Christi Tran

Christi Tran, senior adviser for network approaches, joined the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation in 2018 as the director of Network Leadership for Better Health. She views her role at RWJF as “an opportunity to advance equity and center those most affected by health inequities as we support and uplift networks of diverse people, organizations, and communities working together to build a Culture of Health.”

Previously, Christi provided independent consultant services in strategic planning, research and design, implementation support, and coaching to foundations and nonprofits, primarily those focused on social justice and racial equity. Among her clients were the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, The California Endowment, and the San Francisco Foundation.

Earlier, Christi was director of program, innovation and learning for Beyond 12, a technology nonprofit serving first-generation college students. She also served as a program officer for Blue Shield of California Foundation, where she focused on leadership development and field-building. At The Bridgespan Group, a nonprofit consulting firm, she conducted research and analysis for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Atlantic Philanthropies, and the James Irvine Foundation.

Christi also served as a guest professor with the Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Fellowship in Cape Verde. Prior to this, she co-founded and directed a youth development and activism organization as an AmeriCorps fellow, managed nonprofit operations and development, and directed programming for immigrant families in Boston.

The daughter of Vietnamese refugees, Christi draws strength from the challenges of her family’s immigrant experience in Texas to guide her work as a compassionate and imaginative leader. As a Gates Millennium Scholar, she earned a BA in government from Harvard University and an MA in education policy, organization, and leadership studies from Stanford University.

Christi currently serves on the board of directors of Race Forward. Having lived in Oakland, Calif., and Honolulu, she now resides in Brooklyn, N.Y. An avid traveler, she enjoys stand-up paddle boarding, silent meditation, vegetarian cooking, and building community through giving circles.