Dawn Phillips, the organizing director of Just Cause Oakland, has over 15 years' community organizing experience that began with the Movement Activist Apprenticeship Program (MAAP) at the Center for Third World Organizing. After graduating from MAAP, Dawn directed community organizing at BOSS (Building Opportunities for Self-Sufficiency), organizing homeless people in Oakland for six years, then served as the executive director of PUEBLO (People United for a Better Oakland) for six years. Dawn has also served on the boards of the National Organizer's Alliance (NOA), Asian Communities for Reproductive Justice (ACRJ), and the East Bay Alliance for a Sustainable Economy (EBASE).