She is a social activist, freelance life skills, language trainer, and diversity consultant. Saranya Francis is a multilingual poet penning poems in English, Hindi, and Tamil. Her multiple inheritances as a daughter of Indigenous, migrant, and settler ancestors shape her commitment to shared progress. Having hearing disability from birth has forged her vision beyond perceived boundaries and facilitation for deep listening. Sun is a single mother, published author, editor and director of Sun Literary, a diverse women-led agency based in Oklahoma with virtual agency worldwide. It was here that Sun shared about the Ghigau (ᎩᎦᎤ), the Cherokee beloved-war-women who modeled a way of leadership guided equally by compassion and courage. Prior, she was named AROHO’s Blackbird Fellow and attended the writer’s retreat at Ghost Ranch, where she first found sisterhood in the world of arts and letters. _ Sister Leaders | TIDES Advisory Circle Sun Cooper has been in AROHO community since 2015, and served 5 years as WAVES editor and Fire Heart Sister. Enjoy Taiba’s creative work as our social media maven. She has a flair in communication, oratory skills, a knack for problem solving, management and leadership skills. Taiba Shams has been writing for the past five years and is a published writer, social app creative, debate leader, and active participant in theater based in Bangalore, India. As our literary ancestor and AROHO Sister, Maxine Hong Kingston, says, “…we go through a story together.” Bolstered by WAVES, we will build upon what has come before – the hope and history of diverse sisterhood gathering together in safe, supportive spaces to share our unique and creative selves. Listening deeply to our global sisterhood, we are taking steps to strengthen diversity and inclusion within our shared spaces and our leadership. Within the cultural fabric of the social justice movements and the pandemic of 2020, the TIDES Advisory Circle formed as a leadership initiative to expand upon AROHO’s principle of inclusion, support, and shared progress within our own community. As women have so often created “history from the margins” (Wheeler), we seek to center our distinct artistic identities, honor our ancestral stories, and strengthen our diverse connections in a room of our own. Much like waves, the act of weaving develops effort upon effort, amplifying what has come before. Welcome, Sisters! Weaving inspires us as a uniquely feminine shared narrative that crosses cultures and boundaries, providing us with imagery that conveys our commitment. Welcome to TIDES An AROHO leadership initiative to summon our creative sisters worldwide and weave together our threads for inclusion, diversity, equity, and sisterhood.

Weaving tides indigenous org