Mea Boykins is not your everyday entrepreneur. Highly educated and a travel lover, Mea has traversed the world and combined her keen business acumen with the breadth of knowledge she acquired during her Bachelor of Arts from Spelman College, Masters degree from King’s College and 2nd Masters degree from the University of San Francisco to create a brand development and consulting business. But, at the heart of it all lies a deep passion for humanitarian work. Mea’s love for community and non-profit work, youth development and being a force for positive change on a global scale is what sets her apart from the pack.
Mea’s journey began in New Orleans, where she was born and raised. However, by the time she reached college she realised that she had a passion for both travel and humanitarian work. When she was nineteen years old, she launched the Student Emergency Assistance scholarship fund (S.E.A.), followed by her first intenational move to Paris during her junior year at Spelman. She has since lived in six different countries, including England where she completed her first Master’s degree. During her Masters of Global Entrepreneurial Management, she lived and studied in Barcelona, Taipei & San Francisco. Deeply intuitive and resourceful, Mea has used her academic studies to not only gain knowledge and skill, but to also gain life experience through travel.
Through S.E.A., Mea was able to make a profound impact on young people’s lives throughout the globe by providing scholarships and financial assistance to students who were struggling to pay college/university tuition fees. Her achievements through S.E.A. further cemented her love for non-profit and community work, thus leading her dive deeper into the world of social change and entrepreneurship. The scholarship fund turned non-profit also assists displaced individuals around the world and has often partnered with organisations such as the United Nations and other social entrepreneurs to effect more change.
In 2016, she was recognised for her work with the United Nations Refugee Agency, as she organized a fundraiser to have shelter built for Syrian Refugees. She was awarded the “Outstanding Achievement Award” by Civil Rights Activist Jesse Jackson at Rainbow Push Coalition’s 45th annual international conference. In fact, she is the recipient of multiple awards and mentions including being listed in Hello Beautiful’s Top 30 Under 30, as well as receiving a Resolution from Georgia House of Representatives and a Proclamation from the City of Atlanta and City of New Orleans. In addition to multiple awards, Mea has received a myriad of press and has been featured in multiple publications such as Black Enterprise, HCBU Buzz, Time Out Magazine, and many others.
As a result of the press she has received, Mea discovered yet another passion – public speaking. She is an international speaker by all means, having spoken at over 65 events worldwide, such as Essence Festival’s Executive Stage in New Orleans, and Soledad O’Brien’s Powherful Summit at Google headquarters in New York. She was a keynote speaker at the Cross Border Summit in Shenzhen, China as well as multiple universities around the world.
Currently, Mea is managing her company Global Management and Marketing, LLC (GM Squared) as well as her personal brand, while working on her 4th degree, a PhD in Governance & Public Policy at the University of the West Indies in Jamaica. To business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs, she offers assistance in building brand development, strategic partnerships, fundraising, and community engagement. She draws on her experience to guide other entrepreneurs to do their life’s work by helping them form the foundations of their vision. Please visit her website https://www.meaboykins.biz or Instagram @meaboykins to learn more about her and her incredible journey.
At the age of 30, Mea has achieved what many dream of and made a profound impact. With multiple awards under her belt and a wealth of knowledge and empathy – from here, the sky is the limit. Talented, resourceful, compassionate and driven, Mea is an inspiration to all of us.