Collaboration
Burnham Center for Community Advancement
Good Ideas aren ’ t enough .
The Burnham Center for Community Advancement ( BCCA ) is San Diego ’ s first “ think-and-do tank .” Established in 2021 with the mission to help make the San Diego binational region a better place to live , work and play for all , BCCA is unique in its focus to ensure innovative ideas become realized actions .
Founder and long-time civic leader Malin Burnham started the new organization based on his personal motto of “ Community Before Self .” He envisions BCCA serving as a nexus point where community stakeholders and multi-sector partners come together to identify regional needs , find innovative solutions , and tackle some of our most pressing issues .
La Jolla resident and nonprofit leader Tad Seth Parzen was tapped to be President and CEO and the organization has
30 GBSAN . COM | MAY 2022
Tad Seth Parzen and Malin Burnham already hit the ground running . BCCA has been a key partner with Design Forward Alliance and UC San Diego ’ s Design Lab and succeeded in winning the bid for San Diego-Tijuana to be the World Design Capital 2024 . The bid to the World Design Organization highlighted the culture of cross-border collaboration and the role of innovative human-centered design toward building more interconnected communities . San Diego-Tijuana are two countries and two cities , but one region and community that are continuously redefining and redesigning our cross-border home .
True to its community-centered orientation , BCCA seeks to bring people and ideas together in a neutral platform for the betterment of the region . In addition to Burnham ’ s vision and Tad ’ s leadership , the center will be led by community advisory groups and a board of directors of diverse civic leaders , including Paula Cordeiro , Peter Ellsworth , Lisette Islas , Jack McGrory and Vincent Mudd . The Center will rely on civic organizations and residents to find solutions to housing affordability , advancing an equitable workforce system , and revitalizing Balboa Park , to name a few .
www . burnhamcenter . org