Our TEAM
Jesse C. McKnight
Partner
jesse@landusestrategies.com | LinkedIn
Jesse is a founding partner of Land Use Strategies, LLC – a public relations, government affairs, and campaign strategy firm. He works at the crossroads of political consulting, lobbying, grassroots organizing and land use politics. Jesse has led teams to win state political campaigns, adapted campaign strategies and tactics to win community support for major development projects and won referendum campaigns against sophisticated environmental and special interest groups.
Jesse brings a low-key can-do, will-do winning spirit and strong leadership qualities that aim to bring out the best in people. His teams work effectively in the public and private sector – with candidates for office and business executives trying to promote and protect their property assets in the public planning process. His skills include over 25 years in grassroots organizing, outcome engineering, communications, political consulting and project strategy to mitigate political risk in land use issues for retail, airport, hospital, casino, quarry, energy and other industries.
Prior to his consulting career, he served for eight years as state director and as campaign director for the late U.S. Senator Wendell H. Ford (D-Kentucky). He received a BA from University of Kentucky, an MBA from St. Mary’s College, attended MIT-Harvard Public Disputes Program, University of California-Berkeley and University of California-Davis CEQA CLE programs. He has spoken at ULI and national waste industry meetings and published articles on land use politics in Solid Waste Magazine, Airport World, American Infrastructure and American Recycler magazines. Jesse lives outside San Francisco with his wife and four children.
Travis Sexton
Partner
travis@landusestrategies.com | LinkedIn
Travis is a founding partner of Land Use Strategies, LLC – a public relations, government affairs, and campaign strategy firm. He brings 17 years of political and land use experience, having developed and executed successful strategic campaigns for clients throughout the Western U.S. Travis specializes in grassroots organizing, strategic communications, political consulting, social media advocacy, and message development. He has managed complex land use campaigns for clients encountering varying degrees of political, community, CEQA, and planning/zoning related issues during the entitlement process. Travis has successfully worked with clients in the mining, retail, commercial, healthcare, housing, cannabis and transportation sectors.
Travis began his career as a news reporter in Eugene, Oregon before transitioning into politics. He worked for several years on multiple political and issue-based statewide and local campaigns in California and Colorado.
He received his MBA from Pepperdine University, and BA/BS degrees from the University of Colorado at Boulder. Travis attended MIT-Harvard Public Disputes Program and University of California-Berkeley and University of California-Davis CEQA CLE programs. He is Hootsuite Advanced Social Advertising Certified. Travis lives in the Bay Area along with his wife and two children.
Ken Nason
Executive Vice President
ken@landusestrategies.com | LinkedIn
Ken is an executive vice president of Land Use Strategies, LLC, where he develops, directs and executes complex public affairs programs and land use campaigns for clients and organizations throughout the Unites States.
Ken’s work and expertise focuses on local advocacy campaigns, coalition building, social media strategies, and helping companies and organizations navigate labor, land use and environmental regulation issues.
An attorney by training, Ken has over 20 years of experience in public affairs, government relations, and political campaigns, and has worked in the offices of a United States Senator and a State Senate President, where he served as Director of Communications. He has a deep understanding of legislation, public policy, and land use, and enjoys all things political- especially at the local level.
Ken has also directed several award-winning political media campaigns for candidates, organizations and local governments, and has managed grassroots campaigns for school and community college districts resulting in the passage of over $3 billion in bond measure funding for California schools.
Ken has a Juris Doctor degree and three years’ experience in a civil litigation law firm. He lives in Davis, California and volunteers for the Davis Joint Unified School District.
Susan Dixen
Director of Social Media Engagement
Susan Dixen joins Land Use Strategies after eight years in the communications and policy shops of Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear. She has extensive experience in public policy and communications at the federal, state, and local levels, starting her career in Washington as a U.S. senator’s aide, corresponding on legislative issues ranging from small business to housing to domestic spending.
Since then, she’s been the research director for a national non-profit advocacy group, training people to form coalitions and speak up for what they believe. She directed communications for a state political party during the Bush-Gore campaign in 2000, and served as chief of staff for a county commissioner in Jefferson County, Ky., where she served on a comprehensive land use planning panel for Louisville and its surroundings.
Susan also ventured into the private sector, establishing a marketing and media relations unit for a nationwide benefits consulting firm based in Louisville, and handling media for an indie film company which had three acclaimed submissions to the Sundance Film Festival.
Susan has a bachelor’s degree in sociology and communication from Central College in Iowa. Her continued education includes a grant writing workshop at the University of Louisville’s Center for Sustainable Urban Neighborhoods, a “Street-Smart” principled negotiating seminar at UofL, a political consultants outreach conference at Harvard, and PIO training at the U.S. Department of Agriculture in DC.
Message development, coalition building, rapid response, and opposition research are among her strengths.Not one to shy from controversy, Susan aims to help people do the right thing for people and the planet.
Bob Gutierrez
Strategic Partner
Bob Gutierrez is part of a new generation of political strategists disrupting the status-quo in Sacramento and Washington D.C. After nearly 20 years in the political arena, Bob brought a fresh approach to helping his clients redefine how they can win in pro-business policy making in California and on a national platform. Bringing forward new and often underrepresented audience perspectives and a comprehensive and tactical management approach, Bob focuses on helping his clients anticipate likely outcomes, and stay ahead of issues with customized service. His creative strategy and efficient media campaigns have put “wins” on the scoreboards of candidates, communities and industries facing significant challenges within the political landscape.
Bob was the previous Government Affairs Director for PAQ Inc, a family-owned grocery franchisee of the Food 4 Less grocery chain and Rancho San Miguel markets in California, and Times Supermarkets in Hawaii. For eight years, Bob navigated the company through complex industry issues such as recycling, plastic bags in California, theft thresholds and loss prevention. He worked closely with policymakers at the state and federal levels to ensure the grocery industry was well-represented in the ever-changing policies around the Women Infant Children (WIC) program and the federal Farm Bill’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Bob’s extensive political background also includes experience as a senior district representative for a member of the U.S. House of Representatives and Chairman of the Natural Resources Committee as well as a campaign consultant for a candidate for California Lieutenant Governor.
Over the past several years, Bob has focused his attention to working with a variety of organizations and community groups to help them organize and advocate for the issues they champion to legislators in Sacramento and Washington D.C. Bob currently serves as the elected Chairman of the California Hispanic Chambers of Commerce, the past board president of the San Joaquin County Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and the chairman of the San Joaquin Partnership.
Kevin Wing
Media Consultant / Communications Expert
Kevin Wing partnered with Land Use Strategies in 2017. He is a two-time Emmy Award-honored Bay Area journalist. Kevin founded Kevin Wing Media Communications in 2010 to create exceptional, outstanding video documentaries for public and private sector clients as a natural extension of his work in television. Kevin has served as a news reporter, feature reporter, assignment editor, assignment manager, writer, producer, field producer, special projects producer and news anchor.
Previously with KTVU Channel 2, KGO-TV ABC7 and ABC News’ “Good Morning America”, Kevin is a journalist with KNTV NBC Bay Area, where he has worked since 2009. He received Emmys in 1996 and 2000 for best breaking news and best daytime newscast, respectively, while at KTVU Channel 2. In 2018, he was nominated for an Emmy for best breaking news at KNTV NBC Bay Area. His work has also been recognized by the Associated Press Television and Radio Association, San Francisco Peninsula Press Club and the Radio Television Digital News Association.
Kevin is available to assist clients with: video production, marketing and promotional videos, product videos, public service announcement videos, documentaries, live events and conferences, B-roll, stock footage, interviews, written and verbal communications and public relations. Our services include messaging, scripting, videography, lighting, editing, color correcting, audio sweetening, closed captioning, archiving, and digital delivery of all media.
Sean D Johnson
Drone Video / Photography Professional
Sean D Johnson partnered with Land Use Strategies in 2019. He is an Academy of Art University alumni has always had a passion for storytelling through video and photography. Starting at a young age in Minneapolis when his dad gave him his first camera, Sean gained new meaning on discovering the world from a different perspective - behind the lens.
16 years and counting, Sean continues to hone his craft behind the camera. He has worked as Director of Photography, producer and lead photographer across many industries ranging from agriculture and industrial services to technology. Clients have included tech start-ups, venture capitalists, consumer product goods, lifestyle brands, retail and fine arts.
Throughout his career, Sean has focused on connecting with people and sharing their stories. His collaborative nature, resourcefulness, heightened sense of empathy and keen artistic eye enables him to capture magic. The magic in stories that can change attitudes, perspectives and win hearts. He believes every story is worth telling. He aims to be the vessel by which to share that story. Along with all of that Sean possesses a great interest in exploring the world from new perspectives. Including a Part 107 Drone Pilots license allows him to explore and tell stories from the air through beautiful Aerial video and photography. The drone video on the Land Use Strategies’ homepage is a snapshot of some of Sean’s fantastic work!
Sean currently resides in Oakland, California. He spends his free time traveling and continuously growing at the intersection of new technology, content creation and humanity.
