Ashley S. Pavon

Roles: Special Guest, Subject

Ashley S. Pavon was a farmworker and factory worker in high school and now is a full time student at Hartnell College pursuing an Associate Degree and a Certificate in Latino Business at Santa Clara University. She has spent several years working on food security and poverty alleviation for her community on the Central Coast of California with the Community Agroecology Network. With her community, she won a 3-year fight to reclaim city land for a community garden in her neighborhood, lowering violence and food insecurity for her community. A member of the River Park Video Collective, she helped make a short community film, Cultivating Justice. She then went on to star in a PBS documentary Fruits of Labor (2021) directed by Emily Cohen Ibañez where she also helped co-write her own narration for the film. Since then Ashley has spoken at press conferences and film screenings advocating for the dignity and respect of farm and factory workers. Ashley is working towards owning 2 acres of land where she will start her own strawberry farm that employs fair working conditions, pay, and pathways to higher education for strawberry pickers. Ashley is a role model for young working people and is collaborating with the FRUITS OF LABOR Social Impact Campaign as a keynote speaker.