Meet the XC Team
Rev. angel Kyodo williams, Zen priest, Rōshi | founder & senior fellow
Called “the most intriguing African-American Buddhist” by Library Journal, Rev. angel Kyodo williams was made for these times. She has been bridging the worlds of transformation and justice since her critically acclaimed book, Being Black: Zen and the Art of Living With Fearlessness and Grace was hailed as “an act of love” by Pulitzer Prize winner Alice Walker, and “a classic” by Buddhist pioneer Jack Kornfield.
Her work, Radical Dharma: Talking Race, Love & Liberation, is igniting communities to have conversations necessary to become more awake and aware of what hinders liberation of self and society. Rev. angel applies wisdom teachings, embodied practice, and is a leading voice for Transformative Social Change. Known for her willingness to sit with and speak uncomfortable truths with love. Rev. angel notes, “Love and Justice are not two. Without inner change, there can be no outer change. Without collective change, no change matters”.
KG Martinez | they, them | Chief of Strategy
KG Martinez is a Colorado-based strategist, coach, artist, and community weaver working at the intersection of embodiment, collective liberation, cultural architecture, and transformative systems change. With more than 15 years of experience in organizational development, leadership strategy, facilitation, coaching, and ecosystem design, KG is known for translating visionary ideas into lived reality: bridging vision to strategy, relationship, and meaningful action through the everyday practice of becoming more fully alive together.
KG is the founder of Nepantla Navigations and currently serves as Chief of Strategy, Innovation & Impact alongside Rev. angel Kyodo williams, stewarding initiatives including the Healing Race Portal, LBR8, Transformative Change, and the pOintOne Coaching ecosystem. Their work with Rev. angel centers on building ecosystems for liberated living.
Shaped by a lifetime of navigating in-between spaces across identities, culture, and belonging, KG is a mother of two small galaxies and lifelong student of what makes us human. Their life and vocation are rooted in creation, grief, relationship, and collective care. They can often be found throwing pottery, tending gardens, dancing salsa and cumbia, sitting in ceremony, or walking alongside people through life’s thresholds.
Anastasia Higginbotham | she, her | Content + Donor Engagement
Anastasia Higginbotham’s frequently banned children’s book, Not My Idea: A Book About Whiteness (Dottir Press, 2018), invites white children to tune into their instincts about racial justice, grow wise and make history, by dismantling whiteness in themselves first, and everyplace else, next. Her other books confront divorce, death, sex, queerness, and healing from abuse. Higginbotham makes them by hand on grocery bags using collage and other discarded items, demonstrating a way to make something whole and beautiful from what’s broken or in pieces. For 30 years, she’s written speeches, letters, and other materials to cultivate nonprofit donor relationships and her writing on whiteness has been featured in The Atlantic. She teaches full impact self-defense in New York City and parents two sons.
A Team
Sheila Lactao | Lead Admin and Operations Assistant
Sheila brings a diverse range of knowledge and experience to business owners and entrepreneurs looking to grow and scale, combining practical support with a naturally curious mindset that drives her to explore and master new software, tools, and digital applications. As technology continues to evolve, she eagerly adapts, sharpens her skills, and embraces innovation, allowing her to stay ahead of emerging trends and provide thoughtful, effective solutions that help the people and businesses she works with operate more efficiently and grow with confidence.
Maria Macaranas | Lead Admin and Personal Assistant to Rev. angel
Maria is passionate about learning, growing, and taking on new challenges, and she enjoys communicating with people while building meaningful connections. She started her career as an admin assistant in a construction firm before becoming a digital virtual assistant, where she developed strong organizational and management skills, and she continues to expand her knowledge and adapt to the ever-evolving digital world through continuous learning and curiosity.
Irish Reyes | Creative Assistant
Irish began her career in the banking industry, where she worked for three years at a major bank in the Philippines before transitioning into virtual work to broaden her professional experience and strengthen her skills in creative work, marketing, and communication. She currently works with Transformative Change as a creative assistant supporting marketing and creative initiatives, contributing to content, coordination, and day-to-day creative projects while continuing to build practical experience through hands-on work, ongoing learning, and exposure to mission-driven programs and communication efforts.
Afshan Kiran | Admin and Chat Support
Afshan is a Support & Administrative Assistant who is passionate about creating organized systems, supporting people, and managing operational workflows with clarity, adaptability, and attention to detail. Through her work with Transformative Change, she contributes to customer support, event coordination, community support, and backend administrative operations while continuously growing her skills in digital operations, communication, and collaborative problem-solving within fast-paced and evolving online environments.
Rajen Shrestha (Raz) | Software Project
Raz is a technical assistant specializing in testing and documenting newly acquired apps, helping identify valuable tools and return unsuitable ones. He also supports administrative tasks to enhance day‑to‑day operational efficiency at Transformative Change.
Fedelito Recillo | Finance Assistant
Fed is a finance and operations professional with over eight years of experience at Southeast Asia’s oldest bank, where he developed expertise in financial processes, Excel, and Google Sheets. Since becoming a remote worker in 2015, he has specialized in data entry, research, and lead generation across multiple industries, consistently delivering accurate and high-quality results. He currently works as a Finance Administrative Assistant, overseeing company financial movements and managing payment workflows through platforms such as Bill.com, while also staying informed on emerging trends in blockchain technology and digital assets.
Joseph Iwara | Content Assistant
Joseph is a versatile Video Editor renowned for transforming raw footage into visually compelling narratives that captivate audiences and drive impact; seamlessly blending creativity with technical precision to deliver polished, goal-driven content across diverse formats. Deeply committed to excellence, he continuously evolves his craft, staying at the forefront of digital media trends to bring a distinctly fresh, modern perspective to every frame
Sikander Mann | Web and Software Developer
Sikander is a web developer. He spends his whole day, practically every day, experimenting with PHP, WordPress, and JavaScript. Sikander builds websites that delight and inform. He is always curious, and he enjoys work that challenges him to learn something new and stretch in a different direction. Sikander does his best to stay on top of changes in the state of the art so that he can meet challenges with tools well suited to the job at hand. In addition to their in-house work, they wrote a variety of articles on development for publications. He enjoys what he does and always enjoys sharing tidbits with others.
