Kalyanee Mam is an award-winning filmmaker whose work bridges art and advocacy. Born in Battambang, Cambodia, during the Khmer Rouge regime, she immigrated to the United States with her family in 1981. Her debut feature documentary, A River Changes Course, won the World Cinema Grand Jury Prize for Documentary at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival and the Golden Gate Award for Best Feature Documentary at the San Francisco International Film Festival. She has also directed the acclaimed short films Lost World and The Fight for Areng Valley and is currently working on a new feature documentary, The Fire and the Bird’s Nest.

Malika Leiper is a Cambodian-born writer, cultural strategist, and urban planner. She holds a master's degree in urban planning from the Harvard Graduate School of Design and a bachelor's degree in History and Creative Writing from Columbia University. Leiper's work intersects design, cultural heritage, and social justice, focusing on sustainable food systems, community development, and historic preservation. She has collaborated with various urban entities and cultural institutions to bridge multiple sectors and foster inclusive urban environments. Leiper is also a co-curator of the 2025 U.S. Pavilion at the Venice Architecture Biennale, where she initiated the Objects of Belonging project, collaborating with the renowned Gee’s Bend quilters of Alabama to explore themes of craft, community, and identity.

Additionally, Leiper serves as the director of cultural affairs at Stephen Burks Man Made, an internationally recognized design studio co-founded with industrial designer Stephen Burks. In this role, she forges relationships with strategic partners, often through collaborative workshops and community-driven projects that integrate traditional craftsmanship with contemporary design practices. Their work spans furniture, lighting, interiors, exhibitions, and product design, emphasizing a pluralistic approach that is inclusive of diverse cultural perspectives and backgrounds.