Radical Optimist Collective / We facilitate brave space for vulnerable conversations.

Empathy is the thread that weaves together the diverse narratives of human experience in the tapestry of advocacy. Recognizing each individual as a unique and invaluable gift with a rich fabric of lived experiences is essential.

Dr. Lafayette Young

I am given a decision point each day, to be in it, or not to be. That is my white-bodied experience, to choose.
I am real about that, and encourage other white-bodied people to also choose to be in it, to greet the day, with, "yes, I am in."

Corey Dobyns

Creating space for racial healing is a salve for my soul. I yearn for others to join us in this life-long practice of unlearning and re-imaging a different way,
for that’s where true liberation resides. l am honored to be in community with the amazing women of ROC.

Staci Lynch / Radical Optimist Collective

This work allows me to bring together my passion for history, healing trauma and community-building,

and offer it to communities to strengthen our connections and heal our communities.

Vanessa Jackson / Radical Optimist Collective

Healing is possible when we recognize lived experiences cannot be disassociated from racial history and identity,

and that real solutions are co-created with people and not for them.

Lisa Flick Wilson / Radical Optimist Collective

Healing the impact racism has had on Black people is essential to achieving social and financial integrity,

as well as emotional and psychological equity.

Kenya Jackson-Saulters / Radical Optimist Collective

When doing this work, I draw from my ancestral strength to help increase understanding

about the relevance of the past and to build empathy between cultures.

Shakita Brooks Jones / Radical Optimist Collective

Lasting Change

Begins with Courageous Conversations

We help organizations navigate race, power, leadership, and change through facilitated dialogue that creates the conditions for growth and action.

Co-Creation

Offers the Most Powerful Results

Every engagement is designed alongside our partners, drawing on their unique context, challenges, aspirations, and the conditions shaping their work.

With You

Every Step of the Way

Our team of facilitators, coaches, strategists, and educators works collaboratively to support meaningful and lasting change.

Our Words Heal: The Ripples We Cannot Yet See – ROC Video

At Radical Optimist Collective, we believe healing begins by holding two truths at the same time: pain and possibility. In our contribution to Our Words… Read More

Healing in Community: Atlanta gathering centers art, connection during difficult times

Staci Walker, Lisa Flick Wilson, and Vanessa Jackson (left to right), Strategy and Facilitation Consultations for The Radical Optimist Collective addressing participants during the ATL… Read More

Policies of Opportunity Dr. Shakita Brooks Jones, DSW

A traditional Polygram (P-O-L-Y-GRAM) is “a figure consisting of many lines”. The Poli-Gram (P-O-L-I-Gram) that I created is a ‘figure connecting many lives’. My Poli-Gram… Read More

Celebrating Invisible Labor: An Evening with The Shift Shop

Enjoy our curated cocktail or mocktail, live art, and a facilitated discussion where our panelists share how they have redesigned their workspaces and redefined how… Read More

‘Raw emotions’: Groups grapple with race after visiting EJI sites

ROC’s Shakita Brooks-Jones often leads very difficult discussion with groups visiting the Equal Justice Initiative’s national memorial to lynching victims in Montgomery. She says the… Read More

CAARAC exceeds donation goals with increased awareness

ROC’s Shakita Brooks Jones is the founder and director of the Central Alabama Alliance Resource and Advocacy Center (CAARAC), a nonprofit in Wetumpka, AL that… Read More

Lil Nas X’s charitable “baby registry” benefits CAARAC

ROC’s Shakita Brooks Jones serves as the executive director for Central Alabama Alliance Resource & Advocacy Center (CAARAC), which serves, empowers, and becomes an ally… Read More

Overcoming The Outdoors Diversity Gap

ROC’s Kenya Jackson-Saulters co-founded The Outdoor Journal Tour as a custom personal development experience for women that blends the health benefits of exercise, meditation, and… Read More

‘Mothers of Gynecology’ art exhibit unveiling

On Mother’s Day, artist Michelle Browder offered guests a sneak peek of the “Mothers of Gynecology” exhibit. The 15-foot art installation is a tribute to… Read More

Vanessa Jackson talks with Breeshia Wade about her book, “Grieving While Black”

Located in downtown Decatur, GA, Charis Books and More is the South’s oldest independent feminist bookstore. ROC’s Vanessa Jackson serves as a facilitator for the… Read More

Where Courage, Relationship, and Change Meet