Dr. Paulette Brown-Hinds is founder of Voice Media Ventures, publisher of Black Voice News, former Democracy Policy Fellow at UC Berkeley, two-time JSK Journalism Fellow at Stanford University, and founder of the IE Journalism Innovation Hub + Fund and California Journalism Philanthropy Summit.

As second generation publisher of Black Voice News, Paulette is transforming the half century old weekly print outlet into a solutions-oriented data journalism and justice-focused community news organization. She is leading the transformation to data reporting through the initiative Mapping Black California, a community mapping framework that encourages community collaboration around data and information by bringing together community media, community based organizations, and educational institutions.

As past president of the California News Publishers Association and current board member of the California Press Foundation, she works to strengthen the state’s  information ecosystem as an essential part of its civic and community infrastructure. In 2023 she produced the first community philanthropy summit in California dedicated to local journalism and published a guidebook for California-based community foundations, community media, and philanthropy to financially support local journalism.

Since 2000 she has led Footsteps to Freedom, summer cultural tours retracing the steps of freedom seekers on the Underground Railroad, the first successful interracial freedom movement in the US. She recently launched the Frederick Douglass Travel Club in partnership with the descendants of the great abolitionist.

Paulette has been awarded Google News Initiative Innovation Challenge funding, was a Knight Digital Media Fellow, Salzburg Seminar in American Studies Fellow, a 2022 JSK Community Impact Fellow, and a 2023 JSK Sr. Fellow at Stanford University. She is also a member of the Rebuild Local News and the James Irvine Foundation boards of directors.

In 2022 she was awarded the Cal Press Justus F. Craemer Newspaper Executive of the Year, the University of California, Riverside Alumni Service Award, and an Honorary Doctorate from California State University, San Bernardino. In 2023 she was selected the Athena of Riverside awardee for her civic and business accomplishments. In 2025 Governor Gavin Newsom appointed her to the California Transportation Commission. 

Cameo A. Carter, MD, ABP Diplomate, ABOM Diplomate, is a board-certified pediatrician and obesity medicine specialist, entrepreneur, advocate, and host of the DoctorLady Podcast. She is the founder and CEO of Garden Pediatrics, established in Redlands in 2008, and Garden Wellness, an adult obesity medicine practice. She recently accepted the role of Founding Medical Director for BloomPath Health, a virtual, family-centered pediatric obesity treatment program currently in development. Her advocacy grew from helping children and families navigate barriers to healthcare, education, and insurance coverage. As a physician member of the Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act Coalition, she has advocated alongside patients and families on Capitol Hill, and she advances physician and patient priorities at the state level through her work with the California Medical Association.

In 2026, she attended the State of the Union as the guest of Congressman Pete Aguilar, helping draw national attention to the effects of rising healthcare costs on families in her community. She has also advocated for former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra, using her voice to highlight the challenges facing primary care in California, while supporting other congressional and local candidates committed to serving their communities. Through clinical care, physician leadership, public speaking, social media, and her DoctorLady platform, Dr. Carter encourages physicians and women to use their expertise, experiences, and voices to create meaningful change.

Jacque Casillas is the Mayor of Corona, a community advocate, and a lifelong Riverside County resident who has spent her career bringing people together to strengthen communities. First elected to the Corona City Council in 2018, Jacque has focused on responsive local government, community engagement, and improving quality of life for the city she has always called home. She also serves as Chair of the Western Riverside Council of Governments and, professionally, as Community Engagement Manager for the IEHP Foundation, where she works with partners across the Inland Empire to advance health and well-being. Jacque believes deeply in the power of women to lead, to use their voices, and to step into spaces where decisions are made. She lives in Corona with her husband, Zach, and their two young children, Eleanor and Rowan, who keep her grounded and continually remind her why building stronger communities for the next generation matters.

Lisa Bain, MPH, is the Senior Director for U.S. Programs at Global Communities. She has more than 20 years of experience advancing health equity through community-based and federally funded programs. Lisa's expertise spans maternal and child health, program evaluation, and systems change, with a focus on improving perinatal outcomes and work with immigrant communities.  She has led Healthy Start initiatives, efforts to strengthen the perinatal health workforce, and engaged in local and federal policy discussions related to maternal health, access to care, and environmental health. Recognizing that health outcomes are shaped by the communities we live in, she is passionate about advancing cross-sector partnerships, policy change, and system improvements that help families thrive. A UCLA-trained public health professional, Lean Six Sigma Green Belt, and trained Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) member, Lisa is passionate about building partnerships and advancing community-driven solutions.

Karen Spiegel serves as Chair of the Riverside County Board of Supervisors and represents the Second District, a position she has held since 2018. Before joining the Board, she dedicated more than two decades to serving the City of Corona as City Treasurer, Council Member, and four-term Mayor. Throughout her public service, Supervisor Spiegel has focused on regional collaboration, transportation and infrastructure improvements, economic development, and responsive constituent services. Her hands-on leadership and ability to build partnerships across cities, agencies, businesses, and community organizations continue to guide her work on behalf of Riverside County residents.

Helen Tran is the 35th Mayor of the City of San Bernardino, sworn into office on December 21, 2022, making history as the first Asian American elected to lead the city and the first female Vietnamese Mayor elected in the United States. The daughter of Vietnamese refugees, Helen grew up in San Bernardino and graduated from Cajon High School before becoming the first person in her family to graduate from college, earning her bachelor's degree from UC Santa Cruz. Her career in public service began in high school as a grassroots organizer, and in 2006 she joined the City of San Bernardino as Executive Assistant to the Director of Human Resources, later becoming the city's youngest Director of Human Resources. A dedicated public servant, nonprofit leader, and mother of four, Helen also serves on several regional boards and committees, including SBCTA, SCAG, and Omnitrans.