Talks & Workshops

“You’ve managed to make a complex subject accessible to all … your contribution is important and priceless.” – Lesbians Who Tech MTL

“It’s been so difficult to find someone who speaks the language of finance and holds the values we have here. We’re thrilled to bring you in.” – Annenberg Lab, USC

“We are truly grateful for the expertise that you outlined, clearly and enthusiastically.  You gave the attendees the sense that they could change their attitudes towards spending and their ability to save. This kind of encouragement is invaluable.” – Brooklyn Public Library

I focus on working with progressive business owners, groups and organizations to create strategic approaches to business and make money systems legible, from intersectional and DEI perspectives. I’ve created whole programs for cohorts as well as coached leaders to bring new perspectives back to your team. Learn more below, or schedule 20 minutes to explore work together.

Does your team need to make money decisions, or do you work with people who are asking for financial skills?

Whether I’m with a large tech company, progressive fiscal sponsor, university, cooperative, city agency, NGO, or a startup — I deliver experienced education from a progressive viewpoint, with intersectional cultural competency, and a DEI lens that engages participants with accessible and practical facilitated learning experiences.

Explore my professional services here, or contact me to learn more about working together.

I offer:

  • WORKSHOPS & TRAININGS (details below)
  • FACILITATED PROCESSES & RETREATS
  • EXECUTIVE & ENTREPRENEUR COACHING

I craft business and personal finance workshops that people LOVE and learn from.

I’ve designed trainings for:

  • Brooklyn Public Library
  • Allied Media Projects & Conference
  • Camp GroundShift & 
  • Action Item Fair
  • NYU
  • The New School
  • USC
  • Lesbians Who Tech Mtl
  • AVODAH
  • Theatre of the Oppressed NY
  • JFREJ
  • Resource Generation
  • … and many more private groups, collective projects and businesses.

WORKSHOPS & TRAININGS

Book a 20 minute chat to explore a workshop

Brave Budget Transparency

Innovative Input and decision-making techniques for Salary sharing, Organizational Budgeting processes, and group dynamics around shared finances. Engage your staff or Board with the numbers — without watching them fall asleep as you explain the budget. This half-day workshop can be delivered as a training for leadership or as a facilitated all-group process, and comes with a practicum follow-up.

Your Money and Your Social Impact Business

Cohort financial literacy training for progressive, intersectional groups with a focus on the personal and business finance concerns and needs of cultural workers, social impact entrepreneurs, and mission-driven businesses. Created for fiscal sponsors, foundations, schools, and organizations. Two-hour workshop with optional coaching for a limit of up to 15 participants, can be done remotely or in-person; comes with a workbook. 

Ethical Retirement?

A workshop for progressive org staff to address the intersection of political concerns with retirement account needs. This financial literacy and values-driven decision-making session is designed especially for people who are hesitant to invest due to worry about negative impacts of investing. Learn what you need to know and help your staff make impact-driven money plans for everyone’s future. Ensure you don’t leave behind your staff for whom retirement accounts address generational poverty AND stay mission-aligned. This two-hour workshop comes with a workbook, and is most successful when paired with facilitated leadership decision-making.

Saving for the Future When You’re Juggling the Present

For large companies, to increase diverse staff use of retirement benefits.The people on your staff most impacted by a lack of financial stability are those from marginalized socio-economic backgrounds – you can offer a massive value to these members of your team with a financial literacy training focused on issues blocking their use of company retirement benefits and introducing the idea of “Money and a Future”. This 90-minute workshop is intersectional, breaks down jargon, and is taught from both a DEI lens and from my experience as a financial coach, a LGBTQ woman from a working-class background, and technologist who’s worked in tech for years. It comes with a workbook.

Custom Workshops on Salary Transparency, Organizational Budgeting & Financial Literacy

Contact me directly to discuss developing a workshop you don’t see listed here; I work with groups to design trainings to suit.

Facilitated Processes & Retreats

Designed experiences for groups to learn, connect, and define outcomes together.

  • Daylong, games-based team-building retreats (team building)
  • Multi-day strategic planning sessions (strategic planning)
  • Partial day objectives-driven workshops (product and service design)
  • Ongoing process design (governance, decisions)

Contact me to discuss what you are trying to accomplish, and we’ll determine what could help you get there.

How it works

I bring design-driven processes, an experienced DEI lens and business experience to my work with companies, startups, agencies, grassroots and nonprofit organizations, creative social change projects, and cooperatives.

Specializing in:

  • Workshop design and facilitation for engaging, outcome-focused sessions
  • Guiding financial conversations that require decision-making and collaboration   
  • Leading groups in participatory problem solving and learning-based processes (and having fun!)
  • Using research and design-driven processes to customize relevant and actionable content.

Drawing from 15 years working with groups and earned wisdom from my experience as an LGBTQ woman working in tech, I cannot help but be authentic. As a strategist, technologist, and systems designer, I cannot help but cut to the heart of the problem and focus us from there.

My teaching is practical, relatable, engaging, and straightforward. No jargon, no judgement.  

I’m the real deal – a business owner and creative, activist and artist. 

My classes are successful because I give real examples, never talk down to anyone, and bring a DEI and intersectional analysis to the conversation.  Giving people tools to identify their goals, make actionable strategies, and put life-changing money management practices in place is what I do.  

Is your group asking to understand their money and financial future?

Students who have taken my classes report the following:

  • Two out of three started long-term planning
  • Two out of three created a manageable budget
  • One out of three started a new savings account,
  • One out of three felt they are getting out of debt

It’s no secret that all of us are facing a financial world that has WAY different challenges than it did even a decade ago. With it come new tools, new concerns for security, and new approaches to inspiring young people to want to stay on top of it all. I know what it’s like to get out of school and fall flat. I had student loan debt — I defaulted before I made my successful money plan.

Past students have said:

“I never thought that discussing money could be so fun, and I left the class feeling a new sense of hope and possibility.” — Y., Singer

“Taking this “money management” class is one of the best things I have ever done for myself.” — M., Server & Artist

“This class was designed for people like me! Damien shares my values of social justice, and helped me to figure out fair, ethical ways to relate to money.” — D., Consultant

Click here to email to discuss working together on a workshop.

Book a 20 minute chat to explore a workshop