Doris Tinsley is the Founder and Director of Eastern Fire Collective, an Indigenous-led movement advancing sovereignty through governance reform, systems design, and community-driven innovation. She is also Director of Accounts at CoMission Consulting, where she leads organizational strategy, governance training, and Indigenous relations across a wide portfolio of nonprofit and tribal clients. In addition, Doris serves as the Training, Education, and Compliance Manager at Changemakers Hawaiʻi, overseeing workforce development programs, the Philanthropono fundraising certification, and the ʻĀinapreneurs program that equips Native Hawaiian entrepreneurs to grow values-based businesses grounded in aloha ʻāina. Her work has been instrumental in creating innovative frameworks that center Indigenous knowledge, cultural legitimacy, and accountability.

Doris also leads governance reform within her own people. As a member of the Shinnecock Indian Nation’s Governance Committee, she is spearheading the Nation’s constitutional review process, helping align the Nation’s governing framework with best practices in nation-building while remaining rooted in Shinnecock culture and values. Her leadership in this role reflects her deep commitment to both internal community accountability and the broader movement for Indigenous sovereignty.

Her expertise spans philanthropy, higher education, tribal governance, and workforce development. She has served as a task lead for federal contracts supporting the Department of Education’s Office of Indian Education, directed national convenings of Native educators and leaders, and advised on monitoring and evaluation frameworks for Indigenous-serving organizations. Her governance expertise has positioned her as a key partner in constitutional reform, nation-building strategies, and the design of Indigenous-led civic and economic systems.

With Eastern Fire Collective, Doris created a dual-structured institution that reflects her philosophy: lasting change requires both people power and institutional power. Through the Foundation (nonprofit), Eastern Fire builds civic engagement, governance training, and Indigenous-led pathways in education and workforce development. Through Strategies (consulting), Eastern Fire equips nations and governments with revolutionary systems design, leadership coaching, and sovereignty-driven frameworks that transform dependency into self-determination.

An enrolled member of the Shinnecock Indian Nation and a graduate of Virginia Tech, Doris is guided by the belief that sovereignty is more than survival. It is the brilliance of Indigenous peoples leading, thriving, and shaping the future on our own terms.