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Ashara Ekundayo
Ashara Ekundayo is a cultural worker of the urban landscape who brings her whole existence into the social entrepreneurial movement. As a catalyst, consultant, producer, and entrepreneur for over 20 years, she has worked with national and international organizations to help build capacity for increased community engagement through the uses of creative practice including performance arts ritual, exhibition, and film. As an activist committed to social change she founded BluBlak Media Consulting, the Pan African Arts Society, and Blue & Yellow Logic in Denver, Colorado and is currently working with a collective of solutionaries in the launching of HUB Oakland where she will also be the curator of Omi Arts - both are slated to open in Summer 2013.
Her personal belief and work
aesthetic define abundance as a station inside the soul – not connected
to any material thing and acknowledges that our connection and
interdependence to everything on planet Earth generates and sustains
wealth.
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Info
- Catalyst | Creating and cultivating opportunities for people & organizations to strategically collaborate!Management Consulting | San Francisco Bay Area, USSummary
BIO -
Ashara Ekundayo is an Oakland-based cultural worker of the urban landscape and has served as catalyst, curator, educator, and producer for more than 20 years. Through her company BluBlak Media Consulting, she has worked with organizations to build capacity for increased community engagement through the uses of creative practice, exhibition, and project management. She is a serial entrepreneur and activist committed to social change, and has supported individuals and grassroots companies in the redesign of their brand strategy through permaculture principles and spiritual practice.In 2009 Ashara was selected by the Ashoka Foundation and the City of Denver in the US launch of the “Change Your City” Campaign as a social innovator “stimulating the green economy” being manifested through her programmatic work in the co-founding of The GrowHaus, a non-profit, interactive indoor farm & marketplace in Denver’s Elyria-Swansea neighborhood committed to cultivating eco-equity, food justice, and green jobs through a culturally competent lens. She also worked with the U.S. Dept of State Bureau of Educational & Cultural Affairs in the development and implementation of their first Professional Fellowship in Food Security, BoldFood, linking urban agriculturalists, policymakers and organizers in Kenya, Uganda and throughout the U.S. and is launching CanIEatIt.info to share international, intergenerational women’s stories of food and family from the rainforest to the corner store.
Ashara combined her some of her passions & skill as an urban farmer, a soul-foodie, arts curator, and social media professional to produce “Grits & Greens,” a breakfast series named after her food Tumblr blog, where presenters explore the intersections of food, art and technology. She serves as the Marketing Director for the San Francisco Green Festival, and is also a member of the founding team of solutionaries launching HUB Oakland in Fall 2013where she will also be opening Omi Arts Gallery.
Experience- Jul 2012 - PresentRegional Marketing Director / San Francisco Green Festival
- Apr 2012 - PresentProducer/Curator / Pecha Kucha Night Oakland
Produce and market the "official" PKN in Oakland described as the globally acclaimed gatherings that embrace the art of slideshow storytelling. Co-curate a lineup of up to 10 creatives from various sectors who present 20 images and speak for 20 seconds per image.
- Oct 2011 - PresentCo-Founder | Curator & Director of External Affairs / HUB Oakland
Working with a team of solutionaries in the founding, overall development, branding, strategic partnership building, and creative/artistic presentation of Hub Oakland whose mission is to cultivate, support and connect purpose-driven people and social entrepreneurs in building solutions for local and global impact by providing access to space, ideas, mentors and resources.
- Jan 1999 - PresentOwner, Creative Consultant / BluBlak Media
I open the way for individuals, organizations and corporations to explore inclusiveness and creativity in their personal and professional environment - through visualization, event coordination, staffing.
- Oct 2010 - Jan 2012Lead Fellow & BoldFOOD Project Manager / Critical Mass Leadership Education, Inc
Managed all aspects of the International Professional Fellowship in Food Security aka BoldFood program - an adult exchange between professionals working within social, cultural, economic, and political aspects of food security, especially as related to urban and peri-urban agriculture in the U.S., Kenya and Uganda. BoldFood was funded by the U.S. Dept. of State Bureau of Educational & Cultural Affairs from October 2012 - January 2012 and administered through Colorado-based social profit, www.BoldLeaders.org
- Mar 2009 - May 2010Cultural Outreach Architect/Brand Manager / Blue and Yellow Logic
Blue and Yellow Logic is a social enterprise supporting the creation of a racially-diverse green workforce by providing Sustainability Bootcamps through our youth-powered hip-hop curriculum designed by local eco-cultivators. We also provide consulting, soft-skills training and job placement services to unions, businesses, non-profits, government entities, institutions of higher learning, and schools.
- 2009 - 2010Columnist / Denver Urban Spectrum
- Oct 2009 - Oct 2010Director of Strategic Partnerships & Art Equity / The GrowHaus
Co-Founder of The Growhaus - responsible for community marketing, strategic partnerships, and media relations in the cultivation and execution of artistic special events at The Growhaus incl. mural arts and multi-media special events.
- Feb 1998 - Oct 2009Founder/Artistic Director / Pan African Arts Society
The Pan African Arts Society (PAAS) is a Colorado-based non-profit 501c3 organization that visualizes and executes arts education, social change venues throughout the year and within the Denver metro-area in order to increase dialogue and action in diverse settings through the use of cultural icons including film, performance, creative writing and oration. Some of our award-winning projects include; the Denver Pan African Film Festival, "Cafe Nuba" spoken-word & music showcase, "A Young Sista's Bootkamp," and Q-Poc Lounge.
- Sept 2007 - Mar 2009On-Air Host ~ "The Activist Studio" / FSTV
As host of "The Activist Studio" on DISH network's channel 9415 - FSTV, I had the pleasure of sharing space and interviewing on air, people who work in their communities to help empower, educate, and uplift the whole ~ we call them activists, I call them healers.
- Feb 2006 - Apr 2008Project Producer, Artistic Director / Just Media
Co-Created and co-produced the web's 1st online HighDef slam poetry competition site - www.Podslam.org which combines the technology of indie filmmaking and new media, with creativity of poets and performance artists to promote media justice and digital divide in poor communities and communities of color. Additionally, Podslam.org initiated, produced, and sponsored community events such as the "Urban Poetics" event at the Denver Art Museum addressing race, class and gender through slam poetry, and PSI Poetry Conferences in the U.S. and Vancouver, BC.
Education-
1994 - 1998University of DenverM.A. in International Development, Liberation Theology, Anthropology, Africa
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1990 - 1994Metropolitan State College of DenverB.A. in African American Studies & Speech Communication
Activities: Black Student Alliance, Sisters In Support of Change Organization, Iota Iota Iota
Additional Information-
Websites:
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Honors:• Arts Activism Award, National Council of Negro Women, Denver Chapter • "Mastermind Award-Literary Arts," March 2006, Westword Newspaper • African Americans Who Make a Difference, Urban Spectrum Newspaper • Arts Education Award, Colorado Black Women for Political Action • Freelance Public Relations Professional, Colorado Assoc. of Black Journalists
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Interests:love, Africa, cultural anthropology studies, poetry, art & social change, travel, public relations, guerrilla marketing, direct action, motivational speaking, HIV/AIDS education & testing, social media, propaganda, hip-hop activism, galleries, independent filmmaking, revolutionary music, gourmet cooking, collaboration, politics and community, media justice, time travel
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Photos" data-title="THIS Right Here! #omg #sherry #brooklyn #foodie" data-link=""> " data-title="Salted Dorade w/ harrisa ajada + fideua paella & Black womyn! #brooklyn #foodporn" data-link=""> " data-title="Blu #Brooklyn" data-link=""> " data-title="#nyc #now" data-link=""> " data-title="Strawberry rhubarb cobbler w/ roasted pistachio ice cream & Vietnamese coffee #nyc #foodie" data-link=""> " data-title="Striped Bass w/ sauteed napa, ginger, cucumber w/ jasmine coconut rice. #nyc #foodporn #omg" data-link=""> " data-title="Spring Lobster Roll #nyc" data-link=""> " data-title="#NYC #foodie dinner w/ my girls" data-link=""> " data-title="Where does this QRC take u? "Love Conquers War" by#JaSonAuguste" data-link=""> " data-title="#Children of America" by #BeataDrozd #harlem #artcrawl" data-link=""> " data-title=""In Paradise" aka I spy #Olokun #harlem #artcrawl by #UdayDhar" data-link=""> " data-title="#JosephCavalieri #harlem #artcrawl #isaachayes" data-link=""> " data-title="Stop #2 #harlem #artcrawl" data-link=""> " data-title="Hilarious gossip columnist giving the #harlem #artcrawl tour on the Trolly! #FloAnthony" data-link=""> " data-title="Motown to Def Jam: An Art Gallery Tour - My view from stop #1. #Harlem #ArtCrawl" data-link=""> " data-title="@ErickaHuggins at @huboakland #assatateachin #oakland" data-link=""> " data-title="#assatateachin acrylic on paper by @favianna1 #oakland #now at @huboakland" data-link=""> " data-title="@huboakland is set-up for #AssataTeachin #artmurmur #Oakland" data-link=""> " data-title="#sahr is #fela #africaisthefuture" data-link=""> " data-title="#felaoakland #paintedbrides #oakland #now" data-link="">
