Our Staff

The Native Women's Collective is a volunteer organization that supports the continued growth of Native American arts & culture. Our dedicated staff and community continue to volunteer their time to help our organization.

Executive Director

Dr. Cutcha Risling Baldy
Hupa, Karuk, Yurok

Cutcha Risling Baldy is an Assistant Professor of Native American Studies at Humboldt State University. She received her PhD in Native American Studies with a designated emphasis in Feminist Theory and Research from the University of California Davis. Her interdisciplinary research explores contemporary Native American society, politics, literature and California Indians. She has her M.F.A. in Fiction and Literature from San Diego State University and her B.A. in Psychology with a special focus in Health and Development from Stanford University. She has published articles in Decolonization: Education, Indigeneity and Society and Ecological Processes.  She is the author of a popular blog that features articles on California Indians, pop culture, representations of Native people in mass media and self-representations of Native peoples via social media. You can find her blog at: http://www.cutcharislingbaldy.com/blog. 

Dr. Risling Baldy was born and raised in Northern California. She is an enrolled member of the Hoopa Valley Tribe with ties to the Yurok and Karuk peoples. She grew up practicing the traditional ways of her people and values the lessons and knowledge that she gained from these experiences.  In 2007 Ms. Risling Baldy co-founded the Native Women's Collective, a nonprofit organization, to support arts and culture projects in the Native American community. 

Chief Financial Officer

Lori Biondini
​Hoopa Valley Tribe

Lori Biondini is a member of the Hoopa Valley Tribe. Lori manages the financial aspects of the Native Women's Collective and loves supporting our Native artists through volunteering  at NWC sale events, demonstration events, and ceremonial dances. Lori recently attained her master's of arts in social science with an emphasis in environment and community and is currently the director of business development and planning for the Redwood Coast Energy Authority, a local government agency focusing on sustainable energy initiatives. Lori's core values include service to our community and embodying solutions to the pressing and complex environmental problems currently facing our world. Lori is currently serving on the Board of Directors for Zero Waste Humboldt, a non-profit that promotes and implements zero-waste principles within Humboldt County, and enjoys quilting, knitting, and up-cycling furniture in her spare time.​