Tawanna A. Black is a nationally recognized thought leader and award-winning architect of racially inclusive and equitable talent, procurement, marketing and philanthropic strategies that transform businesses, communities, and economies. For more than 20 years, Tawanna has built a reputation for transforming communities and organizations by equipping and coaching executives and policy makers to close spatial and racial economic and wealth gaps and drive shared prosperity. Ms. Black founded the Center for Economic Inclusion in 2017, to equip businesses and government agencies with the tools for inclusive and equitable economic prosperity. Today, the Center, headquartered in Saint Paul, MN offers industry leading efforts to build regional inclusive economic growth delivering inclusive regional economies by equipping public and private sector employers to dismantle institutional racism and build shared accountability for inclusive economic growth. As the strategist for nations first organization dedicated exclusively to creating an inclusive and equitable regional economies Ms. Black is a thought leader on racial equity and the business imperative for closing racial wealth gaps.Ms. Black is a Non-Resident Senior Fellow of the Brookings Institution Metropolitan Policy Program. She has a Bachelor of Public Administration Degree from Washburn University in Topeka, KS.Ms. Black serves on the boards of Minnesota Tech Association, Washburn University Alumni Foundation Board of Trustees; McKinsey Institute for Black Economic Mobility- Advisory Council, and the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank’s Opportunity & Inclusive Growth Institute’s Advisory Board. She has been recognized as one of the nations’ Top 25 Disruptive Leaders working to close racial gaps (2016) by Living Cities; Twin Cities Business Community Impact Award (2021) Washburn University Alumni Fellow 92018) City of Minneapolis History Maker (2021), and many other awards. Ms. Black is married to Eric Black and has two children, Traviata (9) and Christian (8).