North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship applications are open now through Aug. 24! Interested in applying? Watch our information session below, where we share a brief history of North Star, discuss fellowship requirements, provide a curriculum overview, and answer questions.
North Star is a place for Black-led cooperatives, collectives, housing, commercial, and land trusts to learn and reclaim the history of Black cooperative economics. Fellows come together for seven months of co-learning, storytelling, and skill-building. If you’re part of a Black-led co-op—or dreaming of starting one—this fellowship is for you!
Are you passionate about Black economic justice? Are you part of a Black-led collective, cooperative, or land trust—or dreaming of starting one? Then our North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship is for you! Together, we will learn and reclaim the history of Black cooperative economics over seven months of co-learning, storytelling, and skill-building. Apply to join our 10th cohort by Monday, Aug. 24, 11:59 pm CT!
How It Works
Nexus’ North Star curriculum grounds fellows in Black cooperative economic history locally and nationally, challenges them to analyze and rethink capitalism, and supports them in building their own cooperatives, leadership skills, and networks.
As a cohort, fellows explore and receive:
Grounding in the history of Black cooperative economics in the US and a history of cooperation and Black feminism
Cooperative skills and tools, like governance, decision-making structures, and conflict resolution
Support in designing and creating a strategy for a cooperative economic project
A $1,000 stipend for participating in the fellowship
Access to alumni funds post-fellowship
Time Commitment
October 2026 – May 2027
Saturdays, 10 am – 2 pm, one to two sessions per month
Wednesday Black Study Sessions, 5 – 7 pm, two per cohort year
Total time: Approximately 85-100 hours, including reflection, co-op work, and research outside of meetings
It is important that our program participants have not only the passion and willingness to join North Star, but also the time and capacity to fully participate. We understand that life can be a lot of things for us, including stressful, traumatic, and isolating. Our staff work hard to cultivate a sacred Black space for cohort members to participate as fully as they can.
Information Session
Interested in applying? Watch our information session below!
Applications for our 10th North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship cohort open onAug. 3!
North Star is a space for political education, strategy, and collective learning rooted in Black cooperative economics and Black feminist practice. We ground people in the history of how Black communities have always built together, even in the face of systemic harm, extraction, and exclusion. At the same time, North Star creates space for people to reclaim that history and put it into practice. Through the seven-month fellowship, participants deepen their understanding of cooperation, strengthen governance and decision-making practices, and develop models that reflect their values and the realities of their communities.
North Star is also about shifting how people move from isolation into relationship and collective power. It connects people to one another and to a broader ecosystem of support, creating the conditions for cooperative ideas to take root and grow.
Interested in applying? Sign up for our information session below!
2026-2027 North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship Information Session: Cohort 10
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By: Nonkululeko (Nkuli) Tabata, Director of Community Wealth Building, and Leanna Browne, North Star Program Manager
We began our ninthNorth Star Black Cooperative Fellowship cohort by grounding ourselves in the rich history of Black cooperative economics and the generations of Black people who have used cooperation as a tool for survival, resistance, and self-determination.
Fellows explored not only what cooperatives are, but why they matter. Together, we examined systems that often leave our communities behind and explored what becomes possible when we center collective ownership, shared governance, and community wealth building.
As the sessions progressed, we moved from vision into practice. Fellows wrestled with questions of feasibility, financing, governance, and conflict. There were moments of excitement and moments where the work felt overwhelming. Yet again and again, people showed up willing to ask difficult questions, refine their ideas, and support one another through the process.
Our conversations around governance and conflict were especially important reminders that cooperation is not the absence of disagreement. Building collective power requires us to develop the skills to navigate tension, share leadership, and remain accountable to one another. Those lessons are just as important as any business plan or financial model.
What stood out most was the willingness of participants to think beyond individual success and toward collective liberation. Whether discussing housing, food sovereignty, worker ownership, land stewardship, healing spaces, or community investment, fellows consistently returned to a shared question: How do we create systems that allow our communities not just to survive, but to thrive?
This fellowship also unfolded during a time of uncertainty. Many participants were navigating political challenges, funding concerns, personal responsibilities, and the realities of doing social justice work in a moment that often feels heavy.
“When we launched Cohort 9 in October 2025, we couldn’t have foreseen navigating a federal occupation during our seven-month journey,” Leanna reflects. “There were times we needed to pivot to tend to ourselves, each other, and our communities.”
Created by Cohort 3 Alum Duaba Unenra
Yet despite those realities, people continued to show up. North Star became a space where we could practice hope together: where Black people could gather, learn from one another, and continue imagining futures rooted in abundance rather than scarcity.
The importance of Black cooperative economics is as evident as ever. As Gwendolyn Brooks reminds us in her poem Paul Robeson:
we are each other’s
harvest:
we are each other’s
business:
we are each other’s
magnitude and bond.
Each year, we gift fellows notebooks with this excerpt on the cover, along with the Pamoja glyph, which means “together” in Kiswahili.
Cohort 9’s Lasting Impact
“As we celebrated the graduation of 14 cooperative groups and 33 fellows, I was reminded that the true success of North Star is not measured only by the projects launched or the plans developed. It is measured by the relationships built, the confidence strengthened, the ideas nurtured, and the growing network of Black cooperators who now know they are part of something larger than themselves.
This cohort reminded me that our ancestors left us a legacy of cooperation, and our responsibility is to continue carrying that legacy forward. I am deeply grateful to every fellow, speaker, partner, alum, and community member who contributed to this year’s journey. The future we are building together is possible because people continue to choose cooperation, courage, and collective care.” — Nkuli Tabata
“North Star, where we center Black people and experiences while learning together about Black cooperative history and Black cooperative economics, is powerful. Being surrounded by amazing Black people committed to imagining and building our Black cooperative present and futures is inspiring. Much gratitude for our 2025-26 North Stars!” — Leanna Browne
What’s Next
As we approach the 10th anniversary of the North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship, we’re reflecting on both our roots and our future. Ten years represents more than a milestone. It is a testament to the vision of those who believed that investing in Black cooperative economics was essential to building self-determined communities. It is also an invitation to ask what the next decade can look like.
The need for spaces like North Star remains as urgent as ever. As communities continue to face economic inequality, displacement, and disinvestment, cooperative models offer a pathway toward ownership, democratic participation, and shared prosperity. We are excited to continue deepening our commitment to political education, community wealth building, and creating spaces where Black people can dream boldly and build collectively.
Top row, left to right: Nexus Community Wealth Building Director Nonkululeko Tabata, fellows Precious Wallace, Jonathan A. Osei, Laura Mann Hill, Blessing Chirimbani, DeAnna Smith, Dawn Burns, Sammie Joseph-Fredericks, Cayden Black, and North Star Program Manager Leanna Browne. Bottom row, left to right: Fellows Shétu Rose, Tapiwa Manjengwa, and Sumer Powell.
Nexus’ North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship is a space for political education, strategy, and collective learning rooted in Black cooperative economics and Black feminist practice. We ground people in the history of how Black communities have always built together, even in the face of systemic harm, extraction, and exclusion.
Each year, we welcome a new group of fellows ready to reclaim this history and put it into practice. Below, three fellows from our 2025-26 cohort share their experiences!
“North Star has been a much-needed cooperative education space for our small (but growing) co-op. Each presenter felt hand-selected based on expertise and relevance to the cohort. We even witnessed impressive, responsive, and emergent facilitation from [Nexus staff] Nkuli and Leanna when it was clear we fellows needed more time and space to grieve, process, and tap into care during the necessary upheaval taking place throughout the U.S.”
Alicia Rufus, S.E.W. Cooperative
“Being a part of North Star has been a rewarding experience. S.E.W. Cooperative is focused on creating spaces for Black people living in the rural parts of Minnesota, where social isolation is high and opportunities for culture and connection is low. Through this fellowship, I have been able to slow down and really think about what we are building. I have been given the tools to build a cooperative that will really embody our vision: a strong, self-sustaining, Black rural community where social, economic, and cultural wholeness thrive. This is the spirit of Ubuntu in action. Looking forward, our focus is solidifying our governance and bylaws, growing our membership, creating programming, funding our vision, and securing land.”
Jeanine Wiley, S.E.W. Cooperative
“My experience in North Star was truly meaningful to me. I came into the program curious, but I’m leaving with a much deeper understanding of what it really means to build and sustain cooperative values in real life.
One of the biggest takeaways for me was learning how important solidarity, democracy, and respect for the world’s ecosystems are—not just as ideas, but as practices we have to be intentional about every day. The virtual cooperative tours helped me see these values in action, which made everything feel more real and possible.
I also really valued the hands-on work we did, especially creating bylaws and thinking through governance and decision-making. This was challenging, but it pushed me to think more critically about what fair and inclusive structures actually look like. It made me realize that strong cooperatives don’t just happen—they’re built with care, clarity, and shared responsibility.
The breakout sessions were a highlight for me. Being able to have honest conversations and hear about others’ real experiences helped me connect more deeply to the work. It reminded me that cooperative values are lived through people, relationships, and trust.
As I move forward with S.E.W. Cooperative, I want to carry these lessons with me in a real way. I plan to be more intentional about supporting democratic decision-making and making sure everyone’s voice is heard and respected. I also want to help build structures that are clear, fair, and rooted in our shared values. Most importantly, I want to contribute to a cooperative culture that reflects care—for each other, our community, and the environment.
This fellowship didn’t just teach me new skills—it shifted how I think about working with others and what it means to build something collectively. I’m grateful for the experience and excited to keep growing from it.”
April 14, 2026, was Co-op Day at the Capitol! Nexus joined the Cooperative Network to show lawmakers the power of the cooperative model to address community challenges, showcase worker-owned cooperatives as a solution to the business succession crisis, and demonstrate the benefits of worker co-ops in St. Paul and beyond.
Director of Community Wealth Building Nonkululeko (Nkuli) Tabata, Cooperative Developer Christina Nicholson, and Shared Ownership Center client Dave Abbott, Lead Carpenter and VP at Terra Firma Building & Remodeling Co-op, testified alongside other local cooperative leaders and worker-owners at an informational hearing with the Minnesota Senate Labor Committee.
Nkuli reflects, “Capitol Co-op Day felt like a powerful moment to share the work many of us have been building for years and bring it into greater visibility. Being able to speak directly to the impact and potential of worker co-ops felt both grounding and energizing. The hearing created space to connect our work to real solutions, especially around building community wealth, expanding ownership, and strengthening local economies. It also reinforced how important it is to continue lifting up the stories, experiences, and leadership within our communities. This work does not happen overnight, and moments like this help build momentum and deepen understanding of what a cooperative future can look like.”
Christina says, “Spending time with senators and representatives at the capitol signaled to me a significant increase in interest of the role that worker-owner cooperatives do and can play in retaining jobs and businesses in Minnesota. The connection between national trends in job satisfaction, retention, and equity of roles and stability of income for worker-cooperatives has broken through to the elected stewards of Minnesota. We are hearing more requests for ways to support our work through direct funding of technical assistance, zero-interest and forgivable loans for equity shares, and a general promotion through DEED to current business owners and their teams of how to retain jobs across the state through worker-owned conversions.”
Nkuli Tabata, Nexus Director of Community Wealth Building (right), speaks to the Minnesota Senate Labor Committee (left) about the power of cooperatives and Nexus’ North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship program.
Congratulations to North Star Cohort 9! From St. Paul to Belize, Detroit to Atlanta, our newest North Stars are living the legacy of Black cooperative economics across the map. Come wish them well at our virtual graduation on Wednesday, May 6!
North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship Cohort 9 Graduation
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Self-care and community care are interconnected. Join our North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship for a Black Study Session on April 29! Our guest facilitators will guide you through a sound bath and embodied practices to help you reconnect with yourself and soothe your nervous system.
North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship Black Study Session: Caring for Ourselves and Our Communities
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Meet Our Facilitators
Ayo Clemons
Ayo’s work is centered in healing justice, relational transformation, and somatic coaching. As one of the co-owners of the People’s Movement Center, Ayo’s work provided a context for an emerging healing justice framework that infuses theory in practice. As a Global Somatics Practitioner, Ayo’s personal somatic practice began in 2012 and later transformed into supporting others with healing trauma, connecting with their bodies, and recognizing their individual and collective power. With over 18 years of experience as a community organizer, racial justice advocate, and facilitator, Ayo has utilized her skills to connect with hundreds of people to articulate their vision and advocate for change in their communities.
Priscilla Momah
Priscilla Momah is a multidisciplinary wellness practitioner, artist, and space holder devoted to cultivating care practices rooted in rest, restoration, and the nourishment of the mind, body, and heart. Through her work, she creates intentional spaces that invite individuals and communities to slow down, reconnect, and return to themselves. With over a decade of experience as a musician and facilitator, Priscilla weaves together sound healing, yoga, breathwork, mindfulness, and somatic practices to support nervous system regulation and holistic well-being. She is a Reiki practitioner, Thai Yoga Bodyworker, craniosacral therapist, doula, and health and wellness coach, offering integrative experiences that honor the body’s innate wisdom and capacity to heal.
As the founder of Coco Womb Wellness, Priscilla’s offerings are rooted in accessibility, compassion, and deep listening. Her sound bath experiences are immersive and restorative, designed to guide participants into states of deep rest where healing, reflection, and renewal can naturally unfold. Through every offering, Priscilla holds a gentle yet powerful intention: to create spaces where people feel supported, seen, and nourished individually and in community.
As Black History Month/Black Futures Month draws to a close, the Cooperative Gallery Walk from our North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship reminds us that we are a part of a deep, rich legacy of Black cooperative economics, past and present. Leanna, our North Star Program Manager, highlights the Combahee River Colony to show how we can draw on these stories for inspiration and a blueprint for a path forward. Read the feature below from our Cooperative Gallery Walk!
Leanna displays the Cooperative Gallery Walk at the Repaired Nations Black Solidarity Cooperative Conference
“The Combahee River Colony was located in a remote area where African Americans established their own settlements and remained relatively self-sufficient and semi-autonomous: the Gullah/Geechee communities in the South Carolina Sea Islands.
The Combahee River Colony in South Carolina consisted of several hundred African American women during the Civil War whose men had gone to join the Union Army. They occupied abandoned farmland where they ‘grew crops and cared for one another.’ They refused to work for whites and were proud of their handicrafts and cotton crop, as well as their independence. The community became relatively well known as an example of Black women’s independence, perseverance, and collective spirit.” —Excerpt from Jessica Gordon Nembhard’s “Collective Courage: A History of African American Cooperative Economic Thought and Practice”
What strikes you most about this history?
The Combahee River Colony filled in the gaps, resourced their community in creative ways, and tended to their needs collectively. We invite you to reflect, share, and engage with three people on these prompts:
As we continue to navigate a federal occupation and continued, brutal violence in our communities, what lessons can we learn from the Combahee River Colony?
What are the ways we can care for each other?
How can we practice cooperation in our communities?
In May, we graduated 23 fellows from 10 cooperative groups, celebrating their achievements and shared leadership. Their showcase, We Are the Architects, uplifted the creativity, healing work, and cooperative legacies they are building.
Cohort 9 Launch
In August, we opened up applications for Cohort 9 and received 90 submissions—the most in North Star history! This included 57 applicants from the Twin Cities, six from Greater Minnesota, 26 from across the United States, and one international applicant, showing just how far our work is reaching.
In October, we welcomed 33 new fellows across 14 cooperative groups as our 2025-26 North Stars. This cohort reflects strong Black-led visions in wellness, land, food, creative economies, and mutual aid.
Alumni Support
Seven alumni cooperatives received continued support and technical assistance, including up to $25,000 for project development. This investment helped stabilize operations and strengthen long-term cooperative growth.
2025 Events
IBWIG Presentation: The Power of Wealth-Building through Cooperatives
Ignite Business Women Investment Group hosted an evening of cooperative education and networking to celebrate Black History Month. Nexus Community Wealth Building Director Nonkululeko Tabata shared actionable strategies and resources for building community cooperatives and wealth, and reflected on the joy of being in community with the women of Ignite and uplifting real stories from the cooperative ecosystem.
Nexus 20th Anniversary Series: Rooted in Legacy, Owning Our Future
This celebration honored 20 years of Community Wealth Building at Nexus and lifted up the history and future of collective ownership. NSBCF was highlighted as part of the broader movement advancing cooperative power and community control.
Community Wealth Building Team Retreat
Our internal retreat strengthened NSBCF’s connections with Nexus’ other Community Wealth Building programs: the Shared Ownership Center (SOC@N) and Open Road Fund (ORF). Through shared learning and strategy building, our gathering created space for alignment, reflection, and deeper collaboration.
Co-Minnesota Presentation
We shared the NSBCF model and insights from fellows during Cooperatively Building a Better World. The presentation affirmed the importance of Black-led cooperative leadership within Minnesota’s growing cooperative ecosystem.
Internal Growth and Strategy
Strategic Planning with AORTA
We completed most of our strategic planning work with AORTA this year and look forward to sharing more of what is emerging in 2026. This process helped us reflect deeply, clarify our priorities, and prepare for North Star’s 10th anniversary!
Tabling & Community Engagement
City of Saint Paul Office of Financial Empowerment – Money Action Day
On May 31, NSBCF tabled alongside SOC@N and ORF to connect with residents around cooperative ownership and financial empowerment. It was a meaningful opportunity to meet community members, share resources, and introduce people to our work!
Black Business Network Business Fair
On June 12, NSBCF and ORF engaged more than 60 local vendors with new and interactive activities. The fair was an energizing space to introduce cooperative concepts to entrepreneurs and strengthen relationships across the business community.
Conferences & National Presence
National Conference for Arts Funders and Artists
NSBCF co-led a breakout session with AmbitioUS and The Big We focused on Black-led community ownership and cooperative models as strategies for economic justice and liberation. Participants also engaged directly with three North Star alumni collectives: Branch Out and Bloom, Voice of Culture, and Mutha Art’preneur Collective.
Repaired Nations Seventh Annual Black Solidarity Cooperative Conference
NSBCF was invited to speak at this national gathering in Oakland from Oct. 10-12. We also presented an updated Cooperative Gallery Walk that highlighted the powerful work of our fellows and alumni.
As part of the 2025 Grantmakers in the Arts Conference: Building Solidarity, Rooted in Justice, Nexus Community Partners and AmbitioUS* co-hosted ReIMAGINE Scale: Self-Determined Power & Community Power in the U.S. The session began with an inspiring fireside chat at Penumbra Theatre between Anasa Troutman, Founder and CEO of The BIG We in Memphis, Tennessee, and Nonkululeko (Nkuli) Tabata, Director of Community Wealth Building at Nexus.
Nexus Community Wealth Building & North Star Director Nkuli Tabata (left) speaks with The BIG We Founder & CEO Anasa Troutman (right).
“We wanted to give people a real picture of what community ownership and cooperative work look like when led by Black communities and cultural workers rooted in the day-to-day reality of building something different,” Nkuli says.
Anasa added her perspective through cultural organizing and community building in the South. Together, they helped the room understand that the work happening now is part of a much longer story.
Top Takeaways
Power is not an abstract concept. It shows up in who owns land, who controls money, who makes decisions, and who gets to shape the future.
Community ownership is not new for Black communities. We have always built systems of support through mutual aid, faith communities, informal networks, and collective economic practices.
Scale doesn’t simply mean “bigger.” It often looks like deeper relationships, stronger alignment, and healthier ecosystems. It looks like more distributed leadership and more people practicing power together.
We need capital that trusts communities and follows their lead, instead of shaping or limiting their vision.
Cooperative development is cultural work as much as it is technical work. It takes time, alignment, conflict skills, and shared purpose.
Before the fireside chat, Nexus’ North Star Program Manager, Leanna Browne, grounded attendees with a reflection question from Harvest of Survival: An Affirmation Deck Inspired by Octavia Butler: “How are you home building, world building, and universe building?”
Then, Leanna invited attendees to move through hands-on activities by three North Star alumni collectives: Branch Out and Bloom, Mutha Art’preneur Collective, and Voice of Culture. This part of the session helped people experience how:
Branch Out and Bloom is building worlds that are providing life skills and creative arts education for Black children and young adults in Minnesota.
Mutha Art’preneur Collective is creating intersecting practices of dreaming, actualizing, and intergenerational healing where Black women can show up and be supported as their full selves.
Voice of Culture is creating and maintaining Black space for Black people to engage in the study and practice of cultural arts for mental health and physical well-being.
Branch Out and Bloom guided people through reflecting on where they first learned basic life skills. Many realized that the people who taught them the most were family members, neighborhood elders, and culture keepers. It showed how much learning happens within the community, not just within formal systems.
Mutha Art’preneur Collective held a creative and grounding space where participants mapped their dreams and connected imagination to leadership. Their station reminded people that visioning and healing are part of building cooperative models that last.
Voice of Culture brought movement, rhythm, and collective energy into the room. Participants experienced how cultural practice supports wellness, belonging, and shared responsibility. It made it clear that culture is not separate from cooperative or economic work; it is part of the foundation that helps these models grow.
“These activities created space for attendees to engage with their bodies, minds, and spirits,” Leanna recalls. “It reminded us of the power of practicing Black cooperative economics, connecting to our hearts, and moving with our hands and feet collectively for liberation.”
Throughout the afternoon, people saw that cooperatives are not just legal structures or business plans. They are ways of working that rely on culture, trust, and shared decision-making. Many participants left with a deeper understanding of the real conditions communities need to build sustainable ownership models.
This all came at a key time. With shrinking public funding and growing challenges for the social sector, community-owned and culturally grounded models are not just interesting ideas. They are essential. North Star alumni in Minnesota, The Big We in Memphis, and many others across the country are building these systems right now.
Reflecting on the conference, Leanna shares, “I think about call and response, a practice in Black culture rooted in African traditions, which is significant in many ways: inviting collective participation, co-creating a shared experience, and utilizing storytelling to share our stories and pass down knowledge. An example is ‘Ago,’ which means, ‘Are you listening?’ or ‘Attention, please,’ and ‘Ame,’ a response from the group, which means, ‘I am listening’ or ‘You have my attention’ from the Twi language of the Akan people in Ghana.”
What is your response to the call of building solidarity, rooted in justice through Black cooperative economics?
Ago! Ame!
*Many thanks to AmbitioUS Program Officer Leeann Wallett for helping shape the vision and logistics of this session. Her care helped us bring the spirit of the North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship into a national space in a way that felt true to the people doing this work!
This fall, we welcomed our ninth North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship cohort—and we’re excited to announce our newest fellows! Get a preview below, and read more about their work here.
* Denotes group members not participating in the fellowship.
Black Liberation Lab
James Arroyo Miller, Stephanie Williams, Jeanine Weekes Schorer,* Terri Hardaway*
Seeing past the frameworks that white supremacy constructed for how to lead, how to live, how to work, and how to be in community—to a true liberation for ALL Black people.
blakQuity
Imane Soubiane, Jamila White
A Black-led social impact organization advancing economic justice and cooperative development so Black communities can thrive.
D&D Healing
Dawn Burns, DeAnna Smith
A community-driven cooperative dedicated to holistic wellness (including healing and food access), economic empowerment, and building generational wealth.
Elephant & Turtle Collective
Precious Wallace, Laura Mann Hill
A wellness-centered initiative dedicated to helping people navigate grief, healing, and self-discovery.
Emi Coffee and Tea Bar
Cayden Black, Sumer Powell, Sara Chesak,* Samara Jones,* Drenaia Pittman*
Combining healthy food and drink, cooperative business practices, and programming that uplifts local artists, entrepreneurs, and leaders to create a sustainable gathering place where community, culture, and resilience thrive together.
Amplifying mutual aid networks; cultivating relationships and conversations toward achieving the redistribution of wealth; and creating just systems and infrastructure to share skills, knowledge, and resources to meet our current and future needs.
A cooperative founded by mothers of African descent, united in the pursuit of economic freedom and generational wealth for themselves, their children, their families, and their communities.
Nourish Collective
Trinice McNally-Hair, Destiny Hodges
Sustaining healers, educators, and community practitioners through cooperative ownership, economic projects, and workforce development that nurture ancestral traditions, wellness, and wealth in Black and Brown communities.
Pachipamwe
Blessing Chirimbani, Tapiwa Manjengwa
Nurturing the whole student by combining education, mentorship, family support, and community care, ensuring every child in Zimbabwe can learn, grow, and lead with confidence.
S-E-W Cooperative/Onyx Collective
Alicia Rufus, Jeanine Wiley, Rose Johnsongale, Victoria McWane-Creek,* Jackie Hill,* Heather Hill,* Jennifer Aranda*
Creating spaces where Black individuals in rural communities can connect, support one another and thrive.
Spectrum Cleaning Cooperative
Terrence White, Steffanie White
A Detroit worker-owned cleaning cooperative that provides stable, dignified employment and transformative job training.
STAR
Alea McDuffie, Jonathan A. Osei
A multi-disciplinary artist collective that focuses on the creative distribution and economic well-being of Black artists.
Toledo Regenerative Agriculture Association
Walter Davis III, Erelah Davis, Ivy Pitts,* Maurice Hardiman,* Feliciano Pop*
A collection of Black and Indigenous small-scale farmers in Belize seeking to improve the health conditions of the people of Toledo District by increasing the availability of high-quality, nutrient-dense annual organic vegetables.
An Afrofuturist reimagining of Labor & community for Black women and femmes, providing workplace and wellness benefits for folx working for themselves and on behalf of the community.
Our North Star program team smiles with new fellows at the Cohort 9 hybrid orientation session. Top row, left to right: Nexus Community Wealth Building Director Nonkululeko Tabata, fellows Precious Wallace, Jonathan A. Osei, Laura Mann Hill, Blessing Chirimbani, DeAnna Smith, Dawn Burns, Sammie Joseph-Fredericks, Cayden Black, and North Star Program Manager Leanna Browne. Bottom row, left to right: Fellows Shétu Rose, Tapiwa Manjengwa, and Sumer Powell.
