Brittney Drakeford is a believer in FATE – the practice of combining faith, arts, and technology to energize communities to create equitable places for generations today and tomorrow.  A sixth-generation native of Prince George’s County, Drakeford is interested in the legacies of African American communities and the ways in which the built environment holds the memories of discrimination and segregation and the ways that intangible cultural heritage can be leveraged to design more equitable places.

Drakeford has worked as a curator and Youth Program Director for the African American Atelier, where she launched the 25under25 emerging artist exhibition and professional artistic development program and curated The Learning Tree – an intergenerational exhibition that highlights the social exchanges between artists and their mentors.

She has worked as a historian for the Prince George’s County Black History Program and a currently works for the County’s Planning Department as a Senior Planner responsible for managing Community Engagement and Outreach for the County’s Zoning Ordinance and Subdivision Regulations rewrite. Drakeford is a former member of the M-NCPPC’s Diversity Council.

Brittney is a 2017 Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Culture of Health Leader, with a specific focus on using civic participation, community engagement, and social capital to address the root causes of health inequities in communities that have been repeatedly victims of discrimination and disinvestment. She is a senior fellow for the Environmental Leadership Program, and a Master Watershed Steward; a member of the 2015 cohort of Prince George’s County’s FortyUnder40, and a recent inductee to Tau Sigma Delta, Honor Society in Architecture and Allied Arts.

Drakeford holds a Master’s degree in Management from Wake Forest University; a Bachelor’s degree in African American Studies and Journalism from North Carolina Agricultural Technical State University; and is a current PhD student in the Urban and Regional Planning and Design program at the University of Maryland College Park.

Her personal philosophy is that relationships among social networks have value and when leveraged they can be used to inspire individuals and rejuvenate communities. You can often find Brittney biking along the Anacostia River Trail or working in her local community garden with her dog Pig.