Él Martinez (they/elle pronouns) is a community organizer, harm reductionist, youth worker and freelance consultant based in Worcester, MA. Él is passionate about identity development in youth, public health education, and capacity building through local organizing and mutual aid. They are fluent in English and proficient in Spanish, as a Puerto Rican heritage-speaker with 6 years of formal education. Él graduated from Clark University in May of 2025 and holds a Bachelor of Arts with honors in Community, Youth, and Education Studies.

   Él’s activism started at age 15, incited by negative experiences as a transgender student of color in MA public schools. This effort transformed into a freelance consulting business educating youth, parents, teachers, nurses, politicians, non-profits, and corporate entities. Él has spoken on panels, delivered speeches, hosted trainings, and more on a variety of topics, from LGBTQ+ inclusivity to white racial identity development. 

   A notable through-line in Él's life and career is their involvement with LGBTQ+ programs and organizations. They have participated in building community for queer youth of color for almost a decade, growing their skills of crisis response, resource brokering, sex education, and more through youth, peer, and adult roles. In addition to local grassroots efforts, Él has spent years using their skills for legislative advocacy in the state of Massachusetts on behalf of the "Gender X," "No New Women's Prison," "Healthy Youth Act," and "Overdose Prevention Center" initiatives.

  Él is very passionate about harm reduction as a public health approach and a political practice. In some of their most impactful work as a harm reductionist, they have contributed to syringe exchange programs, conducted street outreach, studied the drug supply of MA, responded to varied crises, and provided education on topics such as HIV transmission and opioid overdose response.

In their spare time, Él enjoys contributing to local mutual aid groups, customizing their clothes, listening to goth rock, and watching horror movies.