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Aja Brown

EXCLUSIVE
  • Mayor, City of Compton (2013-2021)
  • Co-Founder, Compton Community Development Corporation - a non-profit emphasizing education programming, scholarships, and small business loans
  • Participant, Policy Link and ESSENCE’s All-In Cities Initiative
  • Advocate for Equity and Justice, Revitalization of Cities, and Guaranteed Income

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Trailblazing community leader Mayor Aja Brown made history as the youngest mayor ever to serve the City of Compton. Leveraging her expertise as an urban planner, an economic developer, and community servant, Brown quickly became known for her pragmatic 12-Point Vision for Compton revitalization strategy, deploying evidence-based initiatives and attracting new record levels of reinvestment from the private sector. Prior to her ground-breaking tenure as mayor, she co-founded Compton Community Development Corporation, a non-profit emphasizing education programming, scholarships, and small business loans. Brown is a strong and consistent leader in the movement for equity and justice, lending critical support to actionable policy changes, and has joined with mayors around the country committed to guaranteed income, launching the largest city-based guaranteed income program in the country, The Compton Pledge. Brown is an inspiring changemaker, motivating audiences of all kinds through her visionary leadership and commitment to community-driven change.

Brown has been profiled in Vogue, Elle, ESSENCE, TIME, and many more. She participated in Policy Link and ESSENCE’s All-In Cities Initiative, which brings Black women mayors around the country together to share, ideate, and then build better communities. Brown is highly sought-after for keynote speeches as well as moderated conversations, and regularly receives rave reviews, such as: “The event was wonderful!!! She was a hit. Everyone had nothing but positive feedback on her and said it was probably one of THE best lunch and learns we have ever had! So kudos to the Mayor! She is really delightful and inspiring” (Intuit Inc.).

 


Aja Brown headshot
Past Hosts Include:
  • Intuit Inc
  • International Council of Shopping Centers, Inc.
Rave Reviews About Aja Brown
“
The event was wonderful!!! She was a hit. Everyone had nothing but positive feedback on her and said it was probably one of THE best lunch and learns we have ever had! So kudos to the Mayor! She is really delightful and inspiring.

”
Virt. Discussion - The Trailblazing Mayor of Compton | Wondros Podcast Ep 60 [30:38] - Get Sharable Link
Talks & Conversations with Aja Brown
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Ground-Breaking Leadership, Inspired by Community

Trailblazing politician AJA BROWN made history as the youngest mayor ever to serve the City of Compton, leveraging her expertise as an urban planner, economic developer, and community servant. Through her commitment to a vision for the City of Compton, Brown has spear-headed incredible change and gr ...

Trailblazing politician AJA BROWN made history as the youngest mayor ever to serve the City of Compton, leveraging her expertise as an urban planner, economic developer, and community servant. Through her commitment to a vision for the City of Compton, Brown has spear-headed incredible change and growth in the city, and shares her inspiring and motivating lessons about community-driven leadership with audiences of all kinds.

Women in Leadership

History-making former Mayor AJA BROWN is a leader in community service, visionary leadership, and pragmatic and evidence-based initiatives. By leveraging her unique and creative inspiration, Brown has spearheaded significant revitalization, and launched meaningful programs that lead the nation. A hi ...

History-making former Mayor AJA BROWN is a leader in community service, visionary leadership, and pragmatic and evidence-based initiatives. By leveraging her unique and creative inspiration, Brown has spearheaded significant revitalization, and launched meaningful programs that lead the nation. A high-impact and inspiring speaker, Brown shares insights and actionable takeaways for women in leadership and those looking to advocate for women in leadership.

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Speaker News

Aja Brown empowers audiences with groundbreaking advice on how to be the leader your company needs

As the youngest mayor to ever serve the City of Compton, AJA BROWN is an expert on what it takes to provide leadership through obstacles and hardships. Brown is known for her practical 12-Point Vision for Compton revitalization strategy, as well as debuting the largest city-based guaranteed income program in the country, The Compton Pledge, and co-founding the Compton Community Development Corporation. Brown leverages her experience as a revolutionary community leader to provide helpful tools for companies and organizations to persevere through tough obstacles.

Brown is a highly in-demand speaker who has been featured in favored publications like Elle, ESSENCE, TIME, Vogue, Fast Company, which said that the way she is transforming Compton is "a model for every leader." She has participated in events like ESSENCE’s All-In Cities Initiative, which brings Black women mayors around the country together to share, ideate, and then build better communities. Aja Brown is a trailblazer who encourages crowds of all kinds to persevere through trying times, she seamlessly implements her brilliant leadership skills towards a better and brighter future and encourages her audience to do the same.

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Press & Media
Aja Brown Wants to Turn Compton Into the "New Brooklyn" - ELLE
You Can Call Her Mayor Brown: How Aja Brown Is Transforming the City of Compton - Vogue
Mayor Aja Brown: If Brooklyn Can Change, So Can Compton - Time
Mayor Aja Brown Reimagines Compton Through Its Empowered Constituents - Essence
With The ‘Compton Pledge,’ Mayor Aja Brown Provides Guaranteed Income For An Equitable Future - NewsOne
Former City of Compton Mayor Aja Brown Joins Nudj Health as Strategic Advisor to Help Close Gap on Health Inequities and Disparities in America - Benzinga
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Ideas for the Meeting Planner
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Biography

Aja Brown is a nationally recognized urban strategist, award-winning public servant, and transformative communicator known for architecting breakthrough solutions at the intersection of policy, purpose, innovation, and equity.

As the youngest mayor ever elected in the City of Compton, she led a historic turnaround grounded in data, transparency, and community-driven development. Under her leadership, the city reduced homicides by 50%, secured over $100 million in new investment, and reemerged as a national model for systemic reform, urban innovation, and economic mobility. Aja’s leadership redefined what’s possible when policy is driven by people and anchored in purpose.

She is the architect of the Compton Pledge—the nation’s first city-led guaranteed income initiative—which became a blueprint for cities across the country. Today, Aja serves as a Strategic Impact Partner at FORWARD Platform, one of the largest GovTech infrastructures in the nation. In this role, she leads multi-million dollar initiatives supporting disaster recovery, anti-displacement, and equitable economic delivery. Her work has helped governments across the U.S. deploy over $2 billion in direct aid and small business support.

Aja is an innovation implementer, experienced in navigating uncertainty with both strategy and grace. She is a proven leader whose clarity, courage, and execution are especially vital in today’s rapidly evolving national and global landscape.

A compelling speaker and trusted policy architect, Aja is frequently engaged by public agencies, philanthropic institutions, and executive leadership teams to design high-impact, scalable solutions. Her unmatched ability to translate vision into results has made her a sought-after advisor to government officials and industry leaders around the world, specializing in cross-sector collaboration navigating complex challenges.

From designing an equitable and community first, economic development recovery model for wildfires in Los Angeles and Altadena to building technology platforms that scale dignity and access, Aja Brown stands at the forefront of a new era in rebuilding society—where equity meets efficiency, and bold leadership drives catalytic transformation from the private to the public sector and all realms in between.

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