This year we are joined by Pablo Estupiñan, Sasha Neha Ahuja, Roy Rub, and Frances Smith (clockwise, from top left).

Pablo Estupiñan

Pablo Cesar Estupiñan (he/him) was born in Bucaramanga, Colombia and grew up undocumented/alienated in Orange County, CA. He was radicalized through punk, casual racism and border patrol raids, and the displacement of his family’s small business by a massive rent hike. He is the Deputy Director at Community Action for Safe Apartments (CASA), in the Bronx fighting displacement and gentrification through tenant organizing. Pablo is now leading the launch of an administrative reform campaign to ensure the implementation and enforcement of the historic rent laws victory in June 2019 alongside the Upstate Downstate Alliance. He also supervises an amazing team of organizers and continues to work closely with members/leaders to guide the organization, shape campaign strategy, and sharpen their political analysis. In his spare time, he laughs at his own jokes, loves cats cautiously, indulges in chopped cheese, and gets distracted by memes that are too real.

Sasha Neha Ahuja

Sasha Neha Ahuja (she/her) is a community organizer and social worker with almost 15 years of experience in advocacy and politics in New York City. Sasha has built her career driving racial and gender justice and facilitating community-centered policy change in government and in local and national progressive organizations. She currently serves as Chief of Staff at Girls for Gender Equity, a Brooklyn-based organization that is centers women and girls of color in the movement to end gender-based violence. She also serves as Chair of the New York City Equal Employment Practices Commission and is a Commissioner at the New York City Commission on Gender Equity. Sasha is an Adjunct Professor at a number of schools of social work across New York City where she teaches social policy, and serves as a trainer and facilitator for a number of leadership pipeline programs. She was recognized as part of City & State’s Class of 2015 40 Under 40 New York City Rising Stars. Sasha holds a BA from Hunter College of the City University of New York and a MS in Social Work from Columbia University.

Roy Rub

Principal and Co-Founder of Topos Graphics, Roy Rub holds a B.F.A. from The Cooper Union (2006). Prior to Cooper, he attended the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem (2001–2004) before serving as a Commander in the Israeli Navy.

When not designing at Topos Graphics, Roy is an Adjunct Faculty of 2D Design at The Cooper Union (2012–Present). He’s also a wildlife-rehabber, a ceramicist, and the proud father of Beak & Took, two conure parrots, and Felix, a labradoodle puppy. He lives in Brooklyn with his husband, Jean. 

Frances Smith 

Frances Smith is currently a Designer at Instagram where she works with a range of brands and agencies from Coca-Cola to the Ad Council in creating innovative and inspiring work for the Facebook and Instagram platforms.

She is also founder & creative director for Careluu, a charity driven branding agency for small businesses and non-for-profits. Previously as Senior Designer for Vice, she led design for clients ranging from Michelin, Airbnb, i-D, and Hard Rock. She regularly contributed to their editorial pieces as illustrator and led design for their partnership with Google. In addition, her need to bring social justice and design is seen through her early work with the LGBTQ community, and The Dream Defenders. Her work has been featured across Adweek, Buzzfeed, Awwwards, Fast Company and Luxury Daily.

With an Afro-Hispanic background, she learned the impact and importance of representation through mentoring and is an avid mentor through programs such as Young Audiences New York, Women Who Create, and MAIP. She is Co-founder of the program Creative Strategy Bootcamp, where she teaches and mentors Creative Strategy as part of an entrepreneurial program that started as a way to fill the diversity gap in advertising. Creative Strategy Bootcamp is designed for entry-level and junior creatives seeking to pivot/build their skills in creative strategy.