About Us

Engaging in personal and organizational transformation that centers Justice, Racial Equity, Diversity and Inclusion requires a commitment to key values to feed our practice. We lift up the following key values in guiding our approach and influencing our lens.  

Habits of dominant culture, rooted in whiteness, heteropatriarchy and capitalism are entrenched within organizational culture and the ecosystems we must engage within. We practice building awareness of individual behaviors, cultural norms, and structural reinforcements that feed ultimately harmful dominant cultural habits. We identify and practice different ways of being, working, and structuring the work we do, so that we might liberate ourselves, each other, and the organizations we’re working with/in.  

We hold the value of love as a powerful, necessary, transformative source. We practice loving ourselves and each other through the hard work of pursuing sustained change. We practice loving ways of seeing the complexity of change, calling each other in, having courageous conversations, and disrupting binary mindsets (i.e. good vs. bad; one way vs. multiple ways). 

We recognize that change and transformation requires bravely taking on deeply entrenched habits that are often encouraged and rewarded within dominant culture. We focus on supporting individuals in widening their lenses to be able to "see" what is invisibilized by systems of oppression - namely racism, heteropatriarchy, capitalism, and ableism. We facilitate teams with building brave solutions that are equitable, inclusive, and just. We bring a strong understanding of principles of intersectional equity that centers race, but also includes other disenfranchised communities including LGBTQ+, the disabled, women, generational distinctions, culture and class. 

We recognize that those who are "in it" have a deep understanding of what needs attention and hold the vision for where they wish to go. AND we recognize that we're often called in because we all have unique lenses and habits that often interfere with our goals. We actively co-create throughout the change process to meet individuals and organizations where they're at, while lovingly pushing them beyond (seen and unseen) barriers to attain the vision. We do this by actively seeking perspectives and partnerships that will be attend to the unique needs of each group.

Sustained change and transformation (the goal) requires learning at the individual and collective levels. Learning is achieved through intentional, repetitive practices that are reinforced by cultural and structural containers. 

Outlining a plan is an important step when starting a journey. As we move through any process, new and potentially critical elements will emerge that require our attention. We practice honoring key emergent elements that will help us align more strongly to what’s required for deeper transformation - by pausing, reflecting, and adapting our plan as necessary. 

While we are living through times that require an active response to real urgency in bringing equity and justice to our world, we need a balanced response that makes space for movement over life times. We move at the pace necessary for meaningful change that flows with real time energy and momentum. We commit to practicing this in how we advance through a journey in our work with organizations and in making and taking the space necessary in each of our personal lives.

Principle, Aurora Commons

Susan Misra’s life purpose is to work with advocates and activists to actualize their visions and values of justice and equity in their relationships, structures, and work today. She has over 20 years of experience in developing equitable, sustainable organizations and networks for movement building. For funders, Susan has designed, managed, and evaluated capacity building and grantmaking initiatives on a range of topics such as strengthening senior leadership and fundraising of grassroots organizations, diversifying audiences and increasing the financial resilience of arts organizations, and developing equitable and sustainable business models for intermediaries. For nonprofits, Susan has worked with over 250 organizations and networks on complex strategic planning, leadership development (including executive coaching, shared leadership, leadership teams, and board development), organizational restructuring and culture change, and financial sustainability. For both funders and nonprofits, Susan leads inclusive, participatory, and analytically rigorous processes.

Susan received a Master’s in Public Policy from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and a B.S. in Psychology from Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon. She has been trained in transformational consulting, emergent and peer coaching, and diversity and equity facilitation. When not working, you can find Susan volunteering her time on local economic justice and political campaigns and reading revolutionary young adult fiction.

President & Founder, Mandala Change Group

 Maya has worked for 20+ years supporting organizations and leaders in their efforts to align their organization’s practices, policies, and cultures to values-based missions and visions. Maya is a certified diversity professional, trained coach, and has a Master’s in Organizational Development. 

A strategic thinker, Maya is deeply driven by what’s possible in all scenarios in our institutions, communities, and individual leadership that will lead to a better world where we all can be healthy and thrive.

At the center of all organizational change efforts are people, therefore it is important for me to tend to our humanity in everything I do. This means bringing in joy, laughter, grace, and compassion to my approach. At the end of the day,  I want my clients to feel seen, heard, and well taken care of.

Principal, Molly Wertz Consulting

Molly Wertz is a seasoned social sector leader who uses her deep grounding in relationship and faith in the power of the human spirit to inspire teams and individuals to bring their most authentic selves to their mission toward a more just society. For over 30 years, she has dedicated herself to addressing inequities in opportunity and disparate outcomes for marginalized people as an educator, philanthropy professional and non-profit leader. She is known for creating spaces where participant and client voices inform programs and practices, while staff and leadership embrace both high standards and deep connection. As Founder of Tandem, Partners in Early Learning, Molly fostered broad collaboration with policy makers, advocates, families, and ECE providers, to build an equity-focused and impactful capacity building organization fully leveraged within the Bay Area early childhood education arena. Across her career, her authentic and values-driven leadership and facilitation has led to deeply engaged co-investors, effective and reflective program leaders, and inspired cross-sector collaboratives in education, youth development, financial stability, and workforce development. Known for her strategic acumen and inspirational drive, Molly is a sought-after consultant for non-profit executives seeking a thought-partner and leadership coach to support them in accomplishing their professional and organizational goals. Molly is a delighted grandmother, a loving partner, a compassionate caregiver, and an emerging fiber artist.