Advisory Council

Bren Smith

I believe in all things supporting sustainability. I believe in making a living on a living planet.

C.B. Murray

After meeting Alex Askew and reading BCA’s book, “Mindful Eating for the Beloved Community” I was immediately inspired to become a part of this incredible non-profit organization. My personal mission, as a multi-hyphenated artist, has always been to use my talents, abilities, and resources to help make the world a better place. It is my sincere belief that by partnering with BCA Global we can incorporate the arts to help animate and expand both their message and mission.

David Castro

My personal mission is to help communities achieve equity and sustainable human flourishing through leadership development and education. I believe that each of us has a divine light within, a powerful inward sun that can lead us and energize us on the path toward the good for ourselves, our loved ones, and the beloved community that surrounds us. I think of BCA as a kindred spirit in this important mission.

James Francisco

As a product of underserved communities and a demographic routinely marginalized, I aim to leverage my knowledge, skills and abilities, to raise the consciousness of individuals within these communities for a better future. Through strategic paradigm shifts and coupled with a relentless networking initiative, I plan to support the BCA Global vision of a beloved community.

ram narayanaswamy

Ram (he/him) is an experienced business transformation manager with over 28 years in the financial industry. He has held a variety of roles at Cognizant, Fitch Ratings, Citibank, RBS, and Lloyds Bank, including positions in development, R&D, Quality assurance, Risk, and Program Management. He has also trained numerous colleagues in Agile frameworks and Six Sigma methodologies.

In addition to his professional work, Ram serves on the board of the Dara Ashley Foundation and is an engineering graduate in Electronics and Communication Engineering from the University of Madras. He holds advisory and treasurer roles in several nonprofit organizations and dedicates much of his free time to mentoring children with special needs. A strong advocate for inclusion and diversity, he collaborates with various financial institutions and legal firms to share best practices. He is also a volunteer at North America temple society in Flushing, NY, where he teaches religion to second and third graders on weekends.

Known for his innovative thinking and sense of humor, Ram is passionate about yoga, meditation, and Indian philosophies. He serves as an ally for the North America Rainbow Network at Lloyds Bank and has been a role model advocate for the past four years. Additionally, he enjoys participating as a speaker or panelist, sharing his project experiences with other financial firms.

Sriram Krishnan

Sriram has 24 years of experience as an industry leader in the Tech sector. He leads global, cross-fuctioning teams in streamlining consumer and marketing facing deliveries. He focuses on client oriented organizational structures and quality improvement. Sriram is certified in AIGP (Artifical Intelligence Governance) with a focus on establishing AI governance and structure.

Sriram is passionate about developing a growth mindset with his team. He teaches growing a leadership culture of continuous learning. Sriram believes this is vital to the delivery of successful digital transformation and change management. He is an advisor and mentor to aspiring start ups, with disruptive industry offerings and innovative solutions.

Sriram is a trained percussionist and enjoys playing musics. He hopes to one day teach music to passionate individuals. Sriram is also a certified ‘Tiny Habits’ coach.

Janet Lee

To serve extraordinary teams carrying out meaningful missions motivated by love, kindness and compassion. And to have fun in my journey through life as I learn, grow and evolve through the successes, changes and challenges I face.

Karla Coffee-Dunning

Hard work, Determination, and Consistency are the three keys for a person to achieve success.

KIM BOOKARD

My mission is to live a life of integrity utilizing my advocacy skills, creativity, and compassion to empower girls and women to live out their dreams.

VENKAT RAMAURTHY

Venkat Ramamurthy is a seasoned executive in the Healthcare Industry with a proven track record with premier healthcare organizations. Through his career spanning twenty years, Venkat has focused on devising strategies for new and emerging products and services in the MedTech and HealthTech space. His expertise spans product strategy, global management experience & customer acquisition across international markets through innovative solutions and by establishing long-term business partnerships. In his personal time, he loves playing tennis and traveling. Venkat is excited about the possibilities of improving healthcare outcomes through the intersection of community building, health equity and technology.

Venkat has an MBA from the Wharton School of Business and a BS in Engineering.

Nathaniel Baker

My personal mission statement is to inspire and educate the future of the industry through sharing with the community.

Ron Duprat

Chef Duprat is dedicated to culinary diversity and excellence. His commitment to BCAGlobal and its mission has been over 15 years.

Valerie Spain

As a life coach, my mission is to help people wake up to who they really are beneath their conditioning to help them respond rather than react to challenges, and to cultivate and experience joy. Working with me, clients gain the clarity to safely shed habits and mindsets by learning mindfulness and body awareness practices based in brain science.

Vineeta Jagana

As a Master’s Student in Cell Biology and an aspiring healthcare professional, I truly believe in the importance of nutrition and the role it plays in the overall health of the body and it’s prevention in some awful diseases. This organization’s mission genuinely spoke to me as I believed I would have a more pro-active opportunity to advocate for the needed diversity in not only the food industry, but all professional fields, while simultaneously being able to promote better and healthier food practices and wellness overall.