from SXSW Conference. The award is given as an acknowledgement to the honoree’s dedication to creating positive and lasting change in their communities. In 2016 she received an award for her leadership as a community partner from the University of Texas at Austin’s Division on Diversity and Community Engagement. And, in 2017 she received the Ada DeBlanc Simond Trailblazer Award from the Austin Black Democrats. Lisa is also very proud to have been elected in 2019 to the Community Education Council representing District 3 for the New York City Department of Education.

Founder

All Things Artistic.

Founder of Creative Policy + Creative Policy Network

Miriam Conner has curated and organized art and experiences for over a decade. She has been in Austin for 31 years by way of New Orleans, Louisiana. After graduating from St. Stephens Episcopal High School, she received a Bachelor of Fine Art in Photography from the California Institute of the Arts in Los Angeles. After college, Miriam came home to Austin and began managing the Pine Street Station (an Artist warehouse and gallery) for two years, and has since planned countless art shows, in addition to co-founding Topology Art Warehouse. She has also worked with SXSW, Art Outside, Forklift Danceworks, Six Square – Austin’s Black Cultural District, the City of Austin, and more.

She is the founder of Creative Policy, a firm recognized for its community-focused strategy that bridges policy-making and cultural engagement to achieve meaningful systems change. Additionally, she holds positions on the boards of Preservation Austin and Greater Austin Neighborhoods, and she has previously served as a commissioner on the City of Austin's African American Quality of Life Commission.

“At the age of fifteen, I discovered what I want to do for the rest of my life. I know not many people are sure about what they want to do by the age of thirty much less by the age of fifteen, but I am very grateful to have found that particular passion that wakes me up in the morning and tucks me in at night. My life liberty and pursuit of happiness lies within art.”

She has been creating in the Austin Art community since 2008.

Read about our current project

The Local 4-5-6

In preserving Austin's labor and cultural history, we will create access and opportunity for our arts and culture community, while fostering economic resilience.