Josephine Ayankoya

Josephine Ayankoya is the Chief Equity Officer for the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA), where she directs the agency’s Office of Racial Equity and Belonging (OREB). Josephine leads ongoing change management processes and plans to advance racial equity, mobility justice and transportation equity. Taking a comprehensive and intersectional approach, she identifies policies, practices, and procedures to center equity across all areas of SFMTA operations.

Josephine is passionate about promoting behavior change and systems changes to advance the liberation of marginalized people, especially in ways that celebrate and affirm their culture. She is inspired by her African American roots, which include a multi-generational history in Oakland by way of migration from Mississippi and Alabama. Ms. Ayankoya’s interest in social justice, racial equity and public health is also influenced by her identify as a first-generation Yoruba (Nigerian) American.

Josephine earned a Bachelor of Arts in African American Studies from the University of California, Berkeley focused on Arts and Societies in the African Diaspora. Following, she graduated from Emory University with a Master’s in Public Health focused on Behavioral Sciences and Health Education.