Zen Trenholm

Democracy at Work Institute

Zen Trenholm is the Senior Director of Employee Ownership Cities and Policy with the Democracy at Work Institute (DAWI), working with cities to build equitable economies through worker ownership. He developed the Shared Equity in Economic Development Fellowship program in partnership with the National League of Cities, working with over 10 cities to shape and implement worker ownership initiatives that meet critical economic and workforce development priorities. Zen also informs state and federal legislation and develops policy agendas, reports, and toolkits for lawmakers and advocates to unlock support for worker ownership. He serves on the steering committee of both the Worker Owned Recovery California Coalition and the Oregon New Economy Project. He lives in Portland, Oregon.