Nayelli is the Founder & CEO of CreatorsCircle and in previous roles throughout her 20+ year career, Nayelli has worked on pioneering sustainability and social innovation programs with startups, nonprofits, small businesses and Fortune 100 companies in the education, social impact and sustainable business sectors. A trained journalist with an MBA in sustainable management and MA in Education, she also writes about 
sustainable business and social impact trends for a variety of publications. Nayelli holds degrees from Boston University, the University of Calif. Berkeley, Stanford University and Presidio Graduate School—and she currently sits on the boards of the Stanford University Graduate School of Education and Berrett-Koehler Authors, and is a member of the California Environmental Literacy Initiative (CAELI). She’s a systems thinker who loves to learn, share knowledge, and help others connect the dots.

Alphonse is a graduating student at Stanford University with a degree in Management Science and Engineering, and is originally from Boston, Massachusetts. Alphonse draws his inspiration in helping underrepresented youth explore impact careers from watching his parents, both of whom immigrated to the U.S. from developing countries, have successful careers in mathematics and engineering. Previously, Alphonse served as a teaching assistant at Euler Circle where he helped teach high school students college-level mathematics. His other experience includes internships as a data analyst at Massachusetts General Hospital and as an engineering intern at a Black-owned cleantech startup. Upon completion of his degree, Alphonse will be joining an investment banking firm in Charlotte, North Carolina as a full-time analyst.

Anwar is a graduating engineering student with a minor in mathematics at Stanford University, originally from the Washington, D.C. area. A proud advocate for public education, Anwar is passionate about promoting educational equity and inspiring young men in underserved communities to excel academically. Previously, Anwar served as a team leader with Youth in Philanthropy at the Community Foundation of Howard County and was honored with the Howard County Executive Political Science Award. Anwar has gained valuable experience as an intern at a major consulting firm and will be joining the firm full-time in Houston, Texas, upon graduation. Motivated by a desire to create opportunities in education, Anwar aims to make a positive impact through both professional and community-focused work.

Alán is a seasoned financial professional with over 20 years of experience focusing primarily on the intersection of sustainability issues and the financial markets. Alán is a Director in the Sustainable Finance team at S&P Global where he provides second party opinions for green, social, and sustainability bonds, and is responsible for thought leadership on various topics in the sustainable debt market. Alán previously worked for Moody’s Analytics as a cofounder of a product development group that created social risk measurement tools for impact investing markets. Alán began his sustainability journey as an emerging markets social impact investor and also worked for several years analyzing nonprofits in the affordable housing and community development sectors. As a first-generation Latino-American who faced adversity growing up, Alán is passionate about helping disadvantaged students break barriers in the workplace. Alán earned a Bachelor of Arts in history from Columbia University and is currently pursuing a Master of Arts in public management from Johns Hopkins University.

Kim is a mindful entrepreneur and founder of Ways & Meaning. She works with entrepreneurs, nonprofits, social enterprises and conscious companies to improve their ability to create positive impact in the world. Kim’s expertise lies at the intersection of management consulting, social sciences and creative thinking. She’s best at organizing and focusing confused organizations, being honest and straight with leaders about the things no one else will say, and coming up with fresh perspectives on old problems. Kim earned an MBA from Melbourne Business School and a BA in Communications from the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Isabella "Isa" is a rising senior at Imagine International Academy of North Texas, a K-12 IB World School. She is a social justice advocate who became interested in water inequity after learning about her fellow Latino community's struggle to access potable water in Texas Colonias. Her passion for water justice led her to become a Youth Vanguard at Start: Empowerment, research intern at OneUpAction, and founder of the Water Inequity Network (WIN) in 2021 at the age of 15. Her dynamic youth-led organization focuses on empowering young people to become impactful advocates for water equity. A recipient of the 2023 Berrett-Koehler Foundation Changemaker Award, Isa hopes to continue her advocacy in the water space. She believes that the future of environmental justice lies in young people taking up the mantle and not relying solely on adults to develop solutions. It's environmental justice by youth and for youth.

Srinivas Gollapudi is a current senior at Upland High School in Southern California and is an alum of our 2023 CREATE Summer Fellowship program. He is currently applying to college as a prospective mechanical engineering major and hopes to combine his passion for environmental science with his engineering pursuit to unite and impact communities around the world through his current ventures, such as being on the founding board of Ocean Busters. Srinivas is an avid environmentalist and has also participated in an externship program with Earth Echo International.

Ivellisse "Ivi" is an award-winning entrepreneur who brings a decade of experience in using marketing as a force for good—for brands of all sizes. From inside major creative agencies like IDEO and Ogilvy and beyond, Ivi has sharpened her creative skillset in public relations, media, design, marketing and communications all in the spirit for positive change. She's a speaker, poet and writer who’s been recognized and featured by ADCOLOR, Adweek, Time Magazine, The 3% Conference and the PR Club’s Bell Ringer Awards. In 2018, she stepped out as the visionary behind bombilla®, a branding & design agency for social change based in Oakland, CA. In her free time, you can find Ivellisse with her nose in a good book or on a plane to her next destination.

Alfredo Mathew III began his career in New York City where, as a founding teacher of a New Century High School in the South Bronx, he was awarded Teacher of the Year by the NYC Department of Education. Until recently Alfredo led the strategic vision and programming for the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) in the Bay Area, where he developed an earned revenue stream, expanded the reach and impact of NFTE programs, and forged lasting relationships with school district partners, corporations, entrepreneurs, and other education nonprofit leaders. He now leads the social impact consultancy Working World where he puts his network and experience to work in support of social impact.

Kathia is a compassionate leadership coach, organizational consultant, and facilitator with 30 years of international experience across North America, Latin America, and Europe. Kathia develops collaboration and innovation capacities for systemic transformation and organizational effectiveness from the inside out. She combines her scholarly and professional expertise in systems thinking, feminine and indigenous ways of knowing, regenerative design, mindfulness, and collective wisdom to support leaders in transforming themselves and their organizations into caring, inclusive, and collaborative cultures.

She was a faculty member at Saybrook University, Presidio Graduate School, and EGADE Business School where she taught systems thinking, leadership and sustainability in their MBA and Ph.D. programs for 20 years. Kathia was born and raised in Monterrey, Mexico, and came to the USA as a Fulbright Scholar for her Ph.D. in Human Science with a specialization in Social and Institutional Change. Kathia is a certified executive coach in the Leadership Circle Profile and Be Well Lead Well assessments as well as a Reiki Master and Systemic Constellations facilitator. She is a mother, gardener, book lover, and yoga practitioner and is fluent in English and Spanish.

When Christian was 9 years old, he created Cooline Team of East Palo Alto (CTEPA) to help other young people in his community have a safe place to have fun. Christian served as the Executive Director of CTEPA, a service-based organization for youth ages 5-18 in East Palo Alto, Menlo Park and Redwood City that promotes service, leadership and teamwork through serving the community in a fun and engaging way. CTEPA is devoted to helping local youth succeed and create change that will make a huge positive impact in our world. Christian loved being of service to his community and enjoyed learning new ways to help our world become a more fair, just and loving place.

Sergio believes in building strong programs and products that transform our economy. He is the Founder & CEO of Next Shift Learning, a learning experience technology startup that builds project-based experiences that expose and prepare Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) job seekers for the future of work. Sergio’s career has taken him to the California State Senate, community-based nonprofits, private family foundations, and business networks. As the founding Director of LA Tech Talent Pipeline, a public-private partnership with Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, he designed, implemented and scaled an initiative that placed 500 low-income youth and young adults in technology internships and provided 15,000 students with work-based learning experiences. Sergio earned his MA in Learning, Design, and Technology and a BA (honors) in Political Science and Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity from Stanford University.

Sharmila is a seasoned sustainability professional with over 14 years of experience in crafting and executing impactful sustainability strategies across waste management, energy efficiency, renewable energy, and water reuse. She specializes in guiding clients through Zero Waste practices, B Corp certifications, and ESG reporting strategies.

Discovering her true calling involved pursuing a career that merges business strategy with a meaningful impact on the world. This journey ignited her passion for helping others uncover career paths that offer genuine joy and fulfillment. As the founder of Green Lens Coaching, Sharmila supports professionals looking to transition into climate and social justice work. She conducts workshops and coaches clients in self-discovery, leadership, and career development.

Jeannette LaFors began her career as a high school social studies teacher and received many awards as “Teacher of the Year”. She earned her PhD in Education at Stanford University where she focused on teaching and educational leadership. She is now an independent consultant with various nonprofit educational organizations in the United States and Chile focused on fostering transformational instructional practices which empower young people to grow and thrive.

Lucia joined us in 2018 while a student of Stanford University, where she majored in computer science and minored in math. As CreatorsCircle’s inaugural Stanford University BEAM Summer Fellow, Lucia built the technical foundation for the CreatorsCircle Opportunities Database. Beyond her work for this organization, she has worked on several projects that leverage technology to build solutions for public sector challenges and advocate for policy changes. Lucia has also mentored and taught computer science to students in East Palo Alto through her work with StreetCode Academy, served as the Outreach Chair for Stanford Women in Computer Science and was the People Lead for Girls Teaching Girls to Code at Stanford.

Stephanie is an educator and systems thinker who brings years of experience as a classroom teacher, a teacher-leader, a program director, an instructional coach, and a school administrator in schools from New Orleans, Louisiana to Tlaxcala, Mexico to Richmond, California. Currently pursuing her Master's in Policy, Organization, and Leadership Studies at Stanford University, Stephanie is working at a broad scale to ensure that all young people graduate understanding the social and environmental crises we are experiencing but with the leadership skills to be agents of change and the hope to build resiliency in the face of shifting paradigms. She loves supporting young people in realizing their potential, working in teams to amplify collective impact, and navigating complex systems to challenge the status quo and spur meaningful change.

Isha Clarke, a co-founder and activist with Youth Vs. Apocalypse, is a recent high school graduate born, raised, and educated in Oakland, CA. Isha recognizes that climate change is the consequence of fundamental systems of oppression like white supremacy, capitalism, and colonialism. Because of this, people of color, indigenous communities, and working-class people are disproportionately burdened by impacts of climate catastrophe. Knowing this, Isha’s work is focused on building a movement that follows the leadership of frontline communities and works to dismantle the systems of oppression that fuel climate change. Isha was awarded the 2019 Brower Youth Award, the 2020 Diller Tikkun Olam Award, and has become a nationally recognized speaker, presenter, and writer.

Marsha Willard, PhD is principal of AXIS, a consulting firm founded in 1990 that is recognized for its expertise in the implementation of sustainability. She applies her management consulting, training and facilitation skills to help organizations find responsible solutions that meet all stakeholder needs—for owners, customers, employees, the community and the environment. Marsha has co-authored six popular business books, including the award-winning The Business Guide to Sustainability and A Step by Step Guide to Sustainability Planning. She is also professor emeritus at the Presidio Graduate School and co-founder and former Executive Director of the International Society of Sustainability Professionals (ISSP).

Lily joined us in 2019 while a sophomore at Stanford University studying Computer Science and English. She developed CreatorCircle’s Opportunities Database through her selection in Stanford University’s BEAM Summer Program. During the school year, Lily is a tech team member at The Stanford Daily and the poetry editor for Leland Quarterly. Through her work with several literary magazines and theater organizations, she has also worked on projects that combine technology and art to promote marginalized voices. Lily is passionate about creating socially inclusive written and visual content to empower and educate fellow youths of color.