Andrea Pérez-Maikkula (she/her/ella) is a multilingual DEI practitioner with eighteen years of experience in intercultural facilitation, community engagement, and international community development, particularly in Haiti, where she focused her work on ecological sanitation. Born and raised in Puerto Rico, she currently serves as the Director of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) at a State of Minnesota agency, is the Champion for the Black, Indigenous, and Women of Color (BIWOC) Employee Resource Group (ERG) enterprise-wide, and was appointed by Governor Walz to the One Minnesota Council on Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity. Andrea also serves as the Chair of the Human Rights Commission at the City of Brooklyn Park. Andrea holds a bachelor’s degree in business law and music business from the University of Miami and a master’s degree in public health from the University of Puerto Rico.