Jen LaBarbera (they/them), MLIS, is an advocacy and organizing strategist with over 20 years of experience as a leader in the LGBTQIA+ and reproductive justice movements, and has worked in every time zone in the contiguous United States. As a queer, multiracial, nonbinary, neurodivergent person of color, Jen works to advocate for policy to shape and change lives and is invested in the grassroots organizing and community engagement necessary to further true social justice and liberation. 

Most recently, Jen worked for 7 years at San Diego Pride, launching and elevating the organization’s education and advocacy work and stepping into a leadership role as Interim Co-Executive Director. At Pride, Jen nurtured and built the organization’s local, national, and global community partnerships, launched new coalition efforts and programs, led multiple issue-based electoral and public education campaigns, trained a wide variety of professionals on LGBTQIA+ inclusivity, engaged supporters in civic engagement efforts, and stewarded the organization’s international diplomacy work. 

Jen has been involved with InterPride since 2018 and has been part of the leadership since 2020, serving as Co-Chair of the Conference Committee from 2020-present (with a hiatus in 2024), where they support the organization’s annual gathering of Pride organizers from around the world. They also currently serve on InterPride’s Board as a Vice President of Global Outreach. 

Prior to their work in the Pride movement, Jen worked as a librarian and archivist in San Diego, Boston, and Denver, and has over 20 years of experience as a political and community organizer and advocate for LGBTQ+ equality and reproductive justice in Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, South Dakota, and Massachusetts. As a writer, Jen has had two pieces published in anthologies focused on LGBTQIA+ survivors and mental health. They received their BA in the Study of Women and Gender and Government from Smith College and their MA in Library and Information Science from the University of Denver.

Jen resides in San Diego, California (USA) with their wife and ‘kids’ (two dogs, two cats). In their non-work time, they enjoy hugging big trees, reading cozy fantasy on the beach, throwing uneven pottery on a wheel, and driving up to the mountains for day hikes.