Communitas of New York

Communitas Archive Inc.
  • 5.0 (3)
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Updated Monthly

We invite our listeners and partners to join us for a new podcast series highlighting community-driven innovation: Communitas® of New York, launched in 2025. In our first season, we witness the constellation of stories generated by alumni of the Communitas® Ventures Accelerator Program, which has been running since 2018. Listen and learn how these founders—in education, food security, housing, community building, representing the arts, and the health and well-being sectors—navigate the challenges of accessing the right resources at the right time, stay true to their respective vision, and best manage their potential! Our second season focuses on stories of collaboration generated by these alumni entrepreneurs, creating positive impact in communities in New York. We explore how collaboration develops organically amongst a community of founders, and how these synergistic moments create lasting impact for stakeholders in communities. In our third season, we hold conversations about engagement in community-driven entrepreneurship. Creating positive and hyperlocal impact means fostering deep understanding with stakeholders! Hear entrepreneurs discuss their own experiences with meeting and collaborating with their fellow community members where they are at, developing and serving with carefully designed and innovative solutions. We welcome you to tune in as host Monique T. Marshall, founder of Black to Business and proud Communitas® Ventures alumna, leads rich conversations, uncovers tales of trials and successes, and hears valuable advice from entrepreneurs shaping New York's landscape of innovation.

  1. Aug 17

    Sanjana Gurram & Pooja Patel of EquiPad

    Host Monique T. Marshall speaks with Sanjana Gurram and Pooja Patel, co-founders of EquiPad, about their effort to make safer, more sustainable menstrual products widely available in schools, workplaces, and other institutional spaces. Their work combines materials innovation with a systems-level approach to access: developing bio-based pads and tampons from agricultural waste fibers while designing dispensers and distribution models around the realities of facilities, budgets, and public policy. What would it mean to treat menstrual care as essential public infrastructure rather than a private inconvenience? The conversation explores period poverty, chemical exposure, supply-chain transparency, FDA approval, and the challenges of bringing a new biomaterial to market. Sanjana and Pooja also reflect on the role of customer discovery in shaping EquiPad's evolution—and why building better products begins with understanding the full ecosystem in which they will be used. Visit our podcast page for more information. Visit EquiPad. Sanjana Gurram I'm Sanjana Gurram, co-founder and CTO of EquiPad. I'm a materials engineer and researcher currently getting my Masters in Biomedical Engineering at Columbia University, where I'm exploring opportunities to advance our materials R&D through Gotham Foundry. I've always been driven by the convergence of human and environmental health. Studying environmental science and human biology at the same time in high school made it clear to me that the health of our bodies is deeply contingent on the health of the planet, and that medical practice carries a significant environmental footprint. That realization has shaped everything I've pursued since. At UC Berkeley, I worked in the Xu Group on embedding enzymes into soft plastics to yield recyclable oligomers, using biology and protein modeling to optimize degradation. I love working with sustainable materials to solve problems at the intersection of human and environmental health. While at Berkeley, I enrolled in Deplastify the Planet, where I met my co-founder Pooja Patel. We worked with a bandage company to prototype a 100% biobased bandage, and that work turned our attention to menstrual care. When I dug into what's actually in pads and tampons, I found that the products I grew up using were by mass about 90% plastic. The lack of transparency around products that stay on or in your body for a week out of every month is by design, and it disproportionately affects people who don't have the luxury to question it. That's what led Pooja and me to build EquiPad. As CTO, I lead our materials R&D, developing a low-resource, adaptable process to convert agricultural waste fibers into pad and tampon components, and a cellulose-based superabsorbent polymer as a safer alternative to the polyacrylamide-based SAPs currently used in menstrual products. Pooja Patel Pooja Patel is the co-founder and CEO of EquiPad. She is a sustainable product developer who holds a Masters in Development Practice at UC Berkeley, where she met Sanjana. She leads product development of dispensers for EquiPad, working at the intersection of sustainability, public health, and human-centered design. Together with Sanjana, they are working towards building solutions that make menstrual care more accessible, equitable, and environmentally responsible in public spaces. With a background in Mechanical and Industrial Engineering with a focus on human factors and over 15 years of community service project experience, Pooja brings a systems and community-driven approach to solving complex challenges. Her experience spans climate tech, social impact, sustainable product development (from prototyping to production), equitable design, and designing for user adoption and scaling in low-resource settings, fueling her mission to create products and infrastructure that improve everyday health outcomes while advancing environmental sustainability.

    Sanjana Gurram & Pooja Patel of EquiPad

  2. Aug 10

    D'Angelo Senat of AllPeeP

    What happens when a community spends years building relationships, knowledge, and value on a platform it does not control? Host Monique T. Marshall speaks with D'Angelo Senat, founder and CEO of AllPeeP, about rethinking online community infrastructure around ownership, privacy, and long-term trust. AllPeeP gives organizations greater control over their member relationships, data, and digital environments, while its open-source initiative, OpenPeeps, aims to make that infrastructure more flexible and accessible to community builders. The conversation moves from open-source technology and AI-assisted matchmaking to customer discovery, enterprise sales, and the challenge of building software around the real needs of institutions and their members. D'Angelo Senat also reflects on the relationships and ecosystems that shaped his own entrepreneurial path—and why, in both technology and business, meaningful growth often moves at the speed of trust. Visit our podcast page for more information. Visit AllPeeP. D'Angelo Senat is the Founder and CEO of AllPeeP and Co-Founder of OpenPeeps, platforms focused on helping organizations and builders own and control their digital communities and infrastructure. Rooted in the belief that community is the foundation of progress, D'Angelo built AllPeeP to give leaders, founders, and nonprofits trusted spaces for connection, collaboration, and growth free from the limits of traditional social platforms that control your data and IP. Through OpenPeeps, he is expanding that vision into open-source, self-hosted infrastructure that empowers developers and communities to build on their own terms. Since launching in 2022, D'Angelo has grown AllPeeP into a rising force in the community-tech space, earning recognition as a Black Ambition Prize Winner and Ambassador while supporting a network of over 1,000 founders within the Black Ambition ecosystem alone. Today, AllPeeP is on track to onboard more than 100,000 members across customer communities worldwide, helping organizations build ecosystems they truly own. An engineer by training and builder by nature, D'Angelo combines his background in Industrial and Systems Engineering with a passion for inclusive innovation and long-term systems thinking. Backed by Harvard Innovation Labs, NBC South Florida, and Miami Tech Works, his journey reflects the power of resilience, ownership, and purpose-driven leadership, proving that when you build with community at the center, scale naturally follows.

    D'Angelo Senat of AllPeeP

  3. Aug 3

    Melissa Cesarano of ThinkHumanTV

    Screen time is often viewed as something to limit—but what if it could also become an opportunity to build emotional awareness, resilience, and connection? In this episode, Host Monique T. Marshall speaks with Dr. Melissa Cesarano, co-founder of ThinkHumanTV, about a venture that combines cognitive science, storytelling, and interactive technology to help children and families develop emotional literacy through the media they already enjoy. Together, they discuss the research behind ThinkHumanTV's innovative learning platform, the role of schools, educators, families, and content creators in shaping its development, and the challenges of bringing an evidence-based educational technology to market. Along the way, we hear about Dr. Cesarano's journey from poet and cognitive scientist to entrepreneur, offering thoughtful insights on leadership, resilience, and creating technology that strengthens our shared humanity. Visit our podcast page for more information. Visit ThinkHumanTV. Dr. Melissa Cesarano is a cognitive scientist, professor, and cofounder of ThinkHumanTV (Affectifi Inc). She received her BA in Cognitive Science with a minor in poetry from the University of Pennsylvania. Mel also received her Masters of Education and Ph.D. in cognitive science from Columbia University, where she co-created and teaches a course on the cognitive foundations of emotional literacy. Mel has over a decade of experience in curriculum design and education consulting. She's also a college admissions coach, yogi, and a trained comedic actor and writer.

    Melissa Cesarano of ThinkHumanTV

  4. Jul 27

    Devin Abraham of Liiv

    In this episode, we explore how outdated administrative systems shape the everyday experiences of communities—and how technology can help remove barriers that often go unseen. Host Monique T. Marshall speaks with Devin Abraham, founder of Liiv, a venture transforming paper-based government processes into intelligent digital workflows. Drawing on experience in public housing, finance, technology, and entrepreneurship, we hear how reducing bureaucratic bottlenecks can accelerate access to affordable housing and other essential public services. The conversation examines artificial intelligence as a practical tool for augmenting human work, improving public-sector efficiency, and creating systems that allow people to focus on the tasks that require judgment, care, and human connection. From scaling a startup and navigating major pivots to building trust with public agencies and defining community through accountability and shared purpose, this episode offers an insightful look at innovation that begins with real-world problems and aims to create lasting social impact. Visit our podcast page for more information. Visit Liiv. Devin Abraham builds at the intersection of technology, law, and government. As founder and Chairman of Liiv, an AI workflow platform for public sector clients backed by the Robin Hood Foundation, Cornell, and Brown, he's reshaping how civic institutions operate. He holds a Cornell MBA and a ScM from Brown's School of Engineering, with a career grounded in M&A.

    Devin Abraham of Liiv

  5. Jul 20

    Shannen-Kaylia Henry of CocoaFiber

    In this episode, we explore the work behind CocoaFiber, a biomaterials venture transforming discarded cocoa pod husks into bio-based textile fibers. Host Monique T. Marshall speaks with founder Shannen-Kaylia Henry about drawing upon her family's cocoa-farming heritage, her background in biology and textile innovation, and her experiences across international fashion and manufacturing systems to develop an alternative to fossil- and wood-based fibers. Hear how CocoaFiber applies the principle of industrial symbiosis—using the waste of one industry as a resource for another—while working with farming cooperatives, scientists, manufacturers, and brands to build a more circular and equitable supply chain. From developing new enzymes and refining prototypes in the laboratory to navigating performance testing, commercial partnerships, and the realities of scaling a materials venture, this conversation reveals how scientific innovation advances through experimentation, collaboration, and careful attention to the entire ecosystem surrounding a product. This episode considers what becomes possible when we rethink waste as a source of value and design manufacturing systems that support farmers, industry, culture, and the planet. Visit our podcast page for more information. Visit CocoaFiber. Shannen-Kaylia Henry is the Founder and CEO of CocoaFiber, an advanced materials company transforming cocoa waste into biomaterials for textile and industrial applications. Her work focuses on building circular, climate-resilient supply chains that convert underutilized biomass into high-performance materials, reducing reliance on fossil-based and forest-derived inputs. With a background in environmental science, textile engineering, and international business, Shannen's work sits at the intersection of material innovation, supply chain design, and climate impact. She has developed CocoaFiber as a waste-to-material platform that connects agricultural systems to global manufacturing, creating new revenue streams for cocoa-growing communities while enabling lower-carbon material production. In addition to CocoaFiber, she is the founder of the Kaylia Group and the Sustainable Design Impact Hub, initiatives that advance circular design within the creative economy. Through these platforms, she has built global networks of designers, researchers, and industry leaders working toward more regenerative systems.  Shannen has spoken at international forums including COP28, New York Climate Week, and leading universities such as Yale and Parsons, sharing insights on sustainable materials, circular economy, and the future of manufacturing. Her work has been recognized by organizations including the Causartist 50, Fashion Impact Fund, and the Ocean Foundation. She is a Mercedes-Benz beVisioneers Fellow, Newlab NYC/EDC Founder Fellow and member of the UN Fashion and Lifestyle Network. After 10 years abroad, Shannen is currently based in her hometown of Brooklyn, New York as she focuses on advancing CocoaFiber from lab-scale to industrial deployment by working with partners across fashion, automotive, and advanced materials sectors to bring next generation materials to market.

    Shannen-Kaylia Henry of CocoaFiber

  6. Jul 13

    Fares Al-lahabi of CarbonCLAIR

    In this episode, we explore the work behind CarbonCLAIR, a venture developing innovative air filtration technology to improve air quality in construction sites, infrastructure projects, and other challenging environments. Host Monique T. Marshall speaks with founder Fares Al-lahabi about transforming an engineering idea into a venture through customer discovery, community engagement, and real-world deployment. From conversations with commuters and climate justice advocates to pilots with Mount Sinai, the New York City Department of Environmental Protection, and construction partners, CarbonCLAIR demonstrates how innovation grows through listening as much as inventing. What begins as a technical solution becomes a venture shaped by the experiences of workers, residents, researchers, and industry partners alike. This thoughtful conversation explores how entrepreneurship can bridge science, public health, and business to create technologies that improve lives while building a more sustainable future. Visit our podcast page for more information. Visit CarbonCLAIR. Fares Al-lahabi is the CEO and Co-Founder of CarbonCLAIR, a climate technology company developing mobile air quality mitigation systems for construction, municipal infrastructure, and urban environments. A civil engineering student at Manhattan University, Fares has led CarbonCLAIR from an undergraduate-built prototype into active deployment pathways with partners including Mount Sinai, Skanska at Governors Island, and the New York City Department of Environmental Protection. His work focuses on improving air quality for workers and communities through deployable filtration, particulate capture, and chemical scrubbing technologies. Fares has secured more than $200,000 in funding and support for CarbonCLAIR, participated in the National Science Foundation Innovation Corps program, and was selected as a New York Climate Exchange Climate Tech Fellow. He is also deeply committed to workforce development, having hired and mentored over 30 student engineers and interns through CarbonCLAIR. Fares previously served as President of the American Society of Civil Engineers Student Chapter at Manhattan University and has presented his work at regional, national, and international platforms. His long-term goal is to build technologies that positively impact people at scale and help create cleaner, healthier cities.

    Fares Al-lahabi of CarbonCLAIR

  7. Apr 14

    Arnyce Foster-Hernandez of Featuring the Café and Featuring the Center for Culinary Arts

    In this episode, we hear about how the Harlem-based Featuring the Café creates a welcoming and hospitable environment for all; and also serves as a platform for Featuring the Center for Culinary Arts, a social-impact nonprofit that emphasizes workforce training to create pathways toward economic stability and second chances. Host Monique T. Marshall speaks with founder Arnyce Foster-Hernandez about what it means to build a venture shaped by lived experience—drawing from her upbringing between Harlem and a family farm in North Carolina, as well as her journey through public service, hardship, and recovery. Hear how the café functions not only as a food business, but as a space for connection, collaboration, and opportunity—bringing together local entrepreneurs, artists, youth, and neighbors in ways that restore a sense of belonging and shared purpose—and asks, what becomes possible when a neighborhood café is designed as a place of care, access, and collective growth? This thoughtful conversation highlights the realities of building a venture from the ground up, the importance of deep community engagement, and the powerful role entrepreneurs can play in creating spaces that nourish both people and possibility.  Visit our podcast page for more information. Visit Featuring the Café and Featuring the Center for the Culinary Arts. Arnyce Foster-Hernandez is a visionary business principal, cafe owner, and aspiring TV/film scriptwriter with a diverse and accomplished background. With 33 years of experience in NYC/NYS government, community, and non-profit sectors, she has successfully managed large teams, overseen multimillion-dollar budgets, and led initiatives that have driven growth and revitalized partnerships. As the owner of a gourmet cafe, Arnyce combines culinary creativity with business savvy, creating a successful venture. Arnyce is married to her wonderful husband, Danny, and they have a miracle eight-year-old son, Danny Jonathan (DJ).

    Arnyce Foster-Hernandez of Featuring the Café and Featuring the Center for Culinary Arts

  8. Apr 7

    Daniel Maloney of Sol Cacao Craft Chocolate

    In this episode, we explore the work behind Sol Cacao, the Bronx's first bean-to-bar chocolate factory and a family-founded venture. Through their work, the three Maloney brothers bring single-origin chocolate to people while reconnecting them to the origins of their food. Host Monique T. Marshall speaks with co-founder Daniel Maloney about what it means to build a venture rooted in family, agriculture, and a commitment to working more closely with farmers across the globe. Hear how Sol Cacao partners directly with growers—supporting fair wages, preserving generational knowledge, and honoring the role of soil, biodiversity, and cultivation in shaping both flavor and livelihood. From the health benefits of dark chocolate to the philosophy of "let food be your medicine," the venture challenges disconnection from what we eat while creating pathways for education, craft, and local opportunity. This thoughtful conversation highlights the power of food as a bridge between land, culture, and community, and the role entrepreneurs can play in inspiring the next generation of chocolate makers, eaters, and artisans. Visit our podcast page for more information. Visit Sol Cacao: Bronx Craft Chocolate. Daniel Maloney is one of three brothers behind Sol Cacao, a chocolate manufacturing company based in the Bronx. With a passion for chocolate, sustainable agriculture, and technology, he combines these interests to craft high-quality chocolate while driving innovation in the industry. Through Sol Cacao, Daniel is committed to building ethical supply chains, empowering farming communities, and creating sustainable manufacturing jobs in the Bronx.

    Daniel Maloney of Sol Cacao Craft Chocolate
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
3 Ratings

About

We invite our listeners and partners to join us for a new podcast series highlighting community-driven innovation: Communitas® of New York, launched in 2025. In our first season, we witness the constellation of stories generated by alumni of the Communitas® Ventures Accelerator Program, which has been running since 2018. Listen and learn how these founders—in education, food security, housing, community building, representing the arts, and the health and well-being sectors—navigate the challenges of accessing the right resources at the right time, stay true to their respective vision, and best manage their potential! Our second season focuses on stories of collaboration generated by these alumni entrepreneurs, creating positive impact in communities in New York. We explore how collaboration develops organically amongst a community of founders, and how these synergistic moments create lasting impact for stakeholders in communities. In our third season, we hold conversations about engagement in community-driven entrepreneurship. Creating positive and hyperlocal impact means fostering deep understanding with stakeholders! Hear entrepreneurs discuss their own experiences with meeting and collaborating with their fellow community members where they are at, developing and serving with carefully designed and innovative solutions. We welcome you to tune in as host Monique T. Marshall, founder of Black to Business and proud Communitas® Ventures alumna, leads rich conversations, uncovers tales of trials and successes, and hears valuable advice from entrepreneurs shaping New York's landscape of innovation.

Information

  • Creator
    Communitas Archive Inc.
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    27
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2025 Communitas Archive Inc.
  • Show Website
    Communitas of New York