MEASURE: Meme Styles - How to Champion Equity Through Community-Led Research
“There was no real mechanism for measuring what we meant when we said build trust… Who was creating the surveys? What was the methodology? What were the metrics assessing relationships?” - Meme Styles
You use data every day.
In the stories you tell donors.
In the statistics you share on social media.
In the decisions you make about the future of the organization.
But data-informed decision-making goes deeper than just collecting numbers and drawing conclusions from them.
Meme Styles, our guest today, reminds us that we need to be asking some important questions:
- Where did these numbers come from?
- How do we know they are trustworthy and accurate?
- How biased or unbiased are the sources of that data or the methodology we’re utilizing?
From running a lunchroom advocacy campaign as a third grader to sitting on panels with city officials in Austin, TX, Meme has always been a force for change. And in 2015, she founded MEASURE, a nonprofit data advocacy organization working to eliminate social disparities in health, education, economics, and criminal justice—one dataset at a time.
In this episode, Meme shares how data can either reinforce inequities or drive systemic change, how data bias can show up in nonprofits, why community is the best form of technology, and the most impactful decision Meme says she’s made in her leadership.
If you’re a nonprofit leader committed to equity, dignity, and visionary leadership, this conversation is for you.
Links
- Historic Agency
- Connect with Measure on Instagram, LinkedIn, or their website
- Measure Ignite
- Free Data Support Grant 2025
Key Takeaways
- Community is the best form of technology. This is such a unique way to think about connection and community. Strong relationships with the people you serve create the best conditions for long-term impact.
- Use data to elevate often-unheard voices. Like Meme shared, data is a language that’s nearly impossible to argue with. So it’s important to ensure the data you’re using is comprehensive, honest, and accurate. That’s the type of data that can help you connect the dots and land on a world-changing solution.
- Trust your team enough to let go. Meme offered an example of a monkey with his hand trapped in a coconut, his fist so balled up inside that it couldn’t get free. What are you holding on to so tightly? What is the fear keeping you from loosening your grip and relying on your team? Where do you need to build more relational or functional trust?
Meet the Guest
In 2015, Meme Styles founded MEASURE to promote evidence-based projects and tools to tell real-life stories behind the numbers. The organization has provided thousands of free data support hours to Black and Brown-led organizations while developing strategic partnerships with the University of Texas, Texas Southern University, and more to disrupt traditional research and advocate for BIPOC-led lived-experience protocols.
Before launching MEASURE, Meme built a dynamic career that spanned journalism, public service, the military, and the private sector. She held roles with Texas Health & Human Services, Lockheed Martin, and served in the U.S. Army, gaining firsthand insight into the complexities of data systems, institutional accountability, and community engagement.
Meme was a past-Chairwoman of Miss Juneteenth, Austin Police Chief's Award of Excellence recipient, Austin 40 under 40 WINNER 2019, past-Chairwoman of African TV5 (AFTV5), and the DivInc Nonprofit Leader of the Year for 2021.
