Isabelle Boni-Claverie is an author, screenwriter, and director. She works both on personal projects and popular television series in France.
After directing several award-winning short fiction films in festivals, she released the documentary Too Black to Be French in 2015, exploring the intersection of race and class in France. Broadcast on ARTE, the film was highly successful and led to Isabelle Boni-Claverie being invited twice to the UN to speak about the Black experience in France.
In 2017, she published a book of the same name with Editions Taillandier, which won the Grand Prix French Voices for Best Essay in 2019.
Translated into English, Too Black to Be French will be released in the United States in February 2025.
Meanwhile, Isabelle Boni-Claverie founded her production company, Izzy B. Productions, and co-wrote and produced Young, Black and Gifted: Diversity at the Paris Opera, a documentary about the first Black étoile dancer at the Paris Opera.
She is currently finishing the writing of a new book, Indestructible(s).
A specialist on the history and culture of the Atlantic world who studies the Caribbean (particularly Haiti), North America, and France, Dubois joined the University of Virginia in January 2021, and will also serve as the Democracy Initiative’s new co-director for academic affairs. In this role, Dubois will spearhead the Democracy Initiative’s research and pedagogical missions and will serve as the director and lead research convener of the John L. Nau III History and Principles of Democracy Lab—the permanent core lab of the Initiative which will operate as the connecting hub for the entire project.
Dubois holds a Ph.D. in Anthropology and History from the University of Michigan (1998) and completed his B.A. in Anthropology and English at Princeton University.
Juncal Faus is a Psychology student at Universidad Pontificia Comillas in Madrid, currently studying at Georgetown University. She is deeply committed to clinical understandings of mental health, with particular interests in family systems, developmental psychopathology, and social and affective neuroscience. Juncal has been involved in both academic and clinical experiences across Spain and the U.S., and is especially drawn to the intersections between mental health, social systems, and access to care. Her goal is to integrate research and clinical practice, guided by insights from neuroscience and systemic approaches, to better support individuals and families navigating psychological challenges.
C.R. Gibbs is a historian, author, and lecturer renowned for his work on African and African American history. He has co-authored six books and frequently appears on national and international television, including the History Channel and PBS. He researched, wrote, and narrated Sketches in Color, a 13-part companion series to The Civil War. A Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum contributor and D.C. Humanities Council scholar, Gibbs founded the African History & Culture Lecture Series in 1989. Recognized for his public education efforts, he has received multiple awards, including the 2008 Award for Excellence in Historic Preservation. He has also contributed to major historical events and documentaries, such as the 2011 King Memorial dedication and PBS’s Meet Me at Equality. In 2014, he was named one of Washington D.C.’s 50 most influential people.
After graduating from the Sorbonne Law School and the Paris Bar School, Binkady-Emmanuel Hié put his lawyer career aside in 2016 to work in arts and culture. For 5 years, he worked as a PR and events coordinator for the AROP, the fundraising structure of the Paris Opera. Following the Black Lives Matter movement, he co-wrote and managed the press campaign surrounding the manifesto About the racial issue at the Paris Opera. With a worldwide echo, this initiative allowed the prestigious institution to start a conversation on diversity, inclusion, and representation.
In 2021, he founded NORME, an agency dedicated to tackling racial issues in France following methods that are suited to the national context. Through this structure, he provides consulting services on diversity and inclusion for organizations, manages role-model artists such as ballet dancer Guillaume Diop, and develops creative projects focused on the presence of Black people in France.
His first book, “VISIBLE ! Figures noires de l’histoire de France “(Black figures in French history) co-written with Léo Kloeckner and illustrated by Aurélia Durand, was published on October 18th, 2023.
Julien Jaubert is an independent music publisher and producer based in Paris. He is also in charge of institutional relationships for cultural projects around rap music, such as Les Flammes, a music award show launched in 2023.
Amber Mackey is an assistant professor at the University of Virginia, specializing in race, ethnic politics, and public policy. Her research focuses on how legislation related to race is introduced and its impact on racial inequalities. She is currently working on a book project that analyzes legislative attention to race. Amber holds degrees from Barnard College and the University of Pennsylvania and has received several prestigious fellowships. At UVA, she teaches courses on race, representation, and data.
Nina Maturu is a seasoned innovation executive and strategic advisor with over two decades transforming organizations and identifying new growth opportunities.
Nina recently served as a White House Presidential Innovation Fellow, bringing private sector innovation expertise to critical government initiatives. At ARPA-H, she served as Senior Advisor to leadership during its founding year. Nina architected innovation frameworks and data-driven futures capabilities for this $4 billion-dollar agency dedicated to high-risk, high-reward health breakthroughs. At NASA, she led the expansion of their strategic foresight practice, leveraging AI and advanced analytics to map emerging technologies and trends that will shape space and air exploration through 2050.
As Founder and CEO of Constellation Design Strategy, Nina partnered with global organizations, including the United Nations, to implement human centered approaches to climate change and women’s health. Her track record includes spearheading design and innovation strategy for Fortune 500 companies including American Express, where she led the successful launch and adoption of their entire mobile wallet ecosystem, transforming how millions of customers make digital payments. Her portfolio spans reimagining the future of collaboration through products/services at 3M, launching a wine category on Amazon, redesigning transatlantic flight for JetBlue, and creating a 10-year consumer health product pipeline at Bayer.
A committed educator and mentor, Nina shapes the next generation of innovators through adjunct faculty positions at Parsons School of Design, New York University (NYU), and the Copenhagen Institute of Interaction Design.
Nina holds an MBA and Master of Public Policy from the University of Michigan and a BA in History from NYU.
Lual Mayen is a self-taught game designer and founder of Junub Games. Originally from South Sudan, he spent 22 years in a refugee camp in Uganda, where he taught himself to code. He created Salaam, a mobile game promoting peace and empathy for refugees. Mayen has received numerous awards, including the CHANEL Next Prize, CNN’s Champion for Change, Global Gaming Citizen at The Game Awards, and recognition from Facebook Gaming. He has spoken at major institutions such as the United Nations and the World Bank. He is also the founder of the Lual Mayen Foundation, which trains refugee youth in computer programming. Based in Washington, D.C., Mayen continues to use gaming as a tool for education, social impact, and peacebuilding.
Ayanna Muhammad is a Museum Educator at Duke Ellington School of the Arts teaching Art History, Gallery Management, Museum Communication, and Cultural Studies. She is the Founding Chief Curator at the National Hip-Hop Museum. She is a PhD student in the Communication, Culture and Media Studies department at Howard University where she teaches Public Speaking. Her upcoming article How I Keep From Going Under uncovers messages in Hip-Hop music about African diasporic spirituality.
Aaron Myers is a DC-based artist and the Executive Director of the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities. With over a decade of experience in the city’s arts community, he has performed at venues like Black Fox Lounge and The Eaton. Myers is the founding Board Chair of the Capitol Hill Jazz Foundation and serves on the DC Recording Academy’s Board of Governors. He is also an advocate for social justice, having organized relief efforts for musicians during the COVID-19 pandemic and served on the NAACP DC Branch Executive Committee. In his role at the CAH, Myers oversees initiatives that support and promote the arts in Washington, D.C.
Étienne Ollion is a French sociologist, Professor at the École Polytechnique, and researcher at CNRS. His research primarily focuses on political sociology, with an emphasis on the structures and dynamics of power in modern societies. Ollion employs both qualitative and quantitative methods. In his work he explores the intersection of technology, power, and social structures, offering insights into the elite networks and decision-making processes that shape contemporary political landscapes.
Ambassador Rama Yade is Senior Director of the Atlantic Council’s Africa Center and senior fellow for the Europe Center. She is also a Professor of African Affairs at Mohammed VI Polytechnic University in Morocco and at Sciences Po Paris. She was born in Senegal and is a French citizen. Prior to joining the Council, she was a consultant for the World Bank. She also has strong experience in the private sector as a publisher in London and as director for development at a French consulting firm in corporate and social responsibility.
Ambassador Yade has over a decade of experience working in French, European, and international politics. At the age of thirty, she was appointed as the deputy minister for foreign affairs and human rights of the Republic of France – the first ever French minister for human rights and the first woman of African descent to become a member of the French cabinet. In recognition of her work, she was Nelson Mandela’s personal guest on his ninetieth birthday in Johannesburg. At that time, she was also recognized as a Young Leader by the World Economic Forum.
She was subsequently appointed to the position of Minister of Sports. Ambassador Yade was also appointed as the Ambassador of France to UNESCO.
Ambassador Yade started her professional career as a parliamentary high civil servant at the French Senate and director of communications of the TV network of the Parliament.
In 2024, she released her 8th book in Paris, “Les leçons de l’Amérique: Nation et Puissance” (L’Harmattan).
Eva Rota Graziosi is a student of Political Science and International Law at Sciences Po Strasbourg, currently completing an academic year at Georgetown University. With experience at the cultural and justice departments of the French Embassy in Washington, D.C., Eva has cultivated a nuanced understanding of how cultural diplomacy and legal systems intersect to shape public policy and societal norms. Her academic work and professional experience inform her deep interest in the evolving relationship between motherhood and professional life. Additionally, Eva is keenly interested in activism with an emphasis on human rights and their role in shaping societal transformation.