Rachel is a Program Manager at the Business Sustainability Collaborative, Poole College of Management at NC State University where she is also the B Corp Clinic lead. She is a part-time Operations Director at the nonprofit B Academics which is a global community focused on advancing research, teaching and engagement on B Corps and benefit corporations. Her mission is to help educate the next generation of leaders through innovation in business education. She holds an MBA from the NC State Jenkins program and a BA in International Studies and Economics from the University of Wisconsin - Madison. In her free time she enjoys traveling, trying new restaurants and playing with her dog Cleo.

Mike has led and developed digital strategies for a variety of Fortune 500 firms ranging from apparel, financial services, SaaS, B2C, B2B, and start-ups from Chicago, New York, Washington, Richmond, and, most recently, various cities in North Carolina. He has been assisting founders, startups, accelerators, private equity groups, and enterprises with 30+ years of experience in the advertising, marketing, customer experience design, digital product development and management, and software development world.

Over the years, Mike’s fascination with what influences and makes an audience tick has only grown. His wheelhouse is helping his clients to truly understand and define the user experience while translating it into both actionable technical requirements and a unique value proposition to set them apart from the competition. 

20+ years of experience A natural dot-connector, Anna merges empathy and experience to guide clients through Workshop’s design-thinking process. In addition to leading Workshop, her focus is helping our client teams navigate climate action with clarity and intentionality. Anna has an intuitive understanding of organizational cultures and unlocks solutions by breaking down siloed systems. She has a strong handle on facilitation and guides cross-functional teams toward aligned activation. Anna has built her career managing complex strategic challenges across multiple industries. Prior to founding Workshop, Anna led an insights practice at a leading B2B agency and led engagements for financial and healthcare clients. Anna attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and holds certificates in design thinking. When she’s not leading the charge at Workshop, Anna is likely shuttling her three kids around town, making travel plans, training her overgrown puppy, and generally living up to her reputation as an extrovert.

Justin Minott is a passionate community builder and advocate for economic justice in the Black community who believes that entrepreneurship is one of the best vehicles for liberation. Recently, his journey as an investor, speaker, author, business coach, and entrepreneur have led him to join The African American Alliance of CDFI CEOs as the VP of Membership Services. Justin is an impact-amplifier whose life purpose is to help maximize potential in people and organizations.

With 20 years of experience working with brands like Burt’s Bees, Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability, Croatan Institute, and Jada Pinkett Smith’s “Don’t Sell Bodies,” Rebekah Miel specializes in organizing chaos for changemakers. As the founder and creative director of Miel Creative, Rebekah creates engaging and clear communications about complex topics like soil health, carbon capture, food systems, regenerative agriculture, and other climate solutions. 

Tim Scales is Executive Director at the American Underground, a startup hub and community of entrepreneurs in downtown Durham. Previously, he founded a successful marketing company and an unsuccessful tech startup and learned a lot from both opportunities. He has an MBA from Duke University and lives in Durham with his wife and their boisterous kindergartner.

Merle Murrain, a strategic communications and innovation expert with over 10 years of experience leading cross-functional teams, developing creative marketing campaigns, and optimizing project outcomes. With a background in business administration and marketing, Merle Murrain has worked in various leadership roles, driving growth and innovation across industries. He is passionate about fostering collaboration, guiding innovators through ideation and execution, and supporting start-up communities in shaping impactful solutions.

Erica Nuñez is Head of The Ocean Foundation's Plastics Initiative, where she leads the management and strategic development of the organization's scientific and policy activities to combat plastic pollution. Erica has nearly twenty years of conservation experience working to protect and conserve the environment, and served fourteen of those years with the US federal government. She has an extensive background in international governance and policy related to plastic pollution issues.

Neesha Mirchandani is the founder and principal advisor at Impact Stars, a consultancy that provides strategic mentorship to innovative leaders in the climate, regenerative, and circular economy sectors. Due to her 30+ years of experience serving Fortune 50 CEOs, startups founders, and nonprofit EDs, she's able to quickly identify the critical 20% of actions that will move the needle 80% of the way. Her More Than Money Matrix helps visionary philanthropists catalyze exponential 100x impact by unlocking mycelium-like network effects that transcend money. For impact innovators looking for capital or customers, Neesha also created the Magnetic Pitch Method, an inbound storytelling scaling system designed to attract only right-fit partners.

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