Soil and Shadow

Soil and Shadow is a consulting and coaching firm that combines personal transformation with organizational development. Its core mission is to help individuals and organizations, particularly in the social impact and environmental sectors, build resilience while addressing issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Through executive coaching, training, and facilitation, Soil and Shadow empowers leaders to align their personal healing with professional growth, recognizing that sustainable leadership is only possible when burnout is addressed. The firm’s offerings are designed to foster emotionally intelligent teams that can lead regenerative, purpose-led initiatives.

At the heart of this work is the Soil, Shadow, and Spirit Retreat, an immersive 9-month program for BIPOC women leaders, with a focus on Black mothers, a project cofounded by Noni Limar with the support of the Kalliopeia Foundation and Paicines Ranch Learning Center. The retreat integrates shadow work (exploring the unconscious aspects of personal and collective power), land-based rituals, and creative expression to help participants reconnect with the land, their bodies, and their leadership roles. Through activities like storytelling, ritual practice in nature, and artistic exploration, participants are invited to embrace both personal healing and communal responsibility. The retreat is a transformative experience designed to deepen leaders' emotional resilience and foster a new sense of purpose.

Nikki Silvestri is, first and foremost, a mother of two, wife, and sci-fi nerd. Nikki is also a serial non-profit executive director and entrepreneur (currently the CEO and founder of Soil and Shadow), a board member of Greenpeace USA, and an international keynote speaker.

Nikki’s unique approach to inclusion, leadership, and organizational development takes cues from nature, building models of “social fertility” to weave them into a Joy and Impact™ framework. Her work also encourages a rigorous and shame-free approach to acknowledging our societal shadows and blind spots, especially when attempting to balance the triple bottom line (ecology, economy, and equity) in times of uncertainty, climate/health feedback loops, and increasing volatility.

Nikki’s wide-ranging career has taken her from presentations at the White House and negotiations with the Environmental Protection Agency to intimate workshops with local businesses and small retail organizing. She is the recipient of numerous awards, including ELLE Magazine’s Gold Award and OxFam America’s Act Local, Think Global Award, and she was named one of The Root’s 100 Most Influential African Americans.

A true multi-hyphenate, Noni Limar has a decade-long resume of work in film/TV, theater, commercials and music. In 2017, she completed a two-year series development deal with Warner Bros. where she developed her TV pilot, Phony Bastards. It is now in development with Teri Weinberg’s Yellow Brick Road. Her short art film, Heartburn was recently featured at Museum of Contemporary Art and SPARC in Los Angeles. As a musician, she was a part of the Grammy Award-winning Sa-Ra Creative Partners, opening for artists such as Kanye West and Erykah Badu. Within the world of theater, she has directed, starred in and produced plays and productions at Los Angeles Theater Center, Apollo Theater in NY, Highways Performance Space and the New York Hip Hop Theater Festival. As a writer, she has been invited to share work at The Lincoln Center in New York and the Market Theater in South Africa. The SABC Documentary, I AM WOMAN was made about her international work as a director and producer. She hosts ALL HEART PODCAST, a platform centering healing our culture through joy and pleasure. She lives with her husband and four children in Southern California.