About Chispa Nevada
Chispa Nevada is growing the power of Latine families in Nevada to ensure our communities have a say in decisions that affect our environment.
We believe every family deserves access to clean air, clean energy, and a healthy environment that can sustain us for generations. We want better futures for our children, and that starts with an affordable quality of life today. But for too long, our community’s priorities have not been reflected in our state’s policies.
We’re changing that through community organizing: building a base of environmental advocates, turning advocates into leaders (promotores), and working with our lideres to hold policymakers and polluters accountable to our priorities.
Together, we can achieve climate justice and a strong democracy that works for all of us.
Our Values
Community-Led & Community Centered
We believe in the collective power and leadership of our community and are committed to investing in their development. We are accountable to our community and will center community-led solutions.
Environmental Justice
We lead our work through an environmental justice lens that includes racial, social and economic justice. We believe in centering Black, Indigenous, Latinx, and communities of color who are most harmed by racism and xenophobia.
Transformational Approach
We believe our community deserves to live with dignity. We need transformational, systemic change to create a world that is equitable, inclusive and just.
Chispa Nevada is a program of the League of Conservation Voters (LCV) and League of Conservation Voters Education Fund (LCVEF), with sister Chispa organizations in Arizona, Colorado, Texas, and Maryland.
To learn more about Chispa LCV,
please visit chispalcv.org
Meet the Team
Audrey Peral
I am an advocate for social justice, community empowerment and equitable change. I was born in Acapulco, Guerrero, Mexico, and brought to California when I was just 8 days old. My experience as an undocumented individual ignited my passion for addressing the challenges confronted by immigrant communities.
In 2018, I finally obtained an immigration status that enabled me to fully join the social justice movement. I started my career as a canvasser for Make the Road Nevada working in the underrepresented Latine community in Las Vegas. As my skills and leadership blossomed over the years I eventually became Director of Organizing, empowering a team to spearhead campaigns across seven intersectional issue areas, launching a statewide initiative to organize Nevada’s immigrant community. Through collaboration with the Nevada Environmental Justice Coalition, I was able to play a pivotal role in ensuring a community-oriented approach to pursuing environmental justice for Nevadans.
My guiding force is shaping a brighter future for my son and our immigrant community.
Astrid Martinez
I earned a Bachelor of Science in Communication Sciences in 1998 from the University of San Luis Gonzaga in Ica, Peru. I’ve worked as a news reporter for local radio and television stations before immigrating to the United States in 2002.
I then became involved in political organizing as a volunteer until I was recruited by SEIU—Service Employees International Union—first working as a contributor in Phoenix, then as a grassroots organizer in Denver. After a year of training in Colorado, I returned to Arizona and since then worked there on a variety of political and labor campaigns as a lead organizer with SEIU, Mi Familia Vota, Workers United, and Unite Here.
Rodrigo Gonzalez
I’ve always been involved in the community. My time working in radio allowed me to be a community organizer without working for an organization. For seven years I used the microphone as a platform to listen to the community, politicians, government agencies, community organizations and other diverse groups. I also did the same with a local newspaper where I worked as a reporter for five years and won national journalism awards.
Now with Chispa Nevada, I can continue being involved with our community. Getting involved with my community has always been my passion, and I have always been concerned about protecting the environment. I feel very proud to belong to this great team.
Outside of work I enjoy photography and playing tennis, two hobbies that fascinate me and I have practiced for a long time. I also really like to travel.
Juan Carlos Guardado
I am originally from El Salvador. I consider myself a tenacious and enterprising individual, driven by a passion for serving our community. In 2009, I had the opportunity to study for a Master’s Degree in “Community Organizing for Local Development” at the Complutense University of Madrid, España, where I actively organized the Spanish community in the Lavapies neighborhood.
Since 2016, I have been involved with Chispa Nevada, initially as a member and, for the past four years, as a Community Organizer. In this role, I have worked to amplify the power and voices of Latinx families in Nevada, ensuring they have a say in decisions that affect their environment. I strongly believe that underserved communities have the right to clean air and water, not only for ourselves but also for future generations.
Outside of work, I really enjoy spending time outdoors, whether it is hiking in the beautiful mountains of Las Vegas or just enjoying a day at the park with my family. But mainly, I like to go to the lake and enjoy the energy that this element of mother earth can transmit to us.
Crystal Lugo
Hello! My name is Crystal Lugo. I was born in San Jose, California and raised in Las Vegas, Nevada before moving to Reno, Nevada and then London, England for college. I studied at the London Metropolitan University and the University of Nevada, Reno, where I received my degree in Journalism and English Writing.
I have a soaring passion and long-stemmed background in social media management, graphic design, video, and photography—all of which I’m excited to bring into the Chispa Nevada space as our first Digital Organizer.
I spent the last few years working in digital organizing at a local nonprofit that focused on immigration and social justice. As the proud granddaughter and daughter of Mexican immigrants, immigration justice is an incredibly important topic to me. I do this work because I want to help uplift my Latinx community.
When I’m not working, you can usually find me writing, hosting craft nights, taking film photos, traveling, or analyzing birth charts for fun.