COMMON FUTURE - Key Persons

Job Titles:

• Digital Strategist
• Director of Strategic Narrative
• Director of Strategic Narrative / Communications

Charissa is a digital strategist with a passion for building people power online. She comes to Common Future having worked with nonprofits, political campaigns, and community-based organizations to hone their digital acumen and lead audiences to take action - whether that be donating, volunteering, or making a good old-fashioned call to a legislator. A skilled digital fundraiser with a proven track record of building fundraising capacity through grassroots donations, Charissa has seen time and time again what can happen when communities get organized and fight for what's right. Her belief that another world is possible brought her to Common Future where she is inspired by the fight to create a more equitable economy. Charissa is a proud Midwesterner living in Iowa with her spouse. Don't get her started talking about her pit bull, Juniper - she'll never stop.

Job Titles:

• Director of Impact Investments
• Director of Impact Investments / Finance and Investments

Chelsea McDaniel is a community investment professional with a passion for food justice. She was the lead architect of the impact strategies for two impact funds, one focused on youth education and one on fiscal justice in Black cities. Prior to joining Common Future, Chelsea led the Fiscal Justice investment research for Activest, where she would identify solutions for fiscal practices that led to negative outcomes for Black communities. She also led the development of a high impact Islamic finance product for youth technical education and training. Chelsea holds an MBA from Duke's Fuqua School of Business and an undergraduate degree in Environmental Studies from University of California at Santa Cruz. She lives in unceded Piscataway territory, colonially known as Baltimore, with her two dogs and can usually be found tending to her 1/3-acre garden and mini orchard.

Job Titles:

• Manager of Projects and Content
• Manager of Projects and Content / Communications

Cristina is passionate about empowering and engaging underserved communities. She works to use shared and owned media to inspire action and understanding. Prior to moving to Colorado, Cristina was fortunate enough to live and work in Ireland and Spain before she honed her advertising copywriting chops on Madison Avenue. At the Natural Resources Defense Council, Cristina helped support Environmental Justice work both abroad and at home, including using social media to advocate for water rights for the people of Flint, Michigan, Newark, New Jersey, and Red por los Ríos Libres in Chile. Cristina holds a B.A. in Economics and Spanish from the University of Toronto.

Job Titles:

• Founder and Principal of Torain Advisory

Torain is the founder and principal of Torain Advisory, LLC, a strategy and management consulting practice that provides organizational development, advisory services, and executive management support to leaders and activists committed to advancing racial and economic justice. Her work is rooted in a deep passion for increasing investments in communities and leaders of color, championing philanthropic innovation, and advocating for racial justice and intersectional equity.

Job Titles:

• Controller
• Controller / Finance and Investments

As Controller at Common Future Davine oversees the day-to-day operations, assists with the short and long-term operational goals and provides strategic solutions for resolving organizational issues as well as the financial implementation of new initiatives. She is a forward thinker with an eye for problem-solving and leveraging technology for operational efficiency. Recently, Davine was the Financial Controller at the Elton John AIDS Foundation. There she oversaw the finances and operations for the U.S. arm of the organization, and supported the executive team on various strategic initiatives. Davine is passionate about nonprofits, their abilities to change the world and role finance plays in enhancing each impact. She holds a dual major degree in Accounting and Applied Mathematics. In her free time, Davine enjoys cooking, traveling and anything involving self improvement.

Job Titles:

• Managing Director of Impact Investments
• Managing Director of Impact Investments / Impact

Jaime, a fierce advocate for economic justice, is the Managing Director of Impact Investments at Common Future, driving catalytic capital into community-rooted organizations. She co-developed the Justice Funders' Just Transition in Investment Framework and serves on the governing bodies of UpTogether, Kiva U.S., and Justice Funders. Appointed by the Governor of New Mexico in 2020, Jaime led the Tribal Subcommittee for the New Mexico Statewide Complete Count Commission, where she spearheaded a statewide effort to fund grassroots organizing and ecosystem activation during the pandemic. She also led the 2010 Navajo Nation's Decennial Census, overseeing one of the largest mobilization efforts in the U.S. to ensure a complete count. As an intersectional movement builder, Jaime's work spans across transformative initiatives like the Indigenous Women's Flow Fund, the Trauma of Money, and NDN Collective's Abundance Fund. A dedicated fellow with institutions like the Center for Community Investment and the Boston Impact Initiative, she is committed to shifting power and capital back to Indigenous and POC communities. Jaime's career began with trailblazing efforts in community lending, developing programs with Dreamspring and Nusenda's Co-Op Capital, in collaboration with Roanhorse Consulting LLC. As Co-founder and former Co-CEO of Native Women Lead, she led key initiatives in organizational structuring, program design, capital strategies, advancement, and partnership development while overseeing data sovereignty, evaluation, and impact. She is a primary architect of the The Future is Indigenous Women initiative, the prospectus and national competition that was awarded $10mm through the Equality Can't Challenge. Living in Tiwa Territory (Albuquerque, NM) and hailing from the Navajo and White Mountain Apache Nations, Jaime is a mother of three who has been molded by land and cultures of the Southwest. She believes in the power of grassroots organizing and movement building to drive systems change while creating a future where all thrive.

Job Titles:

• Senior Director at Arrow Impact

Senior Director, Arrow Impact | Jorge Blandón is Senior Director at Arrow Impact, a private foundation focused on addressing barriers to economic opportunity for low-income individuals and on improving the efficiency of the philanthropic ecosystem. Prior to Arrow Impact, Jorge served as Executive Vice President of UpTogether (formerly Family Independence Initiative), where he oversaw strategic planning, technology, analytics, and impact measurement.

Job Titles:

• Brand and Design Strategist
• Brand and Design Strategist / Communications
• Design Strategist

Kathryn is the Brand and Design Strategist at Common Future and an award-winning multimedia artist and visual storyteller. Her ambition is to tell stories that stretch the imagination, change perspectives, and incite a shift in what is possible. Previous to joining Common Future, Kathryn worked on a diverse set of creative projects to drive social justice and awareness, including campaigns to fight disinformation during the 2020 U.S. Election with Ultraviolet and Win Black, activating healthcare workers to civic action at the height of the pandemic with 1199 SEIU and working with Impact Frontiers to engage investors to integrate impact into their investment strategies. Kathryn has a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Ryerson University in Toronto, Canada. An avid music fan, she is a frequent design collaborator with artists, and when she travels, she enjoys striking up conversations with grumpy record-store owners from around the world.

Job Titles:

• Vice President of Impact Initiatives
• Vice President of Impact Initiatives / Impact

Marissa Guananja, she/her/ella, is passionate about work that intersects with economic justice, racial justice, democracy, and community. She brings that passion to her role as VP of Impact Initiatives at Common Future. In that role, she drives the strategy and impact of the organization's initiatives that partner with and lift up BIPOC-led and community-centered models for an economy that builds power, choice, and ownership. Marissa has over 15 years of progressive programmatic experience - from launching her career, piloting and launching new community economic development initiatives in Chelsea, MA, to funding worker power efforts at the W.K.Kellogg Foundation, to most recently, as Chief Programs Officer at the Roosevelt Institute where she oversaw the organization's work cultivating new ideas and new leaders to shift economic paradigms. Marissa holds an MBA from the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business and a graduate degree in public policy from The George Washington University. She also sits on the board of Carina, a home care and childcare platform that connects care workers to good jobs. When not working, Marissa enjoys being an amateur at many things (mixologist, accordion player, runner), bringing a little Southern CA to her home base of Ann Arbor, MI, and exploring national and state parks with her wife and two kids in their Winnebago "Hilda" Solis camper van.

Job Titles:

• President
• Treasurer
• Director at Nonprofit Finance Fund

Director, Nonprofit Finance Fund | Meadow is a Director at Nonprofit Finance Fund, where she makes the language and tools of financial management accessible to help mission-driven organizations gain the financial knowledge they need to drive impact. She advises nonprofits and funders on strategic financial issues like financial literacy, effective capitalization, and planning for change and sustainable adaptability.

Job Titles:

• Impact Investments Manager
• Impact Investments Manager / Finance and Investments

As the Impact Investments Manager at Common Future, Misty works to shift capital to historically excluded communities by developing and managing investment strategies that prioritize equity and long-term sustainability. She collaborates with community investment partners, fund managers, and mission-aligned organizations to design innovative funding models. Through her work, she aims to challenge traditional capital structures and build pathways for wealth creation that are community-driven and regenerative. Misty transitioned into impact investing after completing the inaugural Rematriating Economies Apprenticeship in 2023, deepening her commitment to reshaping financial systems. Prior to this, she was Chief of Staff at a Northern California startup, where she played a key role in operational strategy, securing early-stage funding, and leading a successful merger. Misty holds an M.A. in Communications from the University of Hawaii and a B.F.A. in Film and Television from the Savannah College of Art and Design. Originally from Hawai‘i and Kanaka Maoli, she now lives on Pomo Territory (Santa Rosa, CA) with her husband, daughter, a rambunctious red lab, and two cats.

Job Titles:

• Director of Strategy, Advocacy and Impact
• Director of Strategy, Advocacy and Impact / Impact
• Leader for Education

As the Director of Strategy, Advocacy and Impact at Common Future, Roquel supports the team by designing and leading key bodies of work that build organizational power and influence, ultimately shifting policy, practices and resources in partnership with majority BIPOC communities. In her capacity, Roquel is in tune with organizational strategic priorities and ensures that Common Future is working in lock step with key partners to do more than we could otherwise do alone. In previous roles, Roquel has worked as an advocacy leader for education, racial and economic justice as well as been a direct advisor to nonprofit senior leaders on internal strategy and operations. Roquel is an alumna of the Politics, Policy and Law Scholars at American University and serves on the Board of Directors for KIPP Memphis Collegiate Schools as well as the advisory board for The Knowledge House. In her free time, Roquel enjoys morning workouts, black coffee and anything Beyonce.

Job Titles:

• Finance
• Director of Investment Operations
• Director of Investment Operations / Finance and Investments

Roselle is a finance professional passionate about promoting economic development through equal access to affordable capital. She has global experience in finance and portfolio management roles at non-profits, corporations, financial institutions, and technology companies. In her Investment Operations Director role at Common Future, Roselle's main responsibility is to ensure that borrowers have a positive experience from the underwriting stage and throughout the life of the loan, while keeping lending operations in compliance with guidelines and regulations. She also designs and implements portfolio reporting tools, and uses data on loan performance and borrower feedback to help shape goals and make strategic decisions to improve processes. Prior to joining Common Future, Roselle was Finance and Operations Manager at Community Credit Lab, until it was acquired by Common Future. Areas of involvement and oversight included compliance, underwriting, servicing, credit reporting, portfolio reporting and governance. Her career in impact investing began at Root Capital where she developed systems and strategies to effectively support an international portfolio of small and growing agricultural businesses, and measure and manage portfolio risk. Since then, Roselle has held several positions in finance, investment analysis, and portfolio and risk management. Roselle holds a B.A. in Economics and International Relations from Boston University, and a Master of International Business from The Fletcher School at Tufts University.

Job Titles:

• Secretary
• Co - CEO

Co-CEO, Common Future | Sandhya Nakhasi is co-CEO of Common Future and an expert in catalytic capital, community-led investment programs, and equitable lending programs. She assumed the role of co-CEO after leading at Common Future as Managing Director of Community Credit Lab and CF Investments, where she used an experimental approach to growing a portfolio of field-defining lending and BIPOC community-led investment programs in the pursuit of a more equitable financial system.

Job Titles:

• Co - Founder and Executive Director of the BLIS Collective

Trevor Smith (he/him) is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of the BLIS Collective. He is a writer, researcher, and strategist focused on racial inequality, wealth inequality, reparations, and narrative change. Previously, he was the Director of Narrative Change at Liberation Ventures, a field-builder accelerating the Black-led movement for reparations, where he launched the Reparations Narrative Lab, a creative and research space designed to build narrative power across the movement for reparations. He previously held program and communications positions at the Surdna Foundation, New York Civil Liberties Union, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, and M+R Strategic Services. He currently resides in Lenapehoking what we now know as New York City.

Job Titles:

• Investment Operations Manager