Nicole Finnan (she/her) - Chair
Nicole is an experienced board director and Film/TV Executive with over 26 years experience in the creative industries. She has held Managing Director, Finance and Commercial Director roles at Independent Film and TV companies and has executive produced numerous feature films and television dramas. She is an expert in corporate governance having completed the FT non-executive Director (level 7) diploma. Nicole is an accountant by training and started her career at KPMG. She has always worked with writers and has a passion for supporting underrepresented writers and artists.
Salma Begum (she/her)
Salma is an Agent at Greyhound Literary. She spent four years working as an Editor in mainstream publishing. Prior to that, she helped set up The Good Literary Agency, a social enterprise focused on launching the careers of under-represented writers. Salma is also a Trustee for Literature Works.
Edward Ball (he/him)
Edward is a curator and writer, and currently Director of Devonshire Collective, a cultural and community organisation in Eastbourne. He leads a collaborative team of five in a programme that pursues a model of artist-led learning and grassroots inclusion. DC commissions cultural projects from emerging, underrepresented artists living regionally and nationally, while working with communities, in community spaces. Previously, he held curatorial positions at Camden Art Centre, Freelands Foundation and White Rainbow.
He began his career in the cultural sector as a writer for frieze, Art Monthly, ArtReview and Apollo magazines, and now focuses his work on championing underrepresented voices and supporting efforts to widen access to the creative industries.
Jenni Lewin-Turner (she/her)
Jenni has over 25 years experience of both mainstream and culturally-specific arts practice and delivery. She is the founding Director of Urbanflo Creative Consultancy (www.urbanflo.com), a socially engaged collective of arts professionals who share a vision of equity and excellence in the cultural sector, specialising in participatory and inclusive initiatives, offering expert advice and creative support to individuals, groups and organisations across all sectors. Jenni was recently elected as a board member of Brighton & Hove’s Arts & Creative Industries Commission, and was previously listed amongst the top 50 “Women to Watch”in the Cultural Leadership Programme’s prestigious national list.
Melanie Lewis (she/her)
Melanie is a Barrister who practised in London for 20 years, mainly at the Family Law Bar. She then sat as a Tribunal Judge on specialist tribunals so has particular experience in Immigration and issues relating to Health, Education and Social Care. She has a particular interest in inclusion and diversity and for many years developed training for Judges to facilitate inclusive practice. Melanie is passionate about the Arts in many forms. She is additionally a Trustee of Brighton Dome & Festival.
Clarissa Angus (she/her)
Clarissa has more than 10-years’ experience as a creative communications professional, creating, editing and coordinating content for a variety of publications, projects, events and engagements. She has led and supported the delivery of organisational strategies and actions plans. Enthusiastic and always curious, she loves everything to do with writing and words, so much so she tries creative writing in her spare time. She likes to play a small part in advocating for mental health and wellbeing, gaining a Level 2 Certificate in Counselling Skills in 2023 and more recently qualifying as a Mental Health First Aider in the workplace. Clarissa works at The National Archives and has expertise in diversity, equity and inclusion.
Priscilla Yeung (she/her)
Priscilla is a literary writer and ACA-qualified accountant based in London, originally from Hong Kong. Before transitioning into the arts, she spent over a decade in finance, specialising in governance, due diligence and regulatory compliance. Following the publication of her first essay collection in 2017, she completed an MA in Creative Writing at City, University of London.
Priscilla is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Battersea Anthology, a literary magazine supported by Wandsworth Council that champions underrepresented local writers. Her work has appeared in TORCH Magazine (University of Oxford), the TOKEN Anthology published by the Deptford Literature Festival, and other publications. Her radio play and stage play were both produced by Theatre503, and she has delivered creative writing workshops in partnership with the National Trust. She is passionate about supporting underrepresented writers to build sustainable creative careers.
Reem Maghribi (she/her)
Reem is a writer, oral historian, story consultant and multi-disciplinary artist based in London. She focuses her professional and creative efforts on the development and dissemination of personal stories in a bid to promote pluralism and participation and counter efforts at othering and hatred. She has worked in countries across Asia, Africa and Europe with UN Women, UNFPA, WHO and other UN agencies, spearheading initiatives centred around communication, advocacy and community.
As director of sharq.org since 2004, Reem has overseen the growth of the organisation from a single magazine title to one that produces multi-lingual books, policy papers, toolkits, oral history collections, staged performances, podcasts, discussion series, activist collectives, and a festival.