“I work with a community of trainers to execute my youth leadership week, and Shreya is by far my most competent, impactful and favorite trainer. I hire them to guide my youth towards their visions and every year the youth are moved, touched and empowered to imagine their highest selves as a result of Shreya’s training. I recommend Shreya to any group or individual that seeks transformation.” {Mona Shomali, Director of New Leader Initiative, Brower Youth Awards for Climate Justice Activists and Organizers}

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About Saltwater

Saltwater Social Justice Training is guided by the vision that ‘the antidote to many things is saltwater- sweat, tears, or the sea’.  Saltwater creates transformative spaces for personal and collective liberation that grows from the alchemy of sweat- hard work, rigor, and discipline in action; tears – embracing the deep and wide range of emotions to live fully into our humanness, from joy to grief; and the sea – honoring our need to nurture and replenish our spirits through connection with the natural world.

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“Saltwater’s facilitation “dynamic duo”  was very sharp, thorough, quick on their feet… They definitely did their homework and were prepared for our organization. The presentations were thought-provoking, pushed us to go beyond our “bubble” to consider and to see a broader perspective- while being engaging and interactive. I don’t know how you could be more impactful. What I personally took away from the experience is to continue to be my authentic self and professionally, to be open to other ideas and perspectives without compromising my moral compass and challenge other point of views in an honest dialogue to reach a common goal. I would love to have Saltwater at our next staff retreat.”  {Felice Judkins, Washington D.C.}

About shreya delgado-shah, mph

never forget that justice is what love looks like in public {cornel west}

shreya delgado-shah flores is a south asian, genderfluid femme interdisciplinary media artist, and movement facilitator, trainer, and coach. They continue to weave these roles together even after 12 years, as the founding director of Saltwater Social Justice Training. Shreya has served as a community organizer, cultural worker, artist, youth social worker, health educator, as well as a counselor for HIV/STD testing, youth crises, and sexual assault hotlines. They dedicate their life to the healing and liberation of women, femmes, and queer, trans, & gender non-conforming people of color and the survival of the earth against extraction, exploitation, and harm.

Shreya has helped hundreds upon hundreds of activists and organizers skill up through various movement trainings organizations like People’s Hub (PH) and Training for Change (TFC). Shreya has also served as an AWID member to build global gender-diverse feminist power, including through AWID’s CMC International Forum Organizing Committee.

Art has offered immense joy through the years; every year, Shreya has been able to create more space and time for artmaking. From showing work at the Queer Arts Festival to the Creative Wildfire Artist Call to Action, and SRLP’s Small Works for Big Change to Mangoes with Chili, Shreya loves collaborating with other cultural workers and artists. They are proud to help build a growing community of social movement graphic artists across the states through the Artists for Radical Imagination network.  They also are part of the Mojave Artists of Color Collective, a self-organized group of artists and creatives.

Shreya’s was first politicized at a one-stop youth health drop-in center for queer youth. They carry a transformative justice, abolitionist, trauma-informed, harm reduction, participatory and direct education approach that proves life-saving and life-giving to those most impacted. Shreya follows the wisdom and process of the bodymind through somatic and processwork methods. They trust that conflict can be generative when moved toward with care and courage. They use these approaches at River’s Way, a low-income clinic that works with trauma, addiction, disability, grief, and other conditions created or exasperated by systemic violence. Shreya received a Masters in Public Health (MPH) from Columbia University – but has learned significantly more about how to confront health inequities on the ground with impacted activist communities.

Shreya loves rollerskating; hiking on expansive desert trails & amongst the redwoods; playing with their sweet nibblings; learning from the ocean, plants, and stars; singing, playing ukelele, laughing loudly, and storytelling with loved ones.

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“Shreya’s Saltwater team brought a lot of joy and fun to our retreat, and their sense of humor and joyfulness was contagious and helped make this such a positive experience for all of us. They created a safe space for our team to dig deeper into sensitive issues. They were flexible and adapted the schedule and activities based on our daily needs. Their genuine warmth, active listening skills, and ability to connect to their clients supported great, skilled facilitation.  Shreya’s approach to facilitation is very holistic and grounding. The exercises and discussions we were guided through were extremely thoughtful and helpful in creating space for our team to be honest and build a stronger cohesion.”  {Urgent Action Fund (UAF) Programming Team}

“Working with Shreya was a wonderful experience. Shreya was kind and sensitive to the needs of the group and enabled a great environment for reflection in a participatory manner. Shreya’s ability to connect with the group with ease, forging friendships and willingness to listen and offer support & solidarity was beautiful.”   {Asha Kowtal, General Secretary for the All India Dalit Women’s Rights Forum}

“Shreya’s ability to create a safe space for discussion of intense & personal issues, such as racial justice in professional/ academic fields, allowed for significant growth. Shreya’s energy was calming, yet allowed people to engage with each other in ways that led to clarity and revelation. I hope to have the chance to have Shreya facilitate for our organization again; they allowed a new path to be realized & we’re indebted to Shreya for that.”  {Marietta Gary-Smith, AASECT – American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors, & Therapists}