About Us

“An international experience should reflect the entire system of enslaving and trading in African peoples, as well as the cultural legacy of this.”

The idea for FullCircle arose from a conversation between Julia Michaels and the founder of the Instituto de Pesquisa e Memória Pretos Novos in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Merced Guimarães’ unusual museum is dedicated to the mortal remains of enslaved Africans who died on arrival in Rio. That 2019 interaction resulted in Julia adopting Merced’s idea that an international experience should reflect the entire system of enslaving and trading in African peoples, as well as the cultural legacy of this.

Julia subsequently partnered with Mike Wittenstein, a friend she met when studying Portuguese in Rio, in 1978. Because of Covid, he suggested a virtual multidimensional (Web3) approach. FullCircle is the first to bring this geography and history together virtually, expanding our understanding of the past, its legacy and where we go from here. 

Illustrated Sankofa Icon

A Quilt Can Hug a Lot of People

Back in 2021 (early days) we commissioned a quilt from Ed Johnetta Miller, whose gorgeous art hangs in three Smithsonian museums. Quilt storytelling and hugging have everything to do with FullCircle.

You will continue on, doing what Ghanaians want you to do, go back and get it, go back and get, get our past and cherish it. And I know you will do that.” – Ed Johnetta Miller
Ed Johnetta brought together fabric from Mali, Senegal, Haiti, Nigeria, Ghana (home of the Sankofa) and Zimbabwe. She cut and sewed pieces close to her heart:
That is a piece when I went to visit a chief of a village in Kumasi, Ghana... And he said to me, Ed Johnetta, I want you to take this cloth, make me proud, do something very special with it. So that's why I put it into your quilt.”
What is an improvisational quilt?
If I look at it the next morning and it doesn't make my heart sing, I come back and I cut it up again.
Ed Johnetta's circles go places:
“This quilt is the spiral of life."
An Ed Johnetta Miller quilt is not only about scissors and needle and thread:
“I enjoyed drawing the Sankofa bird because it felt good…cutting it out, putting it on Kente cloth… photographing it, going to my printer and printing it out on cloth.”
The artist found inspiration in music of the Diaspora
The FullCircle quilt is three-dimensional (if not four!):
"The piece that you have is polished cotton from Senegal on the back, because I thought that the back should be as beautiful as the front, but without me piecing it together.”
The neighbors came out when photographer Christine Breslin took the artist and her quilt onto the front porch.
"It began to be a wonderful celebration because I took it and I put it around my shoulders and she took a photo of me like that...the warmth and the love that was in it just, it just felt so good. So I put my spirit in your quilt."
Like this quilt, FullCircle brings people together to follow their interests and share discoveries in a virtual territory of geography and history.
“I put my all into your quilt to send it off to you with lots of love and hopefully, I hope it brings as much joy to you as it did to me because it was special.”
Learn more about FullCircle, our plans, and the team.
About us
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Photos by Christine Breslin and Alex Kent

Meet the team

The FullCircle team includes diverse thinkers and doers—each with unique skills and a positive worldview—and all with a passion for intergenerational storytelling.

Governing Board

Julia Michaels Headshot

Julia Michaels, MA, MFA

Co-founder

Author, journalist, playwright with a focus on Rio de Janeiro, social entrepreneur. 5 languages. 40-year Brazil resident.

FullCircle Co-Founder Mike Wittenstein

Mike Wittenstein, MBA

Co-founder

An American consultant and creative based in Atlanta. He has learned to create experiences that connect people across cultures and geographies using stories and technology.

WhatsApp Image 2023-02-09 at 14.05.59

Pedro Berto, BA

Board Member

Former favela resident, investment/entrepreneurship impact enthusiast with experience in venture capital funds. Founded Favela without Coronavirus, currently co-founder of Favela Summit, to break favela poverty cycle via innovation.

Julia Michaels Headshot

Julia Michaels, MA, MFA

Co-founder

Author, journalist, playwright with a focus on Rio de Janeiro, social entrepreneur. 5 languages. 40-year Brazil resident.

FullCircle Co-Founder Mike Wittenstein

Mike Wittenstein, MBA

Co-founder

An American consultant and creative based in Atlanta. He has learned to create experiences that connect people across cultures and geographies using stories and technology.

Pedro Berto, BA

Board Member

Pedro Berto, BA Former favela resident, investment/entrepreneurship impact enthusiast with experience in venture capital funds. Founded Favela without Coronavirus, currently co-founder of Favela Summit, to break favela poverty cycle via innovation.

Wisdom Circle

Luisa Calixto, BA

FullCircle Wisdom Circle Member Washington Fajardo, BA

Washington Fajardo, BA

Shamichal Hallman

Shamichael Hallman, MS

FullCircle Logo (SM)

Chantal James, BA

FullCircle Wisdom Circle Member Tonia East Phanor, Ph.D.

Tonia East Phanor, PhD

FullCircle Wisdom Circle Member Claudia Porto

Claudia Porto, MBA

Geraldine Moriba

Jasmine Reid BA, MA, PhD

FullCircle Wisdom Circle Member Maria Robinson

Maria Moraes Robinson, MBA

Simon Robinson, CEO (Worldwide) of Holonomics and co-author of Deep Tech and the Amplified Organisation

Simon Robinson, MA

FullCircle Wisdom Circle Member Kathryn R. Smith, MBA

Kathryn R. Smith, MBA

Partners

Michael Henley, CFRE

Caron Johnson

FullCircle Partner Andrea Smith-Pratt

Andrea Pratt-Smith, PMP, PMI-ACP, CSM

Karen Routt, MBA

Emmanuel Umoh

Emmanuel Umoh, PhD, PMP

FullCircle Partner Randi Yoder

Randi Yoder, MBA

Make FullCircle Real

Now that you’ve imagined along with us, help us make FullCircle real. 

Learn More
“Having physical and digital spaces to explore and celebrate our culture is critical to understanding who we are and where we've come from. I'm excited that FullCircle will do just that and more. Having been part of some of the planning and strategy sessions, I believe that FullCircle has the potential to be a pioneering platform that will explore untold and unknown stories, reconnect with our past, and co-create a beautiful future."
Shamichael HallmanHarvard Loeb Fellow 2023, Senior Library Manager, Memphis Public Library
Shamichal Hallman
"Thirty years ago, during a trip to Dakar, Senegal, I told a Wolof grandmother that I hoped more African Americans could experience the joy I felt on returning home to the Motherland. Her response was "I wish I could bring you all back." Discovering evidence of the enduring power of the deep emotional connections among Africans in the Diaspora has given me hope. FullCircle offers a unique opportunity to communicate across geographical and economic boundaries to affirm our personhood and fortify us to face the many battles ahead."
Lisa WhittenAssociate Professor, Psychology Dept. State University of New York College at Old Westbury
Lisa Whitten
“The FullCircle Experience has the potential to be one of the most profound examples of our conception of deep tech in which technology is developed in service to people, whose principles are founded on universal human values and the design of solutions that honour the diversity of our lived experiences which can help us to develop an ever-expanded understanding of our sense of place and belonging in this world and of our collective sense of being.” 
Simon RobinsonCEO (Worldwide) of Holonomics and co-author of Deep Tech and the Amplified Organisation
Simon Robinson, CEO (Worldwide) of Holonomics and co-author of Deep Tech and the Amplified Organisation
"Your work is brilliant and important and will make a huge impact on the ways we teach, understand, and experience history."
Eric WilliamsAssistant Professor of Theology and Black Church Studies and former Curator of Religion for the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
Eric Williams Headshot
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FullCircle Experience, Inc. is a public charity as outlined in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Federal ID: #87-2518697.

Contributions to FullCircle are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law. 

FullCircle Experience, Inc. is a public charity as outlined in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Federal ID: #87-2518697.

Contributions to FullCircle are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law. 

©2022 FullCircle Experience, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

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