history

Grassroots & Movement Building

For over 15 years, I have dedicated my career to strengthening grassroots organizations, movement ecosystems, and social justice initiatives rooted in racial, economic, and gender equity. As the founder of Cross Movement Social Justice Consulting, I have partnered with grassroots groups, nonprofits, foundations, and universities to advance transformational change through capacity building, strategic planning, and leadership development. I bring longstanding relationships and experience within grassroots ecosystems. For the past four years, I have served as a Capacity Coach with LeadersTrust, supporting mostly immigrant- and Latinx-led organizations across California, New Mexico, and national networks. In Michigan, for seven years I coordinated the Battle Creek Coalition for Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation, facilitating cross-sector collaboration and trust-building among community members, institutions, and systems leaders. I have developed deep expertise in working with monolingual Spanish-speaking leaders and organizations, ensuring language justice and cultural responsiveness are central in my organizational strengthening approach. I also serve as Secretary on the board of MI Poder, a 501(c)4 promoting Latinx-focused policy advocacy and civic engagement in Michigan.

Values

My work advances justice through investment in movement infrastructure, economic justice, and narrative change. Across all engagements, I center communities most impacted by systemic inequities, especially Black, Indigenous, Latinx, immigrant, LGBTQIA+, and low-income communities, while supporting organizations to build power, sustainability, and resilience. To every engagement, I bring a trauma-informed, healing-centered, and relational approach.

Social Enterprise

My experience also extends to social enterprise and economic justice initiatives. As co-founder of Damian’s Craft Meats, I am leading the development of a $20M regenerative agriculture and meat processing project rooted in worker equity, local food systems, and rural economic development. This work strengthens my ability to support grassroots organizations navigating complex funding landscapes, capital projects, and systems-level change.

Approach

Core Areas of Expertise

  • Strategic Planning & Implementation
  • Organizational Development & Culture Building
  • Leadership Development & Team Management
  • Healing-Centered & Somatic Practices
  • Equity, Justice, and Systems Change

Strategic planning is a core specialization that informs all aspects of my work. I view strategic plans not as a static documents, rather as a living, adaptive process that integrates vision, values, operations, and community voice.

My consulting and coaching approach is grounded in flexibility, trust, and co-creation. I recognize that grassroots organizations operate in dynamic, resource-constrained environments, and therefore require support that is responsive rather than prescriptive.

  1. Relationship & Trust Building First I begin every engagement by building authentic relationships and establishing trust. This includes deep listening, understanding organizational history and context, and honoring lived experience as expertise. 
  2. Co-Creation of Scope & Goals: Rather than imposing a fixed framework, I work collaboratively with grantees to define priorities, outcomes, and scope. This ensures relevance and ownership, while allowing space to respond to emergent needs. 
  3. Culturally Responsive & Language-Accessible Practice: I provide bilingual (English/Spanish) support and specialize in working with monolingual Spanish-speaking leaders. My approach integrates culturally grounded facilitation, accessible tools, and inclusive communication practices. 
  4. Healing-Centered & Trauma-Informed Methods: Recognizing the impact of burnout, trauma, and systemic harm on movement leaders, I integrate somatic practices, reflection, and healing-centered engagement into capacity building processes. 
  5. Adaptive Coaching & Consulting Structure: Engagements typically begin with a more intensive cadence (e.g., weekly sessions), which may shift to biweekly or monthly as capacity strengthens. I also provide real-time support as needed for urgent or emerging challenges.
  6. Learning & Evaluation Approach: I utilize participatory and learning-centered evaluation methods, rooted in asset-based framing, including: Regular reflection sessions with grantees Simple, accessible tracking tools aligned with organizational capacity Feedback loops to adapt strategies in real time.

Scope of work

Typical Engagement Model

My scope of work is intentionally flexible and tailored. However, a typical engagement includes the following components:

Phase 1: Co-Discovery & Relationship Building

I begin every engagement by building authentic relationships and establishing trust. This includes deep listening, understanding organizational history and context, and honoring lived experience as expertise. 

Phase 2: Co-Creation & Planning

Rather than imposing a fixed framework, I work collaboratively with grantees to define priorities, outcomes, and scope. This ensures relevance and ownership, while allowing space to respond to emergent needs. 

Phase 3: Implementation & Coaching

I provide bilingual (English/Spanish) support and specialize in working with monolingual Spanish-speaking leaders. My approach integrates culturally grounded facilitation, accessible tools, and inclusive communication practices. 

Phase 4: Reflection, Evaluation & Transition

Recognizing the impact of burnout, trauma, and systemic harm on movement leaders, I integrate somatic practices, reflection, and healing-centered engagement into capacity building processes.

Examles of Work & Impact

LeadersTrust Capacity Coaching since 2022 (CA, NM, and national)

Supported 13 distinct BIPOC, immigrant- and Latinx-led grassroots organizations in strengthening leadership, operations, and long-term sustainability. 

Californians Together, 2025 (CA)

Collaboratively led a comprehensive strategic planning engagement for statewide policy advocacy organization. 

Grassroots Organizations in Michigan, 2017-present: 

Battle Creek Coalition for Truth, Racial Healing, & Transformation: 

  • Facilitated multi-sector collaboration and community healing processes. 

Buenos Vecinos

  • Direct bilingual, community-based initiatives focused on engagement, leadership, and service delivery.

press

“Intersecting Identities: Area Activist Challenges Notions of Privilege” in Between the Lines, Michigan’s LGBT Newspaper.

Articles about Cross Movement Social Justice Consulting and relevant information about the nonprofit sector working to advance social justice:

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