Michael “MJ” Johnson

MJ is a Chicago native and recently earned a Master in Urban Planning from the Harvard Graduate School of Design. MJ’s previous professional focus has been on community and economic development and moving forward equitable policies supporting wholistic investment and structural changes to improve quality of life for African American neighborhoods.

His decade of work in service to more just, vibrant, and equitable cities inspired him to join apply for the Bloomberg Harvard City Hall Fellowship. He is interested in how city leaders and departmental staff might innovate to address some of the most intractable problems in cities. Michael MJ believes that a just, vibrant, and equitable city requires businesses, civic organizations, local government, and federal government coming together to make sure the economy is working for residents. He is looking forward to learning together with the team and working to ensure that residents of Buffalo have a pathway toward wealth generation. He hopes to contribute to removing some key structural barriers to residents’ ability to thrive. Michael MJ is excited to enter this chapter of his life in public service and to making a bigger impact in municipal leadership soon.

Initial Fellowship Focus: Closing the Racial Wealth Gap: Building Financial Empowerment