Joana Dos Santos

Co-Founder and Co-Chief Executive Officer

Pronouns: she/they
Pronunciation: SHO-AH-NA

Hello! My name is Joana Dos Santos. I use she/they pronouns. I’m a cisgender woman, with light skin, straight brown hair, and blue eyes. I was born in a small country in South America called Uruguay (the land of the Charrúa people). My name is pronounced SHO-AH-NA, and after 20 years of anglicizing it and through the support of my friends and colleagues, I reclaimed it and started sharing it with others.

What is your role at cosyn?

I co-started cosyn because I wanted to do work that gave me joy. I love having deep and vulnerable conversations that lead to healing and growth. And they are even better when they advance social and racial justice! At cosyn, I facilitate coaching and strategic planning partnerships rooted in personal and organizational transformation for social change.

How did you get here?

I began my journey in non-profit finance, but I felt I needed to do something that had a more direct impact on low-income communities and communities of color, which led me to become a racial justice community organizer. Later, I served as a non-profit executive director, leading organizational, policy, and cultural change work. I partnered with and advised universities, museums, governments, law enforcement, healthcare providers, industry, and more to create policies and practices that allow all people, regardless of background or social identity, to be part of the decisions that affect them.

As chief diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) officer at an architecture and urban planning college at a major university, I led a co-created culture change process (including policies and practices) that engaged constituents of all positions in its development. I believe when you design a process that engages members of a collective at all levels to create shared values and goals, it results in lasting, positive change and action toward a new shared future. Each people collective has the potential to build a culture that exemplifies the best of its constituents.

What guides you?

My work is rooted in social and racial justice and has two approaches.

  • One is what I call “individual” work. This is the internal examination of values, beliefs, assumptions, and behaviors to understand if they perpetuate systems of advantage/oppression. It may require unlearning and creating new ways of being rooted in equity and justice.

  • The other is what I call “collective” work. It focuses on changing norms, policies, and practices that advance a group of people at the expense of others (intentionally or unintentionally.)

Combining the “individual” and “collective” work in a unified approach leads us to a more harmonious, holistic relationship with each other as individuals and organizations. I believe this is our collective way to achieve social change.