Our Team
Mariano Avila
Coach & Producer
Mariano is a journalist and former nonprofit executive whose work elevating voices from marginalized communities has earned him Emmy nominations, Associated Press recognitions and a national Public Media Award. Over the course of his career, Mariano has also produced media labs, fellowships and training programs that center the narratives of vulnerable and marginalized communities.
Mariano’s experience in media ranges from Daily Newspapers like the Miami Herald, to Spanish-language weeklies like The Washington Hispanic. His broadcast experience includes PBS stations like Milwaukee PBS and PBS/NPR stations like WGVU in Grand Rapids.
Mariano was born in Mexico City, Mexico, where he learned the value of civic engagement, public discourse and discovered his love for media production. His life and work have taken him from singing for presidents in Taiwan to photographing inmates in Guatemalan prisons, and from connecting Americans peace activists and Palestinian nonviolence movements to documenting Native water protectors at Standing Rock, ND.
Robert Clauser
Producer, Coach, Consultant
Robert Clauser has a passion for and long career in harnessing the power of storytelling tomilluminate and activate communities and causes. His roles have included the CFO of WNET/New York Public Media, the COO of Tina Brown Live Media, Women in the World Media and the American Justice Summit, and his TED Residency, as well as a lead partner for the Media & Entertainment Practice at Accenture. As a producer, distributor, and audience developer, Robert’s creative career spans serving as Executive in Charge of the PBS television series #MeToo, Now What? to providing content for ALL-ARTS to his work in independent film such as Descending the Mountain (2021) and Actions of Nations (wt). He currently serves as the Director of the NYC Media Lab, an exploration of new technologies from AI to VR. In addition, he sits on the boards of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Rattlestick Theater, having founded or served on boards from Philanthropy Sharktank, icouldbe, Montage Pictures and StartOut. Clauser holds an MBA from the Booth School of Business at the University of Chicago and a BA, cum laude, from the University of Michigan.
Adriana Loya
Coach & Facilitator
Adriana Loya is a bilingual, Mexican-American journalist, and innovative visual storyteller. Her work amplifying underserved communities, has earned her seven Emmy Awards. She studied at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism, where she learned to be a one-woman band. Adriana prides herself as a passionate and creative individual who strives to make every story she tells memorable.
She has also worked and collaborated with Azteca América, Univision Arizona, Univision Kansas, and CBS’s Kansas affiliate station. Adriana has served as a mentor and board adviser for Boston l non-profits.
Originally from Casas Grandes in Mexico’s state of Chihuahua, Adriana studied at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. As the a daughter of immigrants and the first one in her family to go to college, she understands the struggles people face to reach the American Dream. She has covered national stories, ranging from the aftermath of the Uvalde mass school shooting to Super Bowl LVII .
Matt Gruppen
Operations & Production
Matt started his career as a musician running a regional non-profit that formed partnerships between advocates and artists, then moved into media production and tech. He has worked on documentary projects, green branding campaigns, and produced Grammy winning artists. With Mariano, Matt runs a stealth startup in its first funding round living in the intersection of democracy and journalism aimed at increasing transparency in an opaque system.
A transplant from Ann Arbor, Michigan, Matt now lives Los Angeles, California and enjoys the pickup soccer scene, the vegan restaurant options, and local music.
Tim Nafziger
Membership Specialist & Coach
Tim develops open source membership and small donor solutions. His specialty is working with nonprofit outlets like Public Media and small, independent publications that rely on a healthy donor base. Tim has been developing for the web since 1999. He loves finding ways to untangle membership systems and helping teams to engage their supporters. Along with his technical experience, he has six years of nonprofit leadership experience, serving four years as outreach coordinator for Community Peacemaker Teams, and an additional two years as their interim executive director.
Tim is an Indiana transplant to the beautiful Ojai community in Southern California, where he is ever active in protecting the environment and local communities from climate-related issues.
ChRIS LANDAU
Founder & Visual Technologist
Chris is a leading force in 3D modeling, visualization, and design for the built environment. As founder of LANDAU Design+Technology, Chris is recognized across industries for exceptional computational modeling, design, and digital engagement services. His innovative approach includes developing custom design software and workflows for diverse fields such as landscape architecture, civil engineering, art, and prosthetics.
With over 16 years of experience, Chris has gained deep insights into the creative application of technology. His significant contributions include developing Land Kit, a revolutionary software for computational landscape architecture, which transforms industry practice.
Passionate about creating better tools for efficient parametric design, Chris also mentors the next generation of visual technologists.
Brooke Runnette
Producer, Coach, Consultant
Brooke Runnette has been working at the intersection of journalism, media business, and non-profit management for over 30 years. She served as President of National Geographic Studios and later Executive Vice President of the National Geographic Society, overseeing Explorers, Grants, Storytelling and Education, after a career as an Emmy and Peabody-winning filmmaker and journalist, working for ABC and CBS News, 60 Minutes, Frontline, & Nightline. As an Executive Producer at Discovery Channel, she turned one of its darkest stunts into Happy Shark Week, a week of conservation science, comedy, and impact, with record-breaking ratings. She has been an Emerson Collective, Dial Fellowship coach, helping leaders of the Polynesian Voyaging Society design storytelling strategies for its circumnavigation of the Pacific, Moananuiākea, and for the indigenous rights advocacy organization Nia Tero. She is the founder of Change Agency Collective, which works with changemakers and organizations on strategy and storytelling to map a better future for people and planet.
Gina Rattanakone
Motion Graphics Designer
Gina is a skilled motion graphics designer and visual talent whose work brings ideas to life for high-profile clients. Her passion for visual storytelling has earned recognition on projects for the LA Zoo and the American Society of Landscape Architects' Climate Action campaign. With expertise in animation, video production, and branding, Gina combines big-picture thinking with attention to detail.
Her flexible work style adapts to various project needs, whether working independently or as part of a team. Gina's journey in motion graphics stems from a love of illustration and animation. When not creating digital animations, she can be found sketching, capturing the world with the same creativity that defines her professional work.
Sherisse szymczak
Coach & Facilitator
Sherisse is a talent performance coach and social media consultant. As an award-winning television host and producer, she spent the majority of her broadcast career working with members of visible minority communities, bringing these stories to unlikely audiences.
Her background in community engagement through television has more recently lent itself to understanding and navigating social media strategy. Having spent her whole life moving to new cities across both Canada and the United States, she is adaptable to new situations and uses these skills to cultivate relationships across diverse communities.
Sherisse is the first in her family born in North America. Her parents and siblings immigrated to Toronto from Guyana, South America