BIMA Board
Founder & Executive Director
Makhosi Motsumi
Makhosi Motsumi leads BIMA’s vision and work, advancing ancestral knowledge, leadership, cultural continuity, and long-term stewardship.
BOARD MEMBER
IYA CHRISTINA SPRINGER
Iya Christina Springer contributes to BIMA’s leadership and governance in support of its mission and community-centred vision.
Board Member
Jessika Ava
Jessika Ava brings extensive experience in philanthropy, equitable funding, food systems, and international movement-building to her work across mission-driven organizations.
Board Member
Amiri Banks
Amiri Banks supports BIMA’s mission through board service and a shared commitment to the organization’s long-term vision.
Board Member
Shelagh Brown, BS, MSA, CHM, MA
Shelagh Brown is a ethnobotanist, herbalist, medical historian, writer, poet, storyteller, cultural worker who infuses traditional ecological wisdom with modern science. Shelagh filters all her work through an intersectional, abolitionist, Black, womanist, queer, disabled and fat liberation centered lens. Shelagh is deeply committed to reconnecting communities that have been most harmed by colonization, white supremacy, and imperialism with nature, the land and our innate healing potential via plants and the natural world.
Shelagh is deeply committed to reconnecting communities that have been most harmed by colonization, white supremacy, and imperialism with nature, the land and our innate
Board Member
Hayden Singleton
Hayden Singleton is an Atlanta based business development consultant and program administrator with experience in government contracting, procurement readiness, grant management, and chamber leadership. Hayden previously served as Operations Specialist with the Atlanta Black Chambers and Co Chair of its Governmental Affairs Committee, and as Program Coordinator for the Georgia Coalition of Black Chambers,
Board Member
Courtney Alexander
Courtney Alexander is an interdisciplinary artist, writer, publisher, and cultural worker born in Pahokee, Florida, and based in Chicago, IL. Her practice moves through painting, installation, film, ritual, self portraiture, and storytelling to explore Blackness, divinity, memory, embodiment, and the spiritual force of what has been discarded, inherited, and transformed. She is the creator of Dust II Onyx, the first widely distributed tarot deck by a Black artist, developed from a 78 painting mixed media series.
Board Member
Edgar Bernal Sevilla
Edgar Bernal Sevilla is an educator, historian, poet, and community leader committed to strengthening communities across the Sonoran Desert. With experience in teaching, historical research, and museum education, he brings an intergenerational perspective to community development, cultural preservation, and empowering individuals to reach their full potential.
Board Member
Xochiquetzalli
Xochiquetzalli contributes to BIMA’s collective leadership and stewardship, helping guide its work toward lasting community impact.
Board Member
Dorian Spears
Dorian Spears is the Founder and Principal Consultant of D’Emile Strategy Group, a Memphis-based consultancy named for her great-grandmother, Emily Brown Spears. The consultancy is grounded in the belief that change moves at the speed of trust and alignment. Over more than sixteen years across philanthropy, nonprofits, government, and the corporate sector, she has built partnership networks, guided public-private initiatives, and facilitated equity-centered transformation for organizations and their leaders.
Board Member
Amber L. Johnson
With over 20 years of experience across higher education, healthcare, and nonprofit organizations. Her expertise includes financial operations, budget management, project coordination, and organizational administration. She is also the founder and product formulator of Adenla Handcrafted Essentials, combining operational leadership with entrepreneurship.