Andre Banks (NYC)
Andre Banks is an independent media consultant and the former deputy director of Color of Change, which works to strengthen Black America’s political voice and led the advertising boycott of the Fox network’s Glenn Beck Show. Andre has also served as the director of media and public affairs at the Applied Research Center and as associate publisher of ColorLines magazine.
Ibrahim Abdul Matin (NYC)
Ibrahim Abdul-Matin is the author of Green Deen: What Islam Teaches About Protecting the Planet and a contributor on NPR’s live morning news show, The Takeaway. For the past ten years, Ibrahim has been a voice for transforming our pollution-based way of life to one that prioritizes our planet and its people. He has worked with Green for All, Green City Force and Interfaith Leaders for Environmental Justice.
Simon Greer (NYC)
Simon Greer is President and CEO of Jewish Funds for Justice (JFSJ), a national public foundation guided by Jewish history and tradition. Since the mid-1980s JFSJ has developed new ways to create social change and strengthen low-income communities. Since he assumed his position in 2005, Mr. Greer has led the organization through a period of dramatic institutional growth and increased philanthropic impact.
Ari Rabin-Havt (DC)
Ari Rabin-Havt is Vice President for Research and Communications at Media Matters. Previously Rabin-Havt served as an adviser to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and former Vice President Al Gore. Throughout his career he has worked with numerous progressive politicians and organizations including the Alliance for Climate Protection, the ONE campaign, the Democratic National Committee, Planned Parenthood and the ACLU among others.
Malia Lazu (NYC, Boston)
Malia Lazu is a Fellow at M.I.T.’s Community Innovator’s Lab, where she is guest lecturing and initiating a project called The Urban Lab. She recently served as the executive director of Harry Belafonte’s The Gathering, an intergenerational, intercultural organization working to reintroduce nonviolence to our communities to stop child incarceration. Malia was the founding executive director of Mass VOTE, recognized by the Massachusetts State Senate and House for increasing voter turnout in Boston and was named one of The Source magazine’s “Power 30″ in 2007 and “Activist of the Year” by MTV.
Alexis McGill (DC)
Alexis McGill is the Executive Director of Americans for American Values, which studies and combats racism and other forms of bias in American society. She was formerly the Executive Director of Citizen Change, a non-partisan organization founded to educate, motivate and empower young eligible voters, where she launched the Vote or Die! Campaign, which mixed traditional grassroots mobilization with nontraditional consumer-based marketing methods. McGill has also served as the Political Director for the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network and taught at Yale and Wesleyan universities.
Rinku Sen
Rinku Sen is the President and Executive Director of the Applied Research Center (ARC) and Publisher of ColorLines magazine. A leading figure in the racial justice movement, Rinku has positioned ARC as the home for media and activism on racial justice. She has extensive practical experience on the ground, with expertise in race, feminism, immigration, and economic justice. Over the course of her career, Rinku has weaved journalism and organizing to further social change. She also has significant experience in philanthropy. Rinku is Vice Chair of the Schott Foundation for Public Education, and an Advisory Committee member of the Philanthropic Initiative for Racial Equity.
