A true trailblazer, visionary architect, community advocate, creative catalyst for change Commissioner ErNiko Brown. She was born and raised on rural family land in McCormick, SC. She was raised by her grandmother on the family land where she learned many life skills for survival, how to live off the land, support her community, and love others in the process.
She is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Organized Uplifting Resources & Strategies (OURS), an environmental organization in McCormick, SC. Through her organization OURS, she started the Grandma Rosie Scholarship to support Black students attending the South Carolina Governor’s School of Agriculture at John De la Howe in McCormick, SC. She is also a Conservation District Commissioner, in McCormick, where she ran her own write-in campaign less than 2 weeks out from Election Day 2020 making her the 1st black female Commissioner in its 80 plus year history. She is also the Environmental Justice & Disaster Management Executive Chair for the SC NAACP State Conference.
She has been a part of many fellowships across South Carolina including EMERGE, Carolina Farm Stewardship Association’s MAP fellowship, Carolina Leadership Academy for Nonprofits, and the esteemed Jim E. Clyburn Political fellowship, where she is the 2022 class President. She also served as the first Chief of Staff for the Young Democrats of South Carolina.
She holds a masters in Organizational Leadership from Columbia College and countless certifications including Fishing Instructor, Master Gardener, Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion, Project Management, and is currently working on her Doctorate degree.
With her strong commitment to community, Commissioner Brown has emerged as an effective leader dedicated to changing the narrative of environmental justice for rural communities and is starting with her own. On Juneteenth 2023, she closed on a historically segregated school in her community that will be the future home and headquarters for OURS. She recognizes that the holistic health and well-being of people in communities starts with their foundation, including access to healthy food systems, affordable housing, good paying jobs in their community, affordable healthcare, & breathable clean air. She was recently recognized for her work in advancing climate, clean energy, and environmental justice initiatives by Environmental Defense Fund Action.
For the past 15 years she has led political, community, & civic engagement efforts on behalf of local community advocacy, and state, national, and international movements. She uses her lived experience and leadership skills to craft strategic vision around strengthening community capacity building & mobilization through a lens of equity. She aims to ensure that diversity, equity, inclusion, and access are at the heart of environmental justice work. She is deeply committed to making the local to global connection that lifts the voices of impacted community members across the globe. She is also a member of Zeta Phi Beta Incorporated. She definitely embodies Scholarship, Services, Sisterhood, and Finer Womanhood!
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