Akua Deirdre Smith , she/her

Bio

Akua is an Earth Steward, Strategist, Resource Organizer, Transformative Facilitator, Reiki Master, Energetic Healer and Diviner. Akua began learning Reiki 25 years ago in reaction to learning about the toxic and violent way corporations and governments were treating her family, her community, and the land. Rooted in New Mexico and Louisiana, Akua’s work is inspired by the black and indigenous land stewards who taught her organizing and the necessity of healing and working at the root of things. She focuses on solidarity, organizing, political education, and transformative facilitation to create the new systems we need and uproot the systems that harm us.

Your current political home(s), org(s) & role(s), or job(s):

Black Land Strategies Director at the BlackOUT Collective, Drinking Gourd Member and Wildfire Project Facilitator

Areas of expertise

Akua works to build networks and design projects that help black, indigenous, and multi class multi racial communities build trust, practice shared governance, and build shared language, culture, resource and power. Rooted in abolition, dual power, transformative justice, black queer and an emerging afroeco-feminism, she has done lead thinking and work to design tools structures and startegies for national groups networks such as: M4BL, NBFJA, BlackOUT, Wildfire Project, Black Land & Liberation Initiative and Climate Justice Alliance.