Diana Benitez

Diana Benitez is a Richmond resident and the Senior Planner at Canal Alliance, a nonprofit working to break the generational cycle of poverty for Latino immigrants and their families in Marin County. She leads Nuestro Canal, Nuestro Futuro (NCNF), a resident-driven neighborhood vision plan for the Canal neighborhood of San Rafael.

Diana was named a 2025 “Forty Under 40” honoree by the North Bay Business Journal in recognition of her leadership in equity-centered community development. She currently serves on the board of Call Marin Home, and on the executive committee of the APA Northern California Section as Treasurer and Planners4Health Coordinator.

Originally from Los Angeles, Diana has called the Bay Area home for over seven years previously living in Berkeley and now rooted in Richmond. She holds a Master’s in Urban and Regional Planning from UCLA and a Bachelor’s in Urban Studies and Planning from CSUN with a minor in Geographic Information Sciences (GIS). Her work is grounded in the belief that those most impacted by injustice should help lead the systems change we need.