About Alisa

Alisa Costa has more than 25 years of community organizing, public relations, and public policy experience with real results.

She has implemented effective organizing and communications strategies across dozens of communities that have increased voter turnout, empowered collective action by disenfranchised people, and improved program participation and outcomes.

Prior to moving to the Berkshires, Alisa spent more than 20 years in New York’s Capital Region working in statewide grassroots and public policy organizations including the New York Civil Liberties Union, New York AIDS Coalition, Family Planning Advocates, and Hunger Solutions New York. 

Alisa currently serves on the Berkshire District Attorney’s Juvenile Justice Advisory Committee, and the DEI Task Force for the City of Pittsfield. She also serves on the Board of Directors of Berkshire Business and Professional Women and volunteers for the Abortion Rights Fund of Western Mass, the Dulye Leadership Experience, and wherever else aligns with her systems change work. She is a graduate of the University at Albany where she received a Bachelor's Degree in political science and studied Nonprofit Management at Rockefeller College. She is a certified Bridges Out of Poverty facilitator.

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She served four years as Initiative Director for Working Cities Pittsfield, an initiative supported by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston to build economic opportunity across the city. When funding ended, she did not want to stop doing the work, so she started a consulting firm, Engaged Communities Consulting, that focuses on community engagement and systems change.

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She lives in the Yankee Orchards neighborhood in Pittsfield with her fiancé, Ted, and two cats. Alisa plays bass guitar and enjoys playing at open mics around the region. She enjoys kayaking in our local lakes, hiking, and cooking for friends and family.

Please feel free to reach out with any questions.