Namita Moolani Mehra is the author of several picture books and children’s cookbooks. She runs Indian Spicebox, a cooking and spice business that helps fund hot meals for underprivileged children. Namita was born in a remote village in Nigeria, grew up in the UK and India, studied and worked in the United States and now lives in Singapore with her husband and children.
Cristina Oxtra
Cristina Oxtra is an educator and the author of many books for young readers, including Tara and the Towering Wave, Keep Dancing and Tae Kwon Do Test. She holds a master of fine arts in creative writing for children and young adults. Born and raised in the Philippines, she now lives with her family in Minnesota.
Charlene Rocha
Charlene Rocha is an activist and software engineering student at the University of Waterloo. She combines her passions for computer science and activism by creating coding projects for a more sustainable future. Active in campaigns for a number of causes, Charlene has spoken at a TEDx event and was featured in the docuseries CitizenKid: Earth Comes First.
Debra Kempf Shumaker
Debra Kempf Shumaker started reading at the age of four and hasn’t stopped since. She grew up on a small dairy farm in Wisconsin but now lives in the suburbs of Northern Virginia with her husband, three sons and two cats. She is the author of many nonfiction articles and several books for children. Visit her online at debrashumaker.com.
Cole Imperi
Cole Imperi is the founder of the School of American Thanatology. A certified thanatologist, she is one of the foremost experts on death, dying, grief and loss, and has spoken on the subject in two TEDx talks, on NPR, in the New York Times and in an episode of Netflix’s The Future Of series. Cole has worked as a prison chaplain, mortuary college professor, crematory operator, hospice volunteer, deathcare consultant and grief support group leader. She lives in Los Angeles.