Vision
Our vision is to realize collective liberation through our daily lives; we imagine a world where our core ways of relating are not limited by patriarchy, capitalism and colonialism. We envision a queer transfeminist ancestral future in a world where we live in alignment with our true nature and in a belonging rooted in our connection to the earth.
Mission
Our mission is to break with colonial programming that lives in our mind, body and spirit and to transform stress, suffering, and trauma as we reclaim our power as forces of change in the world. We live our mission as a practice of honoring all life and working to uncover root causes of inequality as they manifest in our most intimate relationships.
The Team
Melissa Rosario, Ph.D.
Founder / Nebula / Co-Director
Melissa (she/they) is a third-generation Nuyorican mixed race non-binary femme who has been living and working in Boriken since 2016. She considers herself a rogue anthropologist, having left the academy after finishing her doctorate to work directly for our collective liberation. Today, as a cultural worker, she curates, co-creates and facilitates radical learning spaces and encounters in community anchored in healing justice practice, decolonizing and transforming inheritances, patterns and traumas that we carry as colonized or marginalized peoples. She is committed to transforming cultures of resistance and supporting activists, healers and artists to deal with root causes of domination, separation and inequality so that they may build power from the point of loving acceptance of our differences. She works across various mediums–principally in sound, the written word and the body to: (re)connect, (re)member, (re)cover, (re)claim (re)define and (re)imagine. She is finalizing her first book manuscript Another Country: A CounterHistory of Puerto Rico in Crisis.
Lau Pat RA
Electrostactic Force / Co-Director
Lau Pat RA (they/he), is a multidisciplinary afro-indigenous brown artist from the Caribbean. They consider themself as an evolving trans masculine non-binary flower who was born in Humacao, Borike. Co-coordinator and creative director of Cepa since 2017, they function as the electrostatic force in our stellar team. He graduated from the EAPD with a BFA in Design and Digital Art with a concentration in Image and movement. With their art they seek to open space for the integration of the plurality of our being and create invitations to reconnect with intuition, with poetic language as indigenous heritage and spiritual mystery. Seeing these forces as keys or doors that bring us closer to remembering a sense of balance. They are fascinated by rediscovering Afro-Taino culture in their ancestral lineage to put them into practice as an act of subversive love in these times of global imperialism. They create and weave connections from a world of possibilities to form practices, art and designs for a more resilient and interdependent future here and now. He loves photography/cinematography, cultivating the land, the conuco and keeping the flame of love alive to be more present and supportive of others. They are a fire keeper in apprenticeship with the Yuké tribe of Coabey, Jayuya in Borike.
Maribel Caro Cruz
Celestial Satellite
Maribel (she) apprentice of life. In a continuous process of deepening her connection with the Unlimited Source of Everything and her relationships with other beings. Committed to the healing and liberation of all people. Passionate about the internal development processes of people and organizations and accompanying these processes with tenderness, openness, flexibility, a sense of justice and solidarity. Enjoy collaborative work and creating networks of love aimed at the common good and expansion. Seeker of balance and well-being.
Xiommy Rohena Rodríguez
La Gravedad
Xiommy Rohena Rodríguez (she/they) is a queer caribbean herbalist, student of plants, activist and educator from Borikén. Throughout the years life has guided Xiommy to a path of reclaiming traditions as a form of colonial resistance and liberation. She uses her platform and life project Yerba Bruja to share knowledge of Caribbean medicine and Ayurvedic applications and also to share botanical creations. Her life proyect focuses on bringing awareness about plant medicine and its versatility to encourage sovereignty and autonomy of our bodies.
MJ Carpena Melero
Llamarada Solar
MJ, alias eme jota, is a multidisciplinary, trans-media educator and creator. They graduated from New York University in 2020 with a BFA, double majoring in Theatre and Latin American Studies with a minor in Media Production. Their work focuses on decolonizing and decentralizing narratives around Puerto Rico, self-sovereignty, and collective autonomy. They believe that visibility leads to agency, and agency leads to autonomy. As a boricuir, trans non-binary, lesbian of Arawakan and white descent, they believe media and stories can not only convey a message, but decolonially transcend modalities of learning, existing, creating, and being. When not reading, filming, or writing, MJ enjoys playing beach tennis, cooking, watching Meryl Streep movies, or spending time at the beach with their best friend, an awesome boricua service dog named Eli.
Maite Reyes Faberllé
Meteoro
Maite (she/they/it) Born in '93 in SJ, coexists in their alternative fairy post-punk boricuir fluid bilingual lifestyle homeostasis mentality. She is a multimedia artist, with a BFA in Digital Design and Art with a concentration in Image and Movement. Exploring video art, sound art, animation, and textiles. Their medium is constantly fluctuating, yet revolves around the sublime and simplicities of life, the everyday, the humorous, the political, and the paradoxical. She is intrigued by technology, the relationships around these objects, human connections, the individual process, and the collective interconnectness. A philanthropist by nature, they reserve their sacred time and energy for those who value it. She believes in the power of collectivity as a force to unlearn ways of being to create new worlds that are based minimum on trust, respect, and safety.