SF Politics 101

Learn how local politics work and the history that shaped San Francisco — brought to life with visuals and narrative storytelling.

Ever wonder why San Francisco is the way it is?

Find out with Joel Engardio’s SF Politics 101 presentation. It’s an entertaining look at how local politics work and the history that shaped San Francisco — brought to life with visuals and narrative storytelling.

SF Politics 101 describes what makes San Francisco tick and unpacks our city's million shades of democratic blue. It’s designed for both newcomers and longtime residents who want to better understand the city they love.

Joel promises the hour will be as interesting as your Netflix show.

• Regular Edition
  55-minute narrative presentation followed by Q&A.

• Late Night Edition
  This has the same content as the regular in-person presentation, just offered at a later time by Zoom. Many parents have requested a late evening option to watch from home after their kids are in bed. All night owls are welcome.

Contact Joel Engardio if your group, organization, employer, or school would like a free presentation for 25 or more people. I’ve presented SF Politics 101 to multiple tech companies, middle and high school classes in both public and private schools, and workplaces as varied as the Port of San Francisco and the medical residency at UCSF.

UPCOMING DATES — Public presentation (regular edition)

May 28
RSVP

June 24
RSVP

REVIEWS

• "An excellent primer on San Francisco's political and cultural history. I've lived here for 40 years and I learned a lot." — Jo L.

• "A great learning experience for someone new to the city." — Jyot C.

• "Fantastic speaker and a great opportunity to learn more about the city I call home." — Ciaran B.

• "Awesome presentation! What a great use of an hour.” — Sanjay J.

• "The webinar format lets busy moms and small business owners like myself participate in this excellent presentation.” — Ann W. 

• "Joel was fabulous! His presentation was clear, objective, and personable. He reduced complex issues to understandable terms!" — Martin L.

• "SF Politics 101 was the perfect way to build a base understanding of the city I love so that I can figure out how to best be involved in local politics." — Melissa S.

• "Really, really well-done. Thoughtful and balanced with good humor. Increasing rarity these days." — Diane E.P.

• "I appreciated the depth of knowledge, cogent presentation, and reasoned responses to questions.” — Jason J.

• “Joel is super knowledgeable, well prepared, very professional, and was unbiased when sharing his opinion. Much respect.” — Ravi B.

• "Huge praise for a clear explanation of San Francisco history, politics, and our shades of blue.” — Tim S.

• “Terrific presentation, highly recommended" — Cooper M.

• "Educational and interesting." — Kira G. 

• “Enjoyable and informative” — Levi A.

• "Every kid in San Francisco (future voter) should hear it!" — Claudia V.

• “It was a lot more interesting and entertaining than I expected!” — Amy T.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND?

• Newcomers and longtime residents alike find Joel Engardio’s presentation illuminating. It shines a light on a local government that manages to look opaque no matter how long you’ve lived here.

• All ages welcome, as young as middle school. When Joel gives the presentation to students, he encourages parents to attend because they will learn just as much.

PREVIOUS PRESENTATIONS

• UCSF (emergency medicine residents)

• UCSF (administrator staff conference)

• Harvard Kennedy School Alumni Association

• Rotary Club of San Francisco

• Manny’s of San Francisco

• Port of San Francisco

• San Francisco Association of Realtors

• Silicon Valley VC group

• United Democratic Club

• Eastern Neighborhoods Democratic Club

• Golden Gate Breakfast Club

• The Asian Urbanist SF

• Irish Immigration Pastoral Center

• Parents of San Francisco Cub Scout Troop 345

• Presidio Knolls school (6th grade)

• French American International Middle School

• Lowell High School (American Democracy classes)

• Lincoln High School (U.S. Government classes)

• City College (English as Second Language class)

INSIGHTS
Joel Engardio brings his insights as a former city supervisor and a longtime journalist who covered City Hall. His news column in the San Francisco Examiner won many journalism awards. Joel also served on the boards of two of San Francisco’s largest Democratic clubs.

Joel offers SF Politics 101 for free. The goal is to educate "low information" voters who might be highly educated on national issues but don't understand how local politics work. People might want to change things in San Francisco, but they first need to understand how things work at City Hall — and that starts with knowing the history that shaped our city. Joel wants to provide a baseline education so people are better equipped to get involved locally.

As a journalist, Joel used storytelling to help people learn more about issues. Learn more about Joel’s background here.

Title
SF Politics 101

Running Time
55-minute slideshow followed by Q&A

Description
Ever wonder why San Francisco is the way it is?

Find out with Joel Engardio’s SF Politics 101 presentation. It’s an entertaining look at how local politics work and the history that shaped San Francisco — brought to life with visuals and narrative storytelling.

SF Politics 101 describes what makes San Francisco tick and unpacks our city's million shades of democratic blue. It’s designed for both newcomers and longtime residents who want to better understand the city they love.

Joel promises the hour will be as interesting as your Netflix show.

Speaker Bio
Joel Engardio is an urbanist Democrat, civil liberties advocate, and journalist who served as the elected supervisor for San Francisco’s District 4, representing the Sunset District. A longtime San Franciscan, Engardio has worked many years at the intersection of media, public policy, and community advocacy.

Raised in Saginaw, Michigan by a single mother who worked as a house and office cleaner, Engardio learned early lessons about resilience and resourcefulness. He earned degrees in journalism from Michigan State University and public administration at Harvard.

Engardio’s career in print and broadcast journalism produced award-winning reports, essays, and documentaries for outlets including PBS, the San Francisco Examiner, and USA Today.

Beyond journalism, Engardio worked for tech start-ups in healthcare, public relations firms, and nonprofits. This includes the American Civil Liberties Union, where Engardio advocated for constitutional protections for LGBTQ people, women, immigrants, and voters. At the ACLU, Engardio pioneered a plaintiff-finding model that combined journalism and legal strategy. He created the organization’s first online video department, producing advocacy films used for public education. His work was used in a landmark Supreme Court case that challenged patents on human genes. Engardio’s contributions to civil liberties and media were recognized with a full scholarship for a mid-career graduate degree at Harvard’s Kennedy School.

Elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 2022, Engardio became the first openly gay supervisor to represent a westside district. In office, he focused on public safety, education, housing, and economic vitality. Engardio helped launch the Sunset Night Market, which attracted tens of thousands of residents and inspired similar events citywide. Engardio also helped lead the effort to bring algebra back to middle school. He sponsored a ballot measure that passed with 81 percent of the vote, which put political pressure on the school district to reverse a well-intended but failed policy that made every student wait until high school to take algebra. Engardio championed more housing for families and seniors by legalizing new apartment building construction in every neighborhood and authoring legislation that allows homeowners to build and sell small backyard homes. 

Engardio was known for his emphasis on “creating joy” to counter the “doom loop” narrative in San Francisco. He founded the Sunset Community Band and a new Fourth of July parade tradition.

Engardio played a major role in creating Sunset Dunes, the largest pedestrianization project in California history. Sunset Dunes is an oceanside park that replaced a section of the Great Highway that had lost its utility due to severe coastal erosion. The road closure was controversial, but the most feared traffic impact never materialized. Sunset Dunes has proven good for the environment, local businesses, and the well-being of visitors. It has become one of the most popular parks in San Francisco.  

Engardio often voted with his conscience on issues that divided the Board of Supervisors and the public. He helped write the Gaza ceasefire resolution and cast the decisive vote to make it veto-proof. He defended the city’s sanctuary policy against efforts to weaken it and stood with organized labor when doing so wasn’t unanimous. On major issues — from supporting a fully staffed police department to protecting the environment with Sunset Dunes — Engardio consistently aligned with the broad majority of San Franciscans.

Engardio edits a popular community newsletter and hosts “SF Politics 101” to help residents engage in local government. He lives in the Sunset District with his husband, Lionel Hsu, and remains committed to building a truly progressive city that is inclusive, innovative, and improves the lives of residents by embracing the future.

Engardio says: “I believe San Francisco’s best days are ahead — if we are willing to address today's problems with equal doses of innovation and pragmatism. This includes the willingness to do bold and positive things like create Sunset Dunes and build the housing our kids and grandkids will need to stay here. We also have to make sure we’re excelling at the basics a city needs to thrive like safe streets, great schools, better public transportation, and vibrant small businesses. There’s no reason to keep fighting over Sunset Dunes when the park is popular and traffic is fine. It’s time to focus on more pressing issues like affordability, protecting our immigrant community, and everything else that has the world on fire. San Francisco cannot claim to be a progressive city when it fears change. Let’s be the most progressive city that improves the lives of our residents by embracing the future.”

Learn more.

Links
Joel Engardio website and blog.
Joel’s personal background.
Joel’s views on local issues.