Zakiya Collier

Zakiya Collier (she/they) is a Brooklyn-based, Black, queer archivist and memory worker. Her work and research explore the role of cooperative thought and improvisation in the sustainability of im/material cultural memory, particularly in marginalized communities and cultural heritage institutions. Before joining Shift Collective in 2022, they have centered African-diasporan, queer, and community-based organizations. Her previous experience includes the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Weeksville Heritage Center, SafeWord Society, Marilyn Nance's FESTAC '77 collection, and other private archival collections. She holds a BA in Anthropology from the University of South Carolina, an MLIS from Long Island University, and a MA in Media, Culture, and Communication from New York University. Zakiya became a Certified Archivist through the Academy of Certified Archivists (ACA) in September 2020. Zakiya often represents Shift Collective at workshops and conferences around the world. She’s given recent keynote addresses at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Archive Conference and Mount Holyoke College, participated in a writers workshop in Dakar, Senegal, and will be at Art Libraries Society of North America in Mexico City in 2023, to name a few. Learn more at zakiyacollier.com.

Project focus: DocNow