THE TEAM
This is Us!
Strategy Lead
Alexandra Barrera
Alexandra Barrera is a global social impact strategist and storyteller with over 15 years of experience helping organizations turn insight into influence. Her work bridges research, narrative design, and program strategy—guiding foundations, nonprofits, and purpose-driven brands to tell stories that move people and systems toward change.
She has led storytelling and strategy projects with organizations such as the Gates Foundation and the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI) while at Univision, shaping narratives that elevate community voices and translate data into action. She has also partnered with the Aspen Institute, Opportunity@Work, and other leading social impact organizations to design campaigns, evaluations, and frameworks that connect evidence to emotion.
​
Alex believes storytelling is most powerful when it’s shared—when it reflects the voices of those driving change and the collective imagination of those who believe a better future is possible.
Project Manager
Isabela Sbarra
Isabela Sbarra is a multilingual project manager with experience spanning corporate, nonprofit, and global development sectors. She has managed projects for clients such as Virgin Voyages, IKEA, and Unilever at the global insights firm Nepa, leading Voice-of-Customer studies and data-driven brand analysis.
​
She previously advanced diversity and inclusion initiatives at the Boston Beer Company and collaborated with organizations such as Special Olympics and the Boys & Girls Club to design youth and community engagement programs. Her background also includes coordinating education initiatives across the U.S., Spain, and Nepal—most recently as a Peace Corps Education Volunteer supported by USAID. Isabela blends structure with empathy, ensuring that every project runs seamlessly while centering the human stories behind the data.
CONSULTANTS
Production Lead
Ana Paula Valdovinos
Ana Paula Valdovinos is a two-time International Emmy nominee and content executive with over 25 years of experience developing, producing, and delivering premium scripted and unscripted programming for the Hispanic and U.S.-Hispanic markets.
​
She has held senior leadership roles with NBC Telemundo International Studios and Buendía Estudios (Spain and Mexico), where she led production and development across Latin America and the United States. Her portfolio includes acclaimed titles such as Armas de Mujer (HBO Max / Peacock Original), Jugar con Fuego (Netflix / Telemundo), and El Recluso (Netflix / Telemundo, Emmy Nominee 2020).
​
Ana Paula’s career spans creative and operational leadership—from international co-productions and talent relations to independent projects such as the upcoming documentary El Código de la Gente for the Interledger Foundation.
Director & Creative Producer
Vanessa Ciangherotti
Vanessa Ciangherotti is an award-winning director, writer, and producer whose career spans more than three decades in film, television, and theatre. A descendant of the Soler dynasty, one of Mexico’s most influential artistic families, she has earned both the Ariel Award (twice) and the Diosa de Plata for her contributions to cinema.
Her work includes over 1,900 hours of television and internationally recognized theatrical productions. As the founder of Ganthä – House of Content & Literary Development, Vanessa leads a collective of writers and filmmakers dedicated to creating original, emotionally resonant stories.
Most recently, she co-directed the documentary El Código de la Gente for the Interledger Foundation, continuing her exploration of storytelling as a force for connection and social transformation.
Impact & Story Editor
Gabriela Retes
Gabriela Retes is an award-winning writer, director, and editor whose work bridges film, education, and the study of human connection. Her storytelling explores resilience, justice, and the shared search for understanding across borders and generations.
​
She co-wrote El Bulto and Bienvenido–Welcome, both honored at international festivals; for the latter, she was nominated for an Ariel Award and received a Diosa de Plata. Her credits include Camila, la justicia posible—winner of the Walter Reuter Journalism Award and nominee for the Gabriel García Márquez Journalism Prize—along with No se mata la verdad, Identidad Tomada, and El Código de la Gente (produced for the Interledger Foundation). She is currently completing Terramar, la escuela desobediente, a documentary inspired by her decade of work in education.
​
In 2008, Gabriela founded Escuela Viva Terramar, a pioneering educational model for peace that integrates the arts, environmental stewardship, and community collaboration. Designed to nurture emotional awareness, ethical consciousness, and creative freedom, Terramar has become a living experiment in inclusive, human-centered learning for children and youth of diverse backgrounds.
OUR COLLECTIVE
Where collaboration becomes craft.
​
Our work is powered by a global circle of thinkers, creators, and changemakers who share one belief: impact is built together. From strategists and evaluators to filmmakers, writers, and designers, our extended network brings the imagination, rigor, and cultural insight that make every project come alive.
​
Together, we design stories, systems, and experiences that connect people to purpose—and turn vision into lasting change.