Greg Esser has worked at the intersection of community development and arts and culture for more than three decades, with more than two decades in the field of public art, commissioning site-specific artwork integrated into facilities with community input and participation.

At Arizona State University, Esser spent seven years focused on building collaborative initiatives and engagement between communities, artists and the university. This work resulted in both temporary and permanently endowed outcomes including Desert Initiative, a regional art collaboration, and the International Artist Residency Program through the ASU Art Museum and based in a community facility in downtown Phoenix.