Racial Healing and Renewal Program: BIPOC Cohort - Session Two
Additional Information
This session is part of the Racial Healing and Renewal Cohort, a four session cohort offers affinity space to explore various perspectives on race, engage in meaningful discussions, and learn from one another. Together, we aim to foster empathy, challenge biases, and build bridges towards a more inclusive society. Whether you are an advocate for racial justice, a curious learner, or simply interested in making a positive impact, our Racial Healing and Renewal Cohort welcomes individuals from all backgrounds in the nonprofit sector. Let's come together, listen, and grow as we embark on a journey towards racial healing and renewal.
Our 2025 cohort will engage in four virtual sessions. Members are expected to commit to attending all sessions and be open to consistent engagement and learning to establish a healing journey. These sessions are geared towards recovery and healing ourselves and our relationships in our lives. With the opportunity for support between sessions. Our discussions will cover a broad range of topics including:
- How we redefine safety in our lives
- How cancel culture is connected to whiteness, how it expresses in white bodies
- How call outs are weaponized
- Locating and recovering our interconnectedness
- What transformation and evolution looks like in the nonprofit space
- How our identities inform our recovery and relationships
- How grief practice supports forming relationship
- How we can interrupt white supremacy
Meet the people leading the conversation
Robert Blanquera Nelson
Robert Blanquera Nelson
Robert Blanquera Nelson is a Pilipino immigrant, working for racial justice in Albuquerque, NM. He has worked in the nonprofit sector for over 10 years. He has worked predominantly in homeless and housing services, having helped found Albuquerque’s first community housing-first initiative, Albuquerque Heading Home. He recently served as the Program Manager for Pivotal New Mexico, specializing in developing resources and investments for New Mexico. Currently, he serves as nonprofit consultant and anti-racism educator, having trained with the local Anti-Racism Training Institute of the Southwest (ARTI) and the Peoples Institute for Survival and Beyond (PISAB). He currently serves on the Housing and Neighborhood Economic Development Fund Committee with the City of Albuquerque and is the Co-Chair for Asian American Association of New Mexico, working to build a vibrant Asian Pacific Islander community throughout the state. Lastly, he is a community organizer for the Historic Neighborhoods Alliance in downtown Albuquerque. In his spare time, Robert is an avid swimmer and enjoys mobile video games, cooking, writing, reading, and playing guitar.
Meet the people leading the conversation
Robert Blanquera Nelson
Robert Blanquera Nelson
Robert Blanquera Nelson is a Pilipino immigrant, working for racial justice in Albuquerque, NM. He has worked in the nonprofit sector for over 10 years. He has worked predominantly in homeless and housing services, having helped found Albuquerque’s first community housing-first initiative, Albuquerque Heading Home. He recently served as the Program Manager for Pivotal New Mexico, specializing in developing resources and investments for New Mexico. Currently, he serves as nonprofit consultant and anti-racism educator, having trained with the local Anti-Racism Training Institute of the Southwest (ARTI) and the Peoples Institute for Survival and Beyond (PISAB). He currently serves on the Housing and Neighborhood Economic Development Fund Committee with the City of Albuquerque and is the Co-Chair for Asian American Association of New Mexico, working to build a vibrant Asian Pacific Islander community throughout the state. Lastly, he is a community organizer for the Historic Neighborhoods Alliance in downtown Albuquerque. In his spare time, Robert is an avid swimmer and enjoys mobile video games, cooking, writing, reading, and playing guitar.
Meet the people leading the conversation
HR Essentials: Employment Law Essentials for Nonprofits
With Linda Strauss
Running a small nonprofit means wearing the HR hat whether you trained for it or not, and the cost of getting employment law wrong can do real harm to a mission-driven organization. This session covers the federal and New Mexico rules every nonprofit employer needs to have on their radar: complying with the Healthy Workplaces Act and paid sick leave requirements, correctly classifying your people as employees, volunteers, contractors, or interns, knowing the difference between salaried (exempt) and hourly (non-exempt) workers, and understanding when you're legally required to accommodate an employee's medical condition or religious beliefs. You'll leave knowing what you must do, what you can do, and what to watch for.
Executive Director Well-Being, Burnout & Sustainable Leadership
With Marsie Silvestro & Sarah Silva
Burnout among nonprofit executive directors is real and too often experienced in isolation. This session offers a supportive space for peer connection and shared learning around well-being, boundaries, and sustainable leadership.
Tips for Successful Strategic Planning
With Antionette Tellez-Humble
Designed with small organizations in mind, this session focuses on realistic approaches to strategic planning that can be adapted to organizations with limited staff, time, or resources. Participants will leave with practical tools and guiding questions they can use to start strategic planning conversations within their organization.
