Gabi Reyes-Acosta
Contributing Writer
Treeline writer Gabi Reyes-Acosta smiling for a photo in the woods during a camping trip in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area.
Photo by Zoe Drew-King
Gabi is a youth worker, outdoor educator, and an advocate who believes in the power of young people to make the world a better and more just place.
They began working with youth as a camp counselor for Girls Scouts of Northern California in while she was in college, spending summers with girls and gender expansive youth as they learned about themselves and grew while taking positive risks in the outdoors. It was this work that spurred Gabi to make a career out of working with girls and gender expansive youth, creating and supporting spaces for young people with marginalized identities to thrive in the safety of their communities.
They currently work at Girls Inc. of Alameda County, leading a team of youth workers who provide life skills, social justice, reproductive health, and college readiness programming to girls and gender expansive youth in the Oakland, CA area.
A somewhat poet, Gabi’s writing can also be found in Harvard’s Palabritas anthology.
Gabi is a regular contributor at The Trailhead.
Gabi is a believer in the power that every girl has within her. Gabi graduated from Saint Mary’s College in 2014 and has built her career around creating equitable and trauma-informed programs and experiences for youth, specifically in gender-responsive programming.
Gabi’s experiences have ranged from leading teams implementing early childhood literacy curricula to Spanish-speaking youth, to creating and deepening relationships with schools and after-school programs throughout the East Bay, to creating outdoor education and life-skills curricula that is age appropriate and challenging for girls, to working with and supporting teens to be peer mentors and leaders – both in and outside of their programming.
Gabi is now the High School Programs Manager where she oversees and supports the dynamic team of staff who are running the high school programs both at the Simpson Center in Downtown Oakland and at Concordia Park in East Oakland.
Throughout her experiences, Gabi approaches her youth work with an open heart and open hands, and is passionate about creating spaces for girls and their communities to flourish while feeling safe and supported.
Instagram: @naturemija
