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Meet the Speakers
Conscious Collisions Summit 2026
Jill Johnson
Jill Johnson is a nationally-recognized thought leader and trailblazer working to foster an inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystem for people from historically excluded populations.
Jill co-founded the Institute for Entrepreneurial Leadership (IFEL) in 2002 and serves as the Chief Executive Officer for the nonprofit organization. Now in its twentieth year, IFEL leverages the power of relationship capital to create pathways to success for Black and Latinx founders, entrepreneurs and small business owners.
Jill is a speaker on topics including: community economic development, business plan development, entrepreneurship, minority and women small business growth, and access to capital.
Jill co-founded the Institute for Entrepreneurial Leadership (IFEL) in 2002 and serves as the Chief Executive Officer for the nonprofit organization. Now in its twentieth year, IFEL leverages the power of relationship capital to create pathways to success for Black and Latinx founders, entrepreneurs and small business owners.
Jill is a speaker on topics including: community economic development, business plan development, entrepreneurship, minority and women small business growth, and access to capital.
Ashley Crafton
Ashley Crafton is a dedicated obstetric nurse with a distinguished 24-year career, demonstrating a profound passion for family, exceptional medical expertise, and unwavering empathy for women and children. Her impactful service to thousands of families includes perinatal bereavement support and vital contributions to humanitarian efforts like Operation Allied Refuge (the 2021 Afghanistan evacuation) and the 2022 Ukraine evacuation. In 2019, Ashley founded Galena Innovations™, aiming to enhance family wellbeing. Renowned for her knowledge in preterm birth, early startup execution, and preclinical research, she is listed as the inventor on a number of patents, including the Hannah Cervical Cup™. She earned her BSN from Northwest Nazarene University and is currently pursuing a masters at Johns Hopkins University in Biotechnology Enterprise and Entrepreneurship. Her achievements have been recognized globally: Winner of the SIS New York Pitch Competition (2025); TiE Women Global Finalist (2024); Startup World Cup Top Ten Finalist (2024); Boise Entrepreneur Week Grand Prize Winner (2022); Startup of the Year – Trailhead Award (2025); Idaho Technology Council Hells Canyon Emerging Company Award (2025), and recipient of the U.S. Army Civilian Service Commendation Medal (2022). She has also led Galena through the Tech4Eva and MassChallenge accelerators and was named a CEO of Influence (Idaho Business Review, 2025). She has been happily married for 21 years & is the mother of five accomplished children.
Nicola Corzine
Nicola Corzine is a recognized authority on entrepreneurship, capital access, and innovation ecosystems. With nearly two decades of experience in venture, startups, and nonprofit leadership, her work has expanded opportunities for over 130,000 entrepreneurs globally.
La Keisha Landrum Pierre
La Keisha Landrum Pierre is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Emmeline Ventures, a venture capital firm investing in visionary founders transforming the future of women’s health, wealth, and climate. Guided by the belief that systems built without women in mind must be reimagined, she leads Emmeline with a focus on investing in solutions that drive both financial returns and generational impact.
A strategist and builder known for her clarity of vision and operational excellence, La Keisha has spent her career at the intersection of innovation, equity, and systemic change. Before launching Emmeline, she served as CEO of Sahara Reporters Media Group, where she scaled one of Africa’s most influential digital media platforms, and as Executive Chairwoman of the Civic Media Lab, created in partnership with Omidyar Network, Luminate, the MacArthur Foundation, and the National Endowment for Democracy.
Recognized among BWAM’s 40 Under 40 Honorees, La Keisha is also a sought-after speaker and thought leader who has shared her insights at institutions including Harvard, USC, NYU Stern, and the Women’s Capital Summit. Her work reflects a rare blend of strategic depth, principled leadership, and enduring commitment to building a more inclusive and investable future.
A strategist and builder known for her clarity of vision and operational excellence, La Keisha has spent her career at the intersection of innovation, equity, and systemic change. Before launching Emmeline, she served as CEO of Sahara Reporters Media Group, where she scaled one of Africa’s most influential digital media platforms, and as Executive Chairwoman of the Civic Media Lab, created in partnership with Omidyar Network, Luminate, the MacArthur Foundation, and the National Endowment for Democracy.
Recognized among BWAM’s 40 Under 40 Honorees, La Keisha is also a sought-after speaker and thought leader who has shared her insights at institutions including Harvard, USC, NYU Stern, and the Women’s Capital Summit. Her work reflects a rare blend of strategic depth, principled leadership, and enduring commitment to building a more inclusive and investable future.
Juliana Marques
Juliana Marques, J.D., CPA is Tax Counsel at Anthropic, the AI safety company behind Claude, where she leads international tax technical matters including cross-border structuring and U.S. international tax strategy. Previously, she served as Senior Tax Principal at Airbnb, directing international tax planning for the company's global operations and advising on M&A, strategic partnerships, and complex transactions. Before going in-house, Juliana spent nearly a decade at Baker McKenzie advising global software and digital companies on cross-border tax issues, supply chain structuring, and OECD policy developments.
A member and mentor at Pipeline Angels, Juliana is passionate about backing underrepresented founders and demystifying angel investing for new investors. She brings her experience evaluating risk, structuring deals, and understanding the financial and legal landscape to her work supporting early-stage companies. Juliana is also an investor with Strawberry Creek VC and How Women Invest, and serves as a Board Observer at Baritone Health, a healthcare technology company. Outside of angel investing, she owns and operates a real estate business with rental properties across the country.
Juliana has been featured in the 2025 Power 100 List of Women Executives and recognized as a Latina to Watch by ALPFA in 2024. She is a frequent speaker on international tax matters and has presented at TP Minds, ALPFA's Leading with Momentum Women in Motion conference, and numerous industry events.
She holds a J.D. from UC Berkeley School of Law, where she earned certificates in Business Law and International Law, and a B.B.A. in Financial Accounting, magna cum laude, from Western Connecticut State University. A native Portuguese speaker fluent in Spanish, Juliana brings a global perspective to both her legal practice and her investment philosophy.
She lives in Santa Cruz, California.
A member and mentor at Pipeline Angels, Juliana is passionate about backing underrepresented founders and demystifying angel investing for new investors. She brings her experience evaluating risk, structuring deals, and understanding the financial and legal landscape to her work supporting early-stage companies. Juliana is also an investor with Strawberry Creek VC and How Women Invest, and serves as a Board Observer at Baritone Health, a healthcare technology company. Outside of angel investing, she owns and operates a real estate business with rental properties across the country.
Juliana has been featured in the 2025 Power 100 List of Women Executives and recognized as a Latina to Watch by ALPFA in 2024. She is a frequent speaker on international tax matters and has presented at TP Minds, ALPFA's Leading with Momentum Women in Motion conference, and numerous industry events.
She holds a J.D. from UC Berkeley School of Law, where she earned certificates in Business Law and International Law, and a B.B.A. in Financial Accounting, magna cum laude, from Western Connecticut State University. A native Portuguese speaker fluent in Spanish, Juliana brings a global perspective to both her legal practice and her investment philosophy.
She lives in Santa Cruz, California.
Lyndsae' Peele
Lyndsae’ Peele, MBA, PMEC™, Realtor® is the Senior Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Manager at Kiva U.S., where she leads a national network of over 100 entrepreneurial-serving organizations (Kiva Trustees), 35+ community-based lending partners (Hubs), and 45+ Capital Access Managers across the U.S. and Puerto Rico. In this role, she champions equitable access to 0% interest, community-backed loans for underserved entrepreneurs.
Lyndsae’s connection to Kiva runs deep and personal. She first encountered the platform as a referral partner during her banking career, later becoming a technical assistance provider to her local Hub through her award-winning consulting firm, Kingdom Vision Consulting. She then turned to Kiva as a borrower to grow her business—experiencing firsthand the power of character-based lending. That lived experience now fuels her leadership as a national advocate for inclusive capital.
Outside of Kiva, Lyndsae is the founder and Chief Wealth Officer of Kingdom Vision Consulting, named the SBA's 2022 Maryland Financial Services Champion of the Year, and the founder of Keys to the Kingdom Real Estate Advisors, LLC. A proud Howard University alum, she also holds an MBA from the University of Maryland Global Campus and a Women’s Entrepreneurship certificate from Cornell University.
She currently serves as Board Chair of the Greater Baltimore Black Chamber of Commerce & Foundation and is a certified SCORE mentor, continuing her mission to build generational wealth through business ownership, homeownership, and culturally rooted financial education.
Lyndsae’s connection to Kiva runs deep and personal. She first encountered the platform as a referral partner during her banking career, later becoming a technical assistance provider to her local Hub through her award-winning consulting firm, Kingdom Vision Consulting. She then turned to Kiva as a borrower to grow her business—experiencing firsthand the power of character-based lending. That lived experience now fuels her leadership as a national advocate for inclusive capital.
Outside of Kiva, Lyndsae is the founder and Chief Wealth Officer of Kingdom Vision Consulting, named the SBA's 2022 Maryland Financial Services Champion of the Year, and the founder of Keys to the Kingdom Real Estate Advisors, LLC. A proud Howard University alum, she also holds an MBA from the University of Maryland Global Campus and a Women’s Entrepreneurship certificate from Cornell University.
She currently serves as Board Chair of the Greater Baltimore Black Chamber of Commerce & Foundation and is a certified SCORE mentor, continuing her mission to build generational wealth through business ownership, homeownership, and culturally rooted financial education.
Meagan Pitcher
Meagan Pitcher is the co-founder and CEO of Bairitone Health, which brings advanced imaging diagnostics into the home environment. Meagan worked on several neurology and ophthalmology projects at Lexicon Pharmaceuticals and managed a diverse intellectual property portfolio as a Baylor College of Medicine technology transfer officer. She holds a Ph.D. in translational biology and molecular medicine from Baylor College of Medicine and a B.S. in genetics from Texas A&M University.
Anne Spencer
Annie is a Vice President and Program Officer for JPMorganChase Global Philanthropy. In that role she leads strategic initiatives and philanthropy that support small business growth & entrepreneurship in communities across the US. Annie has a diverse background in wealth management and public service, and a commitment to expanding entrepreneurial opportunity and economic growth for all.
Domingo Valadez
Domingo Valadez is the founder of Homebase and host of the Groundbreakers podcast, where he interviews real estate operators and entrepreneurs about how they raise capital, scale platforms, and structure deals. Previously, he was a Product Strategy Lead at Google.
Domingo has personally syndicated two real estate deals and built an investor base of over 5,000 accredited and non-accredited investors. After experiencing firsthand the friction syndicators face across fundraising, investor relations, and deal administration, he began building Homebase to simplify the entire process.
Launched in 2024, Homebase is a modern operating system for real estate sponsors, helping GPs streamline fundraising, investor communications, and back-office workflows. Today, Homebase supports over 150 GPs managing more than $300M in assets.
Domingo has personally syndicated two real estate deals and built an investor base of over 5,000 accredited and non-accredited investors. After experiencing firsthand the friction syndicators face across fundraising, investor relations, and deal administration, he began building Homebase to simplify the entire process.
Launched in 2024, Homebase is a modern operating system for real estate sponsors, helping GPs streamline fundraising, investor communications, and back-office workflows. Today, Homebase supports over 150 GPs managing more than $300M in assets.
Q. Nicole Vanderhorst
Q. Nicole Vanderhorst is the CEO of WH Farms Co. - a USDA licensed, vertically integrated botanical manufacturing company based in Charlotte. As a B2B company, WH Farms Co. help wellness entrepreneurs like home health nurses, chiropractors and massage therapists along with other brands and businesses launch their CBD product line.
Q. Nicole studied at the University of Maryland, the University of Nice and Duke University.
Professionally, she was recognized as a recipient of Top40 Under 40, Winner of NC Idea SEED Award, Black Ambition Prize Finalist and a member of Launch CLT & Winston Starts.
Q. Nicole studied at the University of Maryland, the University of Nice and Duke University.
Professionally, she was recognized as a recipient of Top40 Under 40, Winner of NC Idea SEED Award, Black Ambition Prize Finalist and a member of Launch CLT & Winston Starts.
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