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An Overview

About us

Hummingbird Firm is a community engagement consulting firm, specializing in face-to-face and digital engagement for public involvement, public participation, environmental communications, climate action, and cultural competency training.

We provide these services for A/E firms, public utilities, private developers, federal agencies, and municipalities.

Community is a concept we embody as a firm. We are a tight-knit community within, enveloping our differences and thriving on our shared values (beliefs). We define community as the embracing of culture, history, and the goals of a defined geographic area in order to communicate with, impact, and evoke fellowship amongst differing perspectives.

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About the Founder

MaKara Rumley, Esq., is more than an experienced community engagement strategist; she is an important thought leader related to the environment, education, the green economy, and public health.  She has a knack for identifying what makes each stakeholder successful and leading the charge for how everyone can win.  It takes the private and public sector as well as community viewpoints to reach a project’s full benefit potential.

She has produced identifiable results during her work at the Environmental Protection Agency as the Senior Advisor on Community Engagement with the Regional Administrator, as an Environmental Attorney with GreenLaw, and as a consistent lecturer and presenter on cultural competency and community engagement. 

She is a graduate of George Washington University Law School and received her undergraduate degree from Spelman College. Mrs. Rumley has a track record of achievement and has a results oriented drive to meeting milestones.  She is committed to the use of qualitative as well as quantitative measurements to truly evaluate connectivity to target constituents.

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MaKara Rumley, Esq.

Founder & CEO

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Our Team Members

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Oyemwenosa Avenbuan

Community Engagement Associate

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OYEMWENOSA AVENBUAN is a recent graduate of New York University with an MS in Environmental Health Science. She has years of experience in the field of toxicology and scientific communication, she is particularly adept at communicating with other experts and laypeople. She applies her knowledge of environmental health to create plain language translation during community engagement with marginalized and underserved communities in urban and rural areas.

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Bria Calvin

Community Engagement Associate

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BRIA CALVIN, a recent graduate of Florida A & M College of Law is putting her degree and skills to good use as a Community Engagement Associate. In this role, Bria will formulate facilitation agendas, conceptualize and implement community engagement activities, and create infographics to enhance the processes of community engagement meetings and workshops. The genesis of her passion for Environmental Justice emerged in the soil of post-Katrina New Orleans and has expanded through a myriad of professional experiences that include the  U.S. EPA, Department of Justice, Sierra Club, California Air Resources Board,  and other private firms. Her affable personality is infectious and naturally draws people in, allowing her to effectively communicate and problem solve with clients, colleagues, and community constituents alike, to produce enduring solutions.

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Marisa Carter

Community Engagement
Lead

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MARISA CARTER is a graduate of Spelman College and holds an MFA in Interior Design from Savannah College Art and Design. She brings years of experience in schematic development and strategic planning by way of her professional design background.  Marisa uses her background by helping with phase planning, visual presentation, and graphic design. Her aim is to assist in community engagement through developing presentations and creating informational material that will aid in the process of communication for all. 

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Laura McKelvey

Community Engagement Strategist

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LAURA MCKELVEY is a Community Engagement Strategist at Hummingbird Firm where she applies the breadth of her expertise of more than 35 years of public service at both the US Peace Corps and the Environmental Protection Agency. She received a master’s degree from Duke University in Environmental Management and she has 20 years of experience working with the Native American Nations, and Environmental Justice communities to address air quality. She specializes in bringing parties together to solve community problems and helps to provide a bridge in communication between community members and technical governmental and industry personnel.

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Danny Rumley

Chief Operating Officer

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DANNY RUMLEY serves as the Chief Operating Officer for Hummingbird. He directs operations with the local context of the communities being served as the company’s most relevant line of interest. He brings a wealth of experience from the urban agriculture, engineering, and Sustainable Smart Cities fields. Danny believes that the collective access to clean food, clean water, and clean energy for local communities is only achievable through education.

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Denise Smith, Ph.D.

Chief Strategy OfficeR

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DR. DENISE SMITH is a well-rounded

transportation professional who brings years of transportation experience to the team. She has developed an expertise in multimodal transportation planning and travel demand modeling. Dr. Smith is also very knowledgeable on a wide range of topics such as design, traffic operation and management, and autonomous vehicle technology. Her experience in academia, planning, and engineering, equip her with a unique perspective to contribute to projects.

Brendol Swygert

Executive Assistant

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BRENDOL SWYGERT is a passionate, detail-oriented, committed professional with multiple years of operational support, client engagement, and organizational first line of communication. As the Executive Assistant for Hummingbird, she utilizes her skills to cater to the unique needs of the company’s clientele.

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Di Mike Wang

Chief Financial Officer

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DI MIKE WANG is the chief financial officer for Hummingbird. As CFO, he brings over 10 years of experience in finance with a career that has spanned from investment banking to corporate finance. Most recently, he served as the director of finance for an institutionally backed biotechnology company and was responsible for providing strategic insights and guiding the company through budgeting, financial planning, fundraising, and infrastructure transformation. Prior to that, he worked in investment banking and investment management at Wells Fargo and Morgan Stanley respectively.

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Christian V. Braneon, Ph.D.

Chief Technology Officer & Director of Climate Action

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DR. CHRISTIAN V. BRANEON is the Chief Technology Officer at Hummingbird where he provides technical expertise with a specialty in water and green infrastructure. He uses his broad background to assist with plain language translation of technical documents and for the development of strategic communications in the architecture, engineering, and construction

industries.

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Lisa Riley

Business Manager

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LISA RILEY is an engaging, entrepreneurial-minded professional committed to business excellence through servant leadership and client advocacy. Her years of corporate experience supporting Executive Leadership and small business owners have garnished her a deep-rooted understanding of client advocacy, enabling her to improve her clients’ successes by crafting a custom voice, streamlining their mission, and by helping with overall business growth.

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Shameka Young

Business Growth manager

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Shameka Young is a multifaceted business professional versed in business management, consulting, government contracts, proposals, and standard operating procedures. 

 As our Business Development Manager, she can promote the progress of current and new business as its mission in support of developing client relationships, proposals, applications, and analyzing data on industry projects, from foundational work to commercialization of leading-edge technology. Her experience in non-profit organizations and community outreach through mentorship provided her with the skills to manage people and problem solve, network, educate, negotiate, and manage projects. 


The top focus for community engagement should be to put oneself in the community’s shoes. You have to understand what the communication style needs are and remain nimble – like a hummingbird.

MaKara Rumley, Esq., Founder & CEO

MaKara leaves me tired but in a good way! She has an agenda and always has it all planned out. MaKara is really high on energy and that is key in this field.

Jewell A. HarperEnvironmental Justice Activist and Former Senior Advisor at USEPA
MaKara is a true professional! Her brilliance and experience shines through! Every project has been well planned and executed! Looking forward to the next opportunity to work together. Thank you!
Deborah ScottExecutive Director of Georgia STAND-UP
Makara is very gifted at keeping her finger on the pulse of every stakeholder in the room, making sure they’re engaged appropriately in conversations. She leaves no one behind. She is the real deal!
Reggie HammondManaging Partner of Your Crescendo
In addition to the strategic facilitation and capacity building support, MaKara and her team bring deep understanding of the community conditions that impact equity-centered work. This provides a unique layer of support.
Chandra FarleyJust Energy Director, Partnership for Southern Equity

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