Before we dive into the stories of this season's Black Women Give Back honorees, we begin with one of the leaders who helped shape this season from the very beginning.

In this opening episode, host Khayriyyah MuhammadSmith sits down with fellow Black Women Give Back honoree (2022), philanthropy strategist, and collaborator Ada Williams Prince, whose partnership was instrumental in curating the voices and conversations you'll hear throughout this series. Together, they explore the questions that have shaped this season: What does it mean to negotiate and shift power within philanthropy? Why does funding equity require nuance rather than one-size-fits-all solutions? And how do we make space to care for ourselves while doing work that asks so much of us?

This conversation is an invitation to think more deeply about philanthropy—not simply as the movement of money, but as the movement of power, relationships, and possibility. It's a reflection on leadership, purpose, and the responsibility we carry as stewards of resources and change.

Whether you work in philanthropy, are curious about the sector, or simply believe in building a more equitable future, this episode sets the stage for the conversations to come.

In this episode, we discuss:

• What it means to negotiate and shift power in philanthropy

• Why funding equity requires context, trust, and nuance

• Finding moments of care and sustainability in mission-driven work

• The vision behind the BYOC x Black Women Give Back podcast season

Welcome to the conversation.

Welcome to the Bring Your Own Chair x Black Women Give Back season.

This special collaboration between the podcast and Voice. Vision. Value. brings together candid conversations with honorees of the Black Women Give Back Award who are shaping the future of philanthropy—as grantmakers, advisors, foundation leaders, and changemakers.

In each episode, we move beyond titles and resumes to explore the experiences, questions, and perspectives that define this work. Together, we'll examine leadership, power, generosity, career journeys, and what it means to build a more equitable philanthropic sector.

In this introductory episode, host and 2025 honoree Khayriyyah MuhammadSmith shares the inspiration behind the partnership with Black Women Give Back and offers a preview of the conversations to come.

Whether you're part of philanthropy or simply curious about the people and ideas driving social change, we're glad you're here.

Pull up a chair.

Aimee is a wāhine Māori (female Māori person), with whakapapa to Ngāti Porou, Ngāpuhi and Ngāti Kahungunu currently residing in Te Whanganui a tara (Wellington) Aotearoa (New Zealand).

Her background is in Social Work, and she has spent many years working in prisons, courts, and in the community with young people and adults subject to the criminal justice system in Australia, Aotearoa (New Zealand), and the UK. Aimee has also spent time working for Government organizations in the Policy space and in more recent years in the tertiary education sector doing crisis management.

Currently, she works in private practice completing s27 Cultural and Background Reports for District and Youth Courts, as well as contracting doing Restorative Practice work, Supervision for Youth Workers and Social Workers, as well as conducting trainings for organizations on how to respond to disclosures of sexual harm, etc.

Aimee is also completing her Masters in Māori Law and Philosophy at Te Wananga O Raukawa, and passionate about reclaiming culture, reality tv, reading sci-fi and fiction, and all things skincare :)

Social Media:

LinkedIn- Aimee Maaka

Website - www.manareports.co.nz

Instagram - @aimee_tepuea

Azanique is a professional multi-hat wearer who thrives in building community, both online and offline. Sitting in between corporate philanthropy and social impact, she has recently finished her master's degree in digital communication analytics and sits on the Young Feminist Leaders Council at Feminist Press. As a creative and connector, Azanique runs a monthly book club dedicated to amplifying Black authors and is a Southern lifestyle content creator at lotsofsass.com. At the end of the day, you can find Azanique planning her next dinner party tablescape, cuddling with her dog Max or snuggling on the couch with a good thriller.

Social Media:

www.lotsofsass.com 

instagram.com/lotsofsassblog

Substack: Where Art Meets Home

Favorite Black-owned business: @estellecoloredglass

Favorite sparkling water: limoncello la Croix

Tune into our first solo episode with host Khayriyyah MuhammadSmith as she shares some background on Women's History Month here in the US. As a passionate girl's and women's rights advocate, the month of March brings up a lot of conversation around the contributions of women to society and their ability to move through the world in the current day. Khayriyyah also chats through some of her personal background and connection to gender equity and what it looks like to apply an intersectional lens to how we view the world.

Resources Referenced:

National Women's History Museum

National Women's History Alliance

Michelle Yeoh: The Crisis That Changed My Life 8 Years Ago Keeps Happening

Jasmine was born and raised by Egyptian parents in sunny Australia. She moved to London at 24, where she continued her career in Radiation Therapy. It was in London that she met her husband and had her first child. Jasmine’s family then relocated to NYC, where she landed an exciting role training radiotherapists and physicists on a treatment monitoring system. While her work can get quite emotional working with patients going through the most difficult times in their lives, Jasmine finds it truly rewarding to laugh, cry, and feel with her patients. Since being in NYC, Jasmine has recently welcomed her second child and balances her work with pumping and traveling. She is also an avid beach-goer, loves experimental cooking, has a twin sister, and is a retired flutist.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasmine-sky-mceachnie-94430a32/

Welcome back for season 4 of Bring Your Own Chair! Listen in for some quick updates on what to expect for season 4.

Dhayana is a Dominican writer, poet, and spoken word artist. She started to write around the age of nine when she lived in the Dominican Republic, then continued after moving to the United States in 2009. She explores different topics such as growth, love, loss, sexuality, healing, and spirituality. Her work has been published on the Soul Candy Anthology by Writer’s Pocket, Issue 5 of the International Magazine Potted Purple, The Dominican Writers Collective Newsletter, Robert Writes Production, and the Kindness Book by UNESCO MGIEP and Penguin India Publishing.

Dhayana hopes to continue to share her words with the world and create a space where people feel safe with their emotions. Her first poetry collection Agridulce was published in Fall 2021 and it is a combination of emotions, thoughts, and experiences.

Social Media:

Instagram: @dhayanalejandrina

https://dhayana-alejandrina.square.site/

Jay Davis is a writer, designer, and illustrator based in Brooklyn, NY. She has done work for NPR, Malala Fund, Nasdaq, and Glastonbury Music Festival. Her debut children's book, GIRL DAD is scheduled to be released March 29, 2022, with the subsequent BOY DAD releasing that summer.

Social Media:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wooloverwater/

Ginger (a mental health app)

KRSN studio (jewelry company)

Jay’s upcoming line, Wool Over Water, dropping summer 2022!

Ashika Kalra is currently Chief of Staff at First Round Capital, an early-stage venture fund in New York where she has the opportunity to meet the game-changing entrepreneurs of our generation and collaborate with them as they launch their vision from the ground up. Prior to First Round, Ashika worked at the Zuckerberg Institute, where she supported the founding team’s mission of democratizing access to entrepreneurial education for innovators around the world.

Ashika also has a deep interest in public policy and education. She launched a non-profit, The Vidya Project, focused on integrating action-oriented learning and high-impact mentorship in classrooms across India and West Africa. She is a Tedx Speaker and has been recognized as a Global Shaper at the World Economic Forum. She recently released her first book, Behind Her Vision: Women of New York City, co-authored with her dear friend, Jade Chen.

Social Media:

Order Behind Her Vision Here! 

www.behindhervision.com

Instagram: Behind Her Vision

www.thevidyaproject.org

Instagram: The Vidya Project