Advocacy

Advocacy

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Community And Member Advocacy. It’s Our Mission.

We believe that strong public policy creates a vibrant community. Engagement in critical public policy issues on behalf of individual members and organizations is at the core of the Chamber’s mission. Our work in public policy ranges from land-use and permitting issues, to direct appropriations of state capitol dollars. We develop and implement strategies to support critical issue management in Thurston County and throughout the South Sound region. 

Let Us Handle The Advocacy. You Focus On Business.

We’ve established a public policy team to manage public policy issues facing our region. This team includes a public policy expert, legal representation and a public relations professional.

The Chamber’s Public Policy team will...

Impact regulatory, land-use and permitting issues.

Provide direct advocacy for business and industry.

Continue to partner with local government, assisting in obtaining state and federal resources for regional projects.

Support critical partners such as higher education and K-12 education.

Meet The Team

Meet the folks that lead Thurston County Chamber's advocacy with the Thurston County area.

Doug Mah Director of Public Policy Doug Mah & Associates

Doug Mah

Doug Mah and Associate

Doug Mah of Doug Mah and Associates serves as division coordinator. Mah is a past Mayor of the City of Olympia. As a management and public affairs consultant with over 20 years of experience, Mah focuses on eliminating communication barriers and building strategic partnerships in the areas of real estate and resource allocations.

Natasha Ashenhurst Communications & Marketing

Natasha Ashenhurst

Mosaic Marketing Studio

Natasha Ashenhurst of Mosaic Marketing Studio manages strategic communications. Ashenhurst is an award-winning professional acknowledged for consistent excellence as an organizational communications consultant and marketing program manager. Highly creative, with demonstrated ability to develop cohesive integrated MarComm programs incorporating social media and traditional media. An impactful writer and message manager; transforms staid, technical content into a relatable and actionable narrative that increases member and stakeholder engagement.

Heather

Heather Burgess

Dickson Frohlich Phillips Burgess Law

Heather Burgess of Phillips Burgess Law, our region’s premier land-use attorney, serves as legal counsel. For over a decade, she has represented high-profile private and public sector clients throughout Washington in all phases of real estate development. Repeatedly ranked among The Best Lawyers in America ® by U.S. News & World Report, Burgess has worked on permitting and zoning matters under the Growth Management Act, Shoreline Management Act, and Federal Endangered Species Act in jurisdictions across Thurston County.

The Thurston County Chamber is growing a prosperous economy and vibrant community by connecting people, ideas and resources.

Learn More

Check out the Advocacy programs that interest you.