Who We Are

Resilience Force is a voice for the emerging workforce that helps us come home after climate disasters: the Resilience Workforce.

Since Hurricane Katrina, climate disasters have become our new normal. There have been more than 200 of them since 2006 that have cost a billion dollars or more to rebuild from each.

The workers who respond to these disasters have become America’s white blood cells. They’ve gained crucial skills and expertise while going from storm to flood to fire, and developed a deep personal commitment to their work—a sense of vocation. And yet they face appalling conditions and widespread exploitation, and there are far too few of them to meet the rising need.

That’s why Resilience Force is building a strong, stable, inclusive, million-strong workforce that will be able to perform year-round climate preparation and adaptation work, as well as rebuild after disasters.

This workforce will help drive more just recoveries, ones that increase economic and racial equity, rather than worsening existing inequalities.

And they will be a force for social cohesion, forging relationships across lines of class, race, immigration status, and political affiliation—the kinds of bonds on which true resilience depends.

Join us in unlocking a new era of climate prosperity, one that puts workers in the center of rebuilding our nation—and our democracy.

Saket Soni is the founder and Executive Director of Resilience Force, the voice of the rising workforce rebuilding America after climate disasters. He is also the author of The Great Escape: A True Story of Forced Labor and Immigrant Dreams in America. The book, about America’s first climate resilience workers, was featured on NPR’s Fresh Air and called “a must-read” by the New York Times.  

He is a recognized national expert on the intersection of climate, workforce, and racial justice issues. He was profiled as an “architect of the next labor movement” in USA Today,  chosen as a 2022-23 Aspen Institute Fellow, and was named one of Fast Company’s Most Creative People in Business for 2022. His work was the subject of a major New Yorker feature story in November 2021.

Meet the Team


  • DIRECTOR OF WORKFORCE ENGAGEMENT

    Nearly 18 years ago, Daniel arrived in New Orleans under exploitative conditions as a H-2B guestworker to support recovery and rapid repair efforts after Hurricane Katrina. He began organizing with other guestworkers in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast, and helped found the National Guestworker Alliance (NGA), which later became Resilience Force. Daniel works to improve workplace conditions for migrant workers by investigating questions of workplace standards enforcement. Daniel is a recognized expert on U.S. guestworker programs, consults regularly with U.S. policymakers and has testified before Congress on effective enforcement models within the U.S. Department of Labor. Daniel is from Peru and is a proud father.


  • DIRECTOR OF POLITICAL AFFAIRS

    LaTanja Silvester is a movement leader and policy advocate with over seventeen years of experience in direct service, fundraising and development, and policy analysis. With significant added expertise in political campaigns and government relations, LaTanja Silvester has dedicated her career to defending the rights and improving the lives of working people. Ms. Silvester spent ten years leading the efforts for organized workers at the Louisiana affiliate of Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 21 LA, serving as President from 2013-2019. In her role as President, Silvester has been a constant voice and force for the needs of Louisiana’s working families everywhere, from City Halls to the U.S. Congress. LaTanja has led campaigns for voting rights, equal pay for women, equitable education, and fair wages. Ms. Silvester has advanced legislation supporting access to healthcare, living wages, and economic empowerment and has worked to broaden and deepen opportunities for local and minority-owned businesses across Louisiana.


  • MANAGING DIRECTOR

    Molly joined Resilience Force in February 2022, but her roots in the labor movement were first planted early in her childhood, thanks to her father’s job as a union iron worker. Time spent in Union Halls exposed her to the concerns and strategies of organized labor and left her with a deep appreciation for the need to advocate on behalf of working families throughout the country. Molly brings to Resilience Force a background in research, psychology and social work. She previously worked as a mental health therapist in New Orleans public schools, as Chief Operating Officer of Family Service of Greater New Orleans ensuring access to free/low-cost community mental health services, and as the Operations Coordinator for Global Programs at The Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation in support of reproductive health, rights and justice. Originally from upstate New York, Molly currently resides in New Orleans.


  • NATIONAL TRAINING DIRECTOR

    Cynthia S Hernández re-joined the Resilience Force as National Training Director in 2022 just as Hurricane Ian was making landfall in Florida. Cynthia had previously been the Florida Director of Resilience Force from 2018-2020. During that time, Cynthia tracked changing conditions and regulations affecting Resilience Workers and advocated for labor protections at the local and state level. Cynthia began her career as a researcher and instructor at Florida International University’s Center for Labor Research & Studies (CLRS) in 2006. Her research interests include issues at the intersection of labor and immigration, with a focus on wage theft. Her numerous research and publications led to the creation of several county-wide anti-wage theft ordinances throughout Florida, which have helped recover millions of dollars of unpaid wages.

    After nearly ten years of public service at FIU, Cynthia became the Executive Director of the South Florida American Federation of Labor (AFL-CIO). In that capacity, Cynthia created and led various labor and community coalitions to win higher wages and benefits for low-income families in Miami-Dade County, lobbied for equitable development, and advocated for pro-immigration legislation. In 2017, Cythia was awarded a four year grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to lead a Labor Community Coalition to address Climate Change in South Florida, the first to be awarded in Florida. From 2020-2022, Cynthia returned to local politics and to lead Miami-Dade County’s legislative team for district 7. In her capacity as District Director, she led a strategist team to craft county-wide legislation on affordable housing, creating the first ever Tenant Bill of Rights. Her portfolio included resiliency projects focused on improving local transportation, increasing the use of micro-mobility and access to food security for the most vulnerable. Cynthia has presented her research findings at county hearings throughout the state and has testified for state senators, appeared on numerous national television interviews, radio interviews and worked closely with print media. Cynthia has also worked on producing short documentaries on labor and immigrant issues, and most recently worked closely with a Netflix film crew to document the lives of immigrant workers rebuilding Florida after Hurricane Michael. Cynthia obtained a B.A. in International Relations, with a concentration in Labor Studies and Latin America and Caribbean Studies, and M.S. in Adult Education with a focus on Labor Studies and Immigration. Cynthia is from Mexico, having immigrated to the U.S. at the age of five. She lives in Miami, Florida with her partner and son.

  • Program Manager

    Harold L. Sterling, Jr. is a solution-driven leader that adds program fueling growth and transformative change to organizations. He has a proven record of success in establishing overarching program vision and management and community outreach for mission-driven institutions. Harold's professional background expands over a decade with experience in labor and political organizing, professional training, and strategic planning for local and national organizations. His passion for worker's rights was ignited in 1996 when he became a Seafarer's International Union member aboard the Mississippi Queen Steamboat. He became a shop steward, representing his colleagues through contractual agreements. In 2003, Harold joined the Service Employees International Union as an Organizer in Los Angeles, CA. During his tenure at SEIU, Harold assumed various roles, including a recruiter, Staff Development Coordinator, and Chief of Staff at one of SEIU's local offices.

ADVISORS


  • SPECIAL ADVISOR TO RESILIENCE FORCE

    W. Craig Fugate served as President Barack Obama’s FEMA Administrator from May 2009 to January 2017. Previously, he served as Florida Governor Jeb Bush’s Emergency Management Director from 2001-2009. Fugate led FEMA through multiple record-breaking disaster years and oversaw the Federal Government’s response to major events such as the Joplin and Moore Tornadoes, Hurricane Sandy, Hurricane Matthew, and the 2016 Louisiana flooding. Fugate set a clear and compelling vision, mission, and priorities for FEMA and relentlessly drove the Agency to achieve better outcomes for survivors. FEMA’s effectiveness in dealing with more than 500 Presidentially-declared major disasters and emergencies under Fugate’s leadership restored the faith of the American people in the Federal Government’s ability to respond to disasters. Prior to his tenure at FEMA, Fugate was widely praised for his management, under Governor Jeb Bush, of the devastating effects of the 2004 and 2005 Florida hurricane seasons (Charley, Frances, Ivan, Jeanne, Dennis, Katrina, and Wilma).


  • SPECIAL ADVISOR TO RESILIENCE FORCE

    Kerry O’Brien has been working with Resilience Force since its founding on legal and policy matters. She has developed and litigated cases on behalf of resilience workers as co-counsel including Cabre v. Cotton in Florida regarding unpaid wages and overtime and immigration-related retaliation and Delegado v. SERVPRO in Michigan regarding a COVID-outbreak amongst resilience workers responding to dam breaks in Michigan. In addition, she was the principal author of the policy section of Resilience Force’s A People’s Framework for Disaster Response report. Kerry was Senior Counsel to Solicitor Patricia M. Smith at the U.S. Department of Labor during the Obama administration, and has also been a Campaign Coordinator for Service Employees International Union, Director of Federal Programs at Equal Justice Works, Director of Services at CASA, and a co-founder of the D.C. Employment Justice Center, for which she was, with her co-founder, a recipient of an Echoing Green fellowship. She was named Employment Lawyer of the Year by the Metropolitan Washington Employment Lawyers Association. She is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin and Georgetown Law and she began her career as the Crowell & Moring Equal Justice Works Fellow at Bread for the City in Washington, D.C.


  • GENERAL COUNSEL

    Sufyan is a civil rights attorney, mediator, and facilitator who has dedicated his career to strengthen community organizations and to be an advocate for our most vulnerable. Before Resilience Force, Sufyan served as Deputy Director & General Counsel of CAIR-Chicago, a nonprofit that advocates for and protects the rights of Muslim Americans and other marginalized communities facing hate and injustice. He led the Chicago-wide response to the Muslim Ban, organizing hundreds of attorneys and volunteers to provide legal services and support to those affected. Sufyan is Chair of the Cook County Human Rights Commissioner, the co-chair of the DePaul Law Diversity Council, and on the board of directors for the Chicago Access Network Television (CAN-TV), the Greater Chicago Legal Clinic, and the ACLU of Illinois, where he serves as the organization’s Affiliate Equity Officer. Sufyan also hosts a weekly cable talk show, Change Agents, where he spotlights critical issues impacting Chicagoans, and amplifies the voices and efforts of leaders and organizations working to create positive change in Chicago’s communities.

ORGANIZING TEAM

MARIANO ALVARADO

ANGELO CASTELLANOS

JOEL SALZAR

WRITING & ADMINISTRATION STAFF

LATOYA KIEL
ADMINISTRATION & HUMAN RESOURCES ASSOCIATE

JENNIFER LUCAS

EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT

GABRIEL THOMPSON
WRITING SPECIALIST