Bakau Consulting

Katya Potapova is a settler to Turtle Island from Yakutsk. Her hometown is thought to be the coldest city on Earth (at least when major cities are considered) but she likes to say that it’s a home to people with the warmest hearts. Ever since her move to so-called Vancouver in 2014, she has been joking that she has relocated from a place of permanent frost to a place of permanent rain but she truly loves it here, and feels deeply grateful to live on the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh lands. Katya is striving to live her life in service of people who like her long for community, belonging and meaning. She dreams of the world that centres healing, justice, joy, rest, and collective liberation, and she knows that this world is possible. Her pursuit of this dream led her to many amazing places and projects—prior to Bakau she has worked in event production, fundraising, hospitality and communications—all of which made her realize that she feels her best when she is collaborating and/or supporting others. Katya also spends a lot of her time scheming and mobilizing for climate action. Katya is an INFJ, Enneagram 2 & Pisces in both Moon and Sun. In other words, just a big softy.

Nadine Nakagawa is an organizer, activist, intersectional feminist, creative writer, social justice fairy, city councillor and the co-founder of the Feminist Campaign School. She lives and works on the unceded and unsurrendered territory of Hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ speaking peoples. When not working on community projects, Nadine prances with delight towards patches of wildflowers, wears flower crowns and dresses that encourage twirling, and can be found hugging trees and embracing whimsy. She is a creative writer and has a Master’s Degree in Interdisciplinary Studies with a focus on communication and leadership.

Koshiki was born in Japan and spent part of her childhood there until moving to Ireland at the age of 11. She relocated to Vancouver in 2014 where she has been living and working with gratitude on the traditional, ancestral and unceded territory of the Squamish, Tsleil-Waututh and Musqueam Nations. She has her Bachelor's Degree in Human Rights and LL.M in Peace Operations, Humanitarian Law and Conflict from the National University of Ireland, Galway. With a deep passion for peacebuilding, Koshiki is currently getting her certificates in Mediation and Negotiation from the Justice Institute of British Columbia. Being a mixed-race woman who’s lived in Japan, Ireland, Spain and Canada, Koshiki brings a vast number of lived experiences and unique perspectives to her work. She has volunteered with Amnesty International, The David Suzuki Foundation, and currently is a Board Member of the Vancouver Association of Restorative Justice. She spent a year abroad in Spain during University interning at the European and Criminal Law Institute conducting research on the Abolition of the Death Penalty. Don’t get her started about Spain—she’ll never stop talking about it! When not talking about human rights, you can find her exploring different creative ventures - painting, writing, and brainstorming documentary and podcast ideas… just to name a few!