Marissa Charles is an award-winning journalist with more than 20 years’ editorial and content strategy experience. Based in Los Angeles, she specializes in entertainment news, human interest, and lifestyle stories. For nearly four years she worked at PEOPLE, as News Director, then Managing Editor. Marissa played a pivotal role in creating the brand’s multimedia app, building the newsroom from scratch and contributing to its editorial vision. The result, the PEOPLE App — a video-first, TikTok-style platform targeting Gen Z — launched in 2025.

A storyteller with an inquisitive nature, Marissa is a perceptive editorial strategist who is passionate about making compelling content accessible and, most importantly, discoverable. She believes you can inform and entertain, embracing tech and innovation, without sacrificing facts, journalism or ethics.

Marissa’s exclusive reporting has appeared in a variety of outlets including The Guardian, Ebony, Elle, Essence, Glamour UK, Harper’s Bazaar Arabia and the Daily Mail. In 2011 she received the National Association of Press Agencies Feature of the Year Award. She is an Oxford University graduate with a B.A. in Modern History.

Judy Kibinge began her career in advertising as Creative Director of a multinational agency leading Pan African campaigns for global brands such as Coca-Cola. She has written and directed several award-winning fiction and documentary films. In 2013, she founded DOCUBOX, Sub Saharan Africa’s first homegrown fund and hub for independent filmmakers. In 2021, she was named Most Influential Woman in Film at the Women in Film Awards (Kenya). She is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture and Sciences and sat on the Documentary Branch Committee from 2018-2024. Right now, after a decade of supporting independent African filmmakers, she’s jumping back into filmmaking and dreaming up an exciting new venture, KEJA, designed to unlock East Africa’s Creative Economy.

Robin Leeds is the CEO of Winning Strategies LLC, a public affairs and communications consulting firm based in Washington, DC which was a Strategic Partner to Burson Cohn & Wolfe, a leading global public relations firm. She is a Partner at Democracy Partners and provides a wide range of services including multi-cultural and crisis communications, public policy advocacy, stakeholder engagement, coalition building, diversity, equity and inclusion programming, donor advising and corporate social responsibility counsel.

Leeds is a civic and cultural leader who works at the intersection of social change and the arts. She served as a Biden Appointee on the President’s Advisory Commission on the Arts (PACA), where she led the successful launch of the first-ever social impact endowment fund at the JFK Center for the Performing Arts. Leeds served as an Advisory Board Member of the National Museum of Women in the Arts and has represented the Creative Coalition at numerous Democratic National Conventions. Leeds also partnered with the Congressional Black Caucus and Emmy award winning actor Giancarlo Esposito to produce a national cultural program during the Inauguration of President Obama.

Julie is a dedicated educator with a passion for providing students with a personalized learning experience and disrupting the norm in the educational system. She enjoys connecting with others and savors the opportunity to explore different ideas, launch new initiatives, and turn thoughts into action. She earned both her Bachelor’s degree (Elementary Education) and Master’s degree (Middle Grades Education) from Clemson University–Go Tigers! Julie taught middle grades Math and Language Arts for eight years before pursuing her degree in School Administration. She served as a Middle School Assistant Principal for five years before moving to Los Angeles in 2020. Julie is starting her fourth year teaching fifth-grade at Seven Arrows Elementary School, and last year, her class collaborated with Creative Visions on a year-long project. In her free time, Julie enjoys reading on the beach, working out, traveling, attending sporting events, and volunteering for her sorority, Zeta Tau Alpha.

A Visionary Leader and Adventurer

Laurel Roselle is a born leader with an adventurous spirit, making her mark in the world of film and technology. As a proud member of the Producers Guild Association, she has garnered acclaim for her award-winning documentary films that inspire and educate audiences. Since 2015, Laurel has been an integral part of Creative Visions, harnessing her passion for storytelling to create impactful media. Additionally, she is a founding member of both the Kilimanjaro Technology Foundation and Olerose, LLC, where her innovative approach drives initiatives that blend creativity with technology. Laurel’s commitment to excellence and her adventurous outlook continue to inspire those around her.

Megha Kadakia is a producer, strategist, and impact leader whose work lives at the intersection of storytelling, culture shift, and systems change. With over 20 years of experience across independent film, corporate strategy, and nonprofit leadership, she brings a rare blend of creative vision and operational discipline to every project she touches.

She recently produced the feature film PATEL, a gangster dramedy with a South Asian twist that just wrapped production and was featured in Variety. Megha also served as Co-Executive Producer on the Oscar-nominated documentary To Kill A Tiger, leading the global #StandWithHer impact campaign focused on gender justice, male allyship, and survivor support. The campaign has partnered with UN Women and Equality Now, and includes a robust education and policy initiative that spans from Capitol Hill to grassroots communities.

Megha is the co-founder of Prism Entertainment, a production company she leads alongside award-winning filmmakers Priya Giri Desai and Shruti Ganguly. Prism champions bold, disruptive stories with women and narrative change at the center. Most recently, Prism signed a development deal with MACRO, expanding its reach across film and television.

In addition to her creative work, Megha now serves as a fractional Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) and Chief Operating Officer (COO) for a range of mission-driven organizations and media ventures. She advises leadership teams on strategic growth, operational design, impact campaigns, and narrative positioning—bridging vision and execution in high-stakes, high-impact environments.

Her earlier work includes producing acclaimed features such as The Tiger Hunter, Miss India America, Hummingbird, and Raspberry Magic. Prior to her film career, Megha held strategic leadership roles at The Walt Disney Studios and Deloitte Consulting, where she spearheaded global initiatives and helped launch new business models. She also served as Head of Media/ CSO at Creative Visions, where she built and scaled impact programs that blended storytelling with measurable social change.

A proud UCLA alum with an MBA from Columbia Business School, Megha continues to build bridges across industries, stories, and communities—always with the goal of moving culture forward.

Ravi Sunnak has over 20 years of experience in communications and works with clients to develop and build impactful thought leadership initiatives. Building on his expertise as a trusted senior counsel for leaders across industry sectors, Sunnak developed and launched a proprietary process used to build an executive’s influence as it relates to their organization, focusing on equipping leaders with the tools they need to engage with audiences. Sunnak works with the c-suite on positioning around leading global events such as Aspen Ideas, Advertising Week, CGI, CES, Cannes Lions, SXSW, and WEF. He also ensures his clients have significant visibility during United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) week, and the various COPs.

He is an advisor for One Earth, a nonprofit organization working to accelerate collective action to solve the climate crisis through groundbreaking science, inspiring media, and an innovative approach to climate philanthropy; an advisor to Peace One Day, a content generator and a destination for global discussions around the issues of justice, equality, diversity, inclusion, climate action, peace, sustainability and the mobilization of youth; as well as a partner of the Social Innovation Summit, which is a series of events representing a “global convening of black swans and wayward thinkers”. Sunnak worked with the U.N. Foundation and their partners to launch of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). He also directed integrated campaigns for Bloomberg Philanthropies, U.N. Women HeForShe, Sustainable Energy for All and The Climate Group.

He has participated on panels for SXSW and WEF. Sunnak was also named one of PRWeek’s 40 under 40 professionals in 2017. In 2019, he was a finalist of PR Week’s Most Purposeful Pros in PR award and was named in The NY Observer’s “PR POWER50” in 2020. More recently, PRWeek named Sunnak highly commended for the Global PR Professional of the Year category. Sunnak graduated with LLB (Honors) Law Degree from University College London (U.CL).

Ann Wang is a Forbes 30 Under 30 social entrepreneur, investor, and consultant, passionate about using technology and storytelling to shift culture around mental health, education, equity, sustainability, and global poverty.

As a senior at UCLA, Ann co-founded Enrou, a socially-conscious online marketplace, which won the first Forbes 30 Under 30 Pitch Competition, securing funding from investors like Steve Case, Troy Carter, and Forbes Media.

Currently, Ann runs her consulting practice and fund, developing and advising tech-driven projects, such as generative AI, to create innovative impacts. She is a member of the Delta Innovation Board and a contributing writer for Forbes.

Ann earned a bachelor’s degree in international development studies from UCLA in 2013 and has served on the Alumni Association board since 2016. She is currently the Treasurer of the Alumni Associations of the University of California (AAUC) and will serve as an Alumni Regent-designate starting July 1, 2024, and as an Alumni Regent from one year commencing July 1, 2025.