Isobel Araujo

Isobel first joined MPC as a Research Assistant in the summer of 2015, and reunited with the organization as Executive Assistant in November 2018. She provides direct support to MPC’s President, and coordinates across the organization to drive effective communication and collaboration.

Prior to returing to MPC, Isobel was involved with a variety of urban and public space advocacy organizations at local, regional, and international levels. She gained an international perspective on urban development while researching and preparing for the United Nations Habitat III conference as an intern for the Chilean Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Santiago. She then returned to Washington, D.C. and piloted a partnership program between her university and a local high school. In this role, she organized workshops with youth and local community leaders and facilitated discussions on community history, development, and arts and culture.

After graduating in 2018 from American University as a Frederick Douglass Distinguished Scholar with a B.A. in Environmental Studies and a double-minor in Communications and Spanish, she returned home to Chicago and got involved with Territory, a youth empowerment and urban design nonprofit. In her role as Design Studio Facilitator, she has enjoyed helping young people advocate for themselves and their communities by reclaiming public space through art and design. A graduate of the Chicago Public School (CPS) system herself, she remains committed to CPS youth as an After School Matters instructor and volunteer in her free time.

Isobel’s upbringing in Logan Square and experiences in South America inform her interests in urban Latinx communities, public art, and involuntary displacement. She currently still lives in Logan Square. In her free time, you can find her playing pick-up basketball, dancing salsa, or editing abstract video art.