Michael speaks with Laurel Djoukeng a Cameroonian-American born and raised in Washington, D.C. He’s a former Wall Street investment banker, now founder of the social enterprise CNF and the tech start-up Sparc. Laurel talks about how he maintained being his authentic self as he navigated through multiethnic communities and non-diverse spaces in his work and schooling. He also shares his thoughts on how entrepreneurs can better build with Black businesses, and how the global African diaspora can build connections for long-term collaboration.

Connect with Laurel:

Instagram: @Laurel.Djoukeng | https://www.instagram.com/laurel.djoukeng/

Twitter: @LaurelDjoukeng | https://twitter.com/laureldjoukeng

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/djoukeng

Learn more about his ventures:

Sparc: https://sparc.world/team

Catalyst Network Foundation (CNF): http://catalyst-network.org/