Founder - Fatima Camara

Fatima Camara is a cultural strategist, project manager, & DEI consultant from Minneapolis, MN. She specializes in inclusive training, employee relations/engagement, recruitment/retention (diverse, equitable hiring), professional development, wellness, and event planning. Her focus when working with organizations is to find what systems and processes need to be implemented to ensure they have the tools they need to succeed.As a results driven cultural curator, Fatima is able to implement solutions that create impact for organizations that need to refocus and re-engage their staff. Through her past work with TruArtSpeaks, an arts & culture organization based out of Saint Paul, she has skills in project management, event planning/coordination, public speaking, hosting, and more. Not only is she a 2020 Next Step Fund Grant Recipient, but a writer and spoken word performing artist. Her debut chapbook, Yellowline, can be found through Akachic Books and the African Poetry Book Fund. In 2023, her poem "Churai", was published in Relations: An Anthology of African and Diaspora Voices. Fatima's creative work explores themes of cross cultural intersections and functions as a resource for other first generation peoples. Currently, she works with Education Minnesota in their DEI Department.

Our Work

Cultural Strategy Meets Innovative Solutions

Smiling Coast Consulting draws its name from The Gambia—affectionately known as “The Smiling Coast”—and honors the heritage of our Founder, Fatima Camara. Rooted in Mandinka traditions, which emphasize collective growth and shared success, our work is grounded in the belief that when the village thrives, we all succeed.

We partner with individuals, creatives, and organizations to strengthen their structures, cultures, and systems through a holistic consulting approach. Our services include DEI training, communication planning, leadership development, process improvement, investigations, wellness integration, and policy and procedural redesign. With deep expertise in relationship-building across generations and experiences, we help leaders foster inclusive, values-driven environments where curiosity and growth are encouraged.

Our goal is to leave clients feeling more aligned, more inclusive, and more resilient than when we arrived. We facilitate conversations that go beyond surface-level understanding—creating space for reflection, accountability, and change. By centering the well-being of your workspace or teams, we help you feel empowered to better create with and/or serve your clients and communities.

At Smiling Coast Consulting, we believe that a workplace rooted in equity, belonging, and joy does not just meet company goals but it inspires you to return - emulating that, of The Smiling Coast.

Our Approach

Meaningful or sustainable change begins with deep listening, rigorous research, and genuine partnership. Our approach is grounded in evidence-based practices that are informed by lived experiences across diverse industries and communities. We don’t believe in one-size-fits-all solutions. We collaborate with you to co-create strategies that are both practical and aligned with your organization’s unique culture, goals, and challenges. People are centered in every step of the process—because systems don’t change unless the people within them are engaged, valued, and empowered. Whether facilitating DEI training, revising policies, or advising on leadership development, we lead with cultural humility, curiosity, and care. Our process includes:

Discovery and Assessment: Conducting evaluations to understand where your organization is today—through conversations, surveys, policy reviews, and stakeholder interviews.
Tailored Strategy Development: Designing clear, actionable plans based on your priorities—not assumptions.
Collaborative Implementation: Guiding you through workshops, coaching, and systems redesign while building internal capacity for lasting change.
Evaluation and Reflection: Measuring impact, gathering feedback, and adjusting as needed to ensure continued growth and alignment.

Our goal isn’t to only deliver recommendations—it’s to help you build an inclusive, thriving workplace. Every engagement is a partnership, rooted in trust, and built for sustainable results.