Luis Santisteban

Luis joined ECOSS in 2022 as a Community Engagement Specialist, serving the Latinx community through outreach and engagement. He speaks Spanish, and English, and has a strong connection to the Hispanic communities in the Seattle area. His education focuses on humanistic sciences and ongoing social issues of the United States and how minorities have long suffered oppression and injustices through race, gender, age, ability, sexuality, etc. With his language capacity and experience working as a teacher and assistant manager, he has firsthand knowledge of the unique relationship between the Latino community and the environment, as well as the ways in which that relationship can be improved. He provides translation and transcreation of materials to the Latinx community, as well as education, assistance, and support to underserved and underrepresented communities that may not have the same access otherwise.

At ECOSS, he now works as a Program Manager for Outdoor Leadership Empowerment, DNR Community Urban Forestry, and WRIA 8 Salmon Recovery programs.

His favorite foods are Guatemalan tamales, and Kak’ik, which is a soup made from a type of turkey called “chompipe”. It is a food of pre-Hispanic origin; the name is of Mayan origin.