Alicia Espinoza: Building Bridges Across the Border Through Public Health

Before Alicia Espinoza was connecting health systems across an international border, she was sitting at her family’s dinner table helping her grandmother study American history. Espinoza was only in fifth grade, but she understood that her grandmother’s journey to becoming a U.S. citizen mattered. Years later, that same instinct—to help people navigate systems, find their voice and make sure no one is left behind—has become central to her work in public health.

Today, Espinoza leads the San Diego County Office of Border Health and co-chairs the Border Health Consortium of the Californias, bringing together more than 400 academic, clinical and community partners throughout the Cali-Baja region. Her work reaches across issues including HIV, mental health, emergency preparedness and response, with a focus on strengthening connections between communities and health systems on both sides of the border.

Her commitment to this work is profoundly personal. The daughter and granddaughter of immigrants from Guadalajara, Mexico, Espinoza grew up in a multicultural household where she learned to navigate systems that were not always designed for families like hers. “From a young age, I learned to advocate for our culture and our needs,” she says.

That lesson became even more important when her father died during her senior year of high school. Espinoza helped care for her two younger siblings while beginning to build a future of her own. “It wasn’t a question of whether I was ‘ready’; it was about moving forward and finding a way to make it happen,” she recalls. That resilience continues to shape her leadership.

Through the Office of Border Health, Espinoza and her team bring organizations together around issues affecting communities throughout the Cali-Baja region. Programs such as Partner Relay connect more than 700 organizations with communities, including many Latino communities with limited English proficiency. Her office also coordinates binational symposiums that allow health professionals to share knowledge and strengthen regional collaboration.

At the heart of her work is a simple belief: health should not stop at a border. “The Office of Border Health serves as a bridge, listening to, connecting, and uplifting Latino communities that exist between two systems, two countries, and two realities,” she says.

That makes her participation in VIDA’s inaugural Pride Without Fear Binational Conference especially meaningful. Espinoza sees the gathering as an opportunity to bring greater visibility to binational HIV and border health work within Latinx LGBTQ+ communities and strengthen partnerships across the region.

Her message to attendees is direct: “Lean into their power—as individuals and as part of a larger collective.” Share stories. Ask questions. Build connections that last beyond the conference.

For Espinoza, the WORD is Puente—bridge—which captures it all: honoring where she comes from while creating stronger pathways for the generations still to come.