Moving Your
Big Ideas Forward
Are you a visionary, a changemaker, or someone with bold ideas and a mission to make a lasting impact? If so, you’re in the right place.
Meet Barbara
Your mission deserves every advantage—insight, strategy, and resources to match your ambition.
I bring decades of expertise spanning direct service, policy research, and philanthropy—implementing community policing at the Seattle Police Department, leading large research studies at the RAND Corporation, and directing over $160 million in grants at one of the nation’s largest foundations. Along the way, I’ve helped shape and win major policy and narrative changes across California and beyond.
Now, my passion is you. Together we turn can bold ideas into measurable change.
Whether you’re launching a nonprofit, scaling a social impact campaign, or growing your influence as a mission-driven leader—I’ll help you:
Make real impact—end to end.
✔︎ Design effective research that produces clear, actionable findings.
✔︎ Turn research into actionable policy solutions
✔︎ Shape narratives and communications that shift public will
✔︎ Align ideas, evidence, and messaging for lasting change
From designing studies to crafting policy briefs, from building coalitions to leading large-scale narrative campaigns—I help you move seamlessly from insight to implementation. Research, policy, and communications all under one roof, so you can go from bold idea to measurable impact without losing momentum.
I’d love to help you make a bigger difference.
Strategic Research
Turn your big ideas into real-world impact. We design and lead research that informs policy, strengthens narratives, and provides the evidence your strategy needs to succeed. Whether refining your vision or launching a high-impact campaign, we build roadmaps for measurable change.
Policy Advocacy
Research needs narratives—and people—to move the world. We work with you to translate insight into messages that mobilize communities, persuade decision-makers, and drive durable policy change. Your message matters—let’s make it count.
Messaging & Funding
Even the strongest ideas don’t spread on their own. We help you shape the strategy, messaging, and outreach that inspire donors, rally stakeholders, and secure the support your mission deserves.
My Passion Is Helping People Like You
I’ve worked inside major institutions—government, the RAND Corporation, and the California Endowment—driving significant social impact.
Today, my favorite work is putting that insider expertise to work for you and your big idea. I help mission-driven leaders refine strategy, elevate impact, and turn big ideas into real-world success.
Real People. Real Progress.
“You are so wonderful! Thank you for helping me identify what was ‘off’ in my messaging and positioning, and showing me how to improve it to bring even greater clarity to my mission. Your insights were truly invaluable—thank you!”
“Barbara has an astonishing ability to distill an issue, name it, shape it, and set it on a course for positive change.”
“Collaborating with Barbara was one of the most valuable and enjoyable professional experiences I’ve had!“
“Barbara is a dynamic, inventive social impact strategist.”
“Barbara’s insights were invaluable and helped me take my entire project to the next level!”
“I trust Barbara to help us focus and turn our good ideas into real impact.”
Insights
This Is for All of Us: The Everyday Power of Group Grit
You don’t have to row for Oxford or run a Navy SEAL mission to feel the power of a group that clicks. Most of us have felt it somewhere—maybe years ago, maybe just last week—often in places so ordinary we don’t even stop to name it. Think back:Your childhood soccer...
When the Boat Lifts: How Rowing’s ‘Swing’ Reveals the Power of the Group
There’s a word in rowing circles that’s almost mystical: swing. It’s that rare moment when every rower, every muscle, every heartbeat in the boat falls into perfect rhythm. The oars move as one. The boat doesn’t just glide—it lifts. For a few precious seconds, it...
We Got ‘Survival of the Fittest’ Wrong—Why Evolution Rewards Cooperation
We’ve all heard the phrase: survival of the fittest.It conjures lone wolves, brutal competition, a fight to the death where only the strongest survive. But here’s the twist: that’s not the full story of evolution. Not even close. Lynn Margulis, a brilliant...