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\u201cI\u2019m building a library of civic knowledge,\u201d Yin told San Jos\u00e9 Spotlight. \u201cThe goal is to transform the way we practice democracy in local government.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yin, 40, got an early start working with government. Born in San Jose to immigrant parents from Cambodia who spoke limited English, Yin began helping them talk to government agencies at age six.<\/p>\n After graduating from Piedmont Hills High School in San Jose\u2019s Berryessa neighborhood and attending college at UC Riverside, Yin spent 10 years working for construction and architecture firms. A job at Anderson Brul\u00e9 Architects in San Jose, now ABA Studios, introduced her to the many government processes surrounding real estate development and in organizing public meetings to explain the firm\u2019s projects to residents.<\/p>\n But Yin, who lives in West San Jose, always wanted to do nonprofit work and described her decade in construction as a way to build up her experience and finances.<\/p>\n \nContribute to Local News Matters\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Google activism<\/p>\n The inspiration to pursue civic education came during a 2018 San Jose City Council meeting when residents were protesting the proposed\u00a0Google Downtown West megacampus<\/a>. Many opponents complained about a lack of notice, when Yin realized they simply weren\u2019t aware of an earlier review of the project by the city Planning Commission.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re participating at a point in time when it\u2019s not most effective,\u201d Yin said.<\/p>\n Yin launched the Only in San Jose podcast in June 2020, followed by Only in Santa Clara County in September 2024. She\u00a0then worked with the San Jose Office of Racial and Social Equity to adapt the podcast material into a\u00a0Civics Master Class<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople are taking the classes and going the most intense route \u2014 becoming a city commissioner,\u201d Yin said.<\/p>\n As an activist, Yin is focused on the\u00a0rapid growth of AI data centers in Silicon Valley<\/a>\u00a0and has built a website called\u00a0I Love San Jose<\/a>\u00a0to lay out information and encourage civic action.<\/p>\n \u201cI want (data centers) built responsibility in a way that doesn\u2019t hurt our environment or impact public health,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Angelica Cortez, founder and CEO of the advocacy group LEAD Filipino, has worked with Yin on Asian American oral history projects and is impressed by Yin\u2019s attention to detail.<\/p>\n \u201cShe demonstrably takes the time to read and to make sense and to study the numbers and to track not just what an elected (official) is saying, but how they\u2019re voting and the policies they\u2019re passing,\u201d Cortez told San Jos\u00e9 Spotlight. \u201cBy design, people make policies and programs complicated, and she just cuts right through and feeds it to the public in a way that incites action, which is great.\u201d<\/p>\n Finding the next cause<\/p>\n Bob Brownstein, a longtime civic consultant who\u2019s now a strategic advisor to Working Partnerships USA, first met Yin during the San Jose charter review process in 2020 and 2021, and was struck by her dedication.<\/p>\n \u201cShe\u2019s smart, articulate, hard-working and strongly committed to egalitarian and democratic values,\u201d Brownstein told San Jos\u00e9 Spotlight. \u201cSan Jose would be better off if we had 500 more of her.\u201d<\/p>\n Yin is also\u00a0building up a nonprofit called Dreaming Collaborative to expand her work in civic engagement and would eventually like to write a book.\u00a0She denies any interest in running for office.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t see becoming a politician as the main route to making change,\u201d Yin said. \u201cWe don\u2019t have to rely on a superhero politician to save the day.\u201d<\/p>\n District 2 Santa Clara County Supervisor Betty Duong calls Yin \u201ca county treasure\u201d who is playing an important role in creating more public understanding of the work that counties do, especially around healthcare and social safety net services.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t see becoming a politician as the main route to making change. We don\u2019t have to rely on a superhero politician to save the day.\u201d<\/p>\n Ellina Yin<\/p>\n Duong, who has been a guest host on the Only in Santa Clara County podcast, met Yin two and a half years ago immediately after giving a presentation at San Jose State University.<\/p>\n \u201cWe nerded out on the sidewalk talking about county policies,\u201d Duong told San Jos\u00e9 Spotlight.<\/p>\n That determination to understand local government and use that knowledge to widen civic participation remains at the core of Yin\u2019s work.<\/p>\n \u201cI want to continue to educate people, that\u2019s where my strength is,\u201d Yin said. \u201cYou don\u2019t need 1,000 people. If you have 12 of your neighbors show up (at a public meeting), you can make an incredible difference.\u201d<\/p>\n Contact Mike Langberg at\u00a0mike@langberg.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n Editor\u2019s note: Ellina Yin is a member of San Jos\u00e9 Spotlight\u2019s\u00a0Community Advisory Board<\/a>.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1780556358_373_LNM-20250616-SJSPOTLIGHTLOGO-01.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Woman](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Ellina-Yin-video-shoot-1024x768.jpg\")
Ellina Yin records an Instagram video promoting a \u201cget out the vote\u201d campaign by the community group LEAD Filipino. (Mike Langberg\/San Jose Spotlight)<\/p>\n