My name is Cris Sardina and I am currently the national Co-director of the Desiree Alliance (DA). DA is a national organization based on a coalition of sexworkers, academia, sex educators, researchers, public health agencies, service providers, who lead the sexworkers rights movements etc. I also co-founded the Women's Reentry Network-WREN in 2004. WREN is women ex-felons assisting other women (ex) felons in & out of Arizona's penal systems. My passion is in social justice and I have forever been an advocate for disenfranchised & marginalized populations. I have a bachelors degree in Women's Studies and a masters degree in Social Justice.

My life has not always sounded this rosy. I was raised in an extremely violent alcohol & drug induced environment. We lived in extreme poverty; my brothers, sisters, and I stole food to eat and clothes to wear for school. I was heavily involved in drugs & alcohol for many years until I began to see my daughters (I have 2 children) were following in the same footsteps. At age 37, I got sober and broke the chain of dysfunction. One daughter graduated from community college and one daughter is attending a university. Loving myself has been the greatest gift I have given to me. I realized without love for yourself, you have no real love for anyone else.

Today, my life has improved tremendously. My education has allowed me to lead and represent on higher levels of activsim, policy-making, and organizing. My street education has given me the insight to lead from the bottom-up and an understanding of the real problems that affect the people who are marginalized.

I feel I would be a perfect candidate for the program. Since Desiree Alliance is a virtual organization, we depend on technological systems of information gathering, coalition-building, and correspondance. Growing up without these systems of technology (I am 50 years old), the benefits of this program would personally help me lead Desiree Alliance.