Hello

Bevelyn Afor Ukah is an artist, storyteller, facilitator, and educator based in North Carolina. A Black Nigerian American with roots in the American South, she draws inspiration from the cultures, cosmologies, and everyday wisdom of Africa and its diaspora. Her work moves between art studios, farms, classrooms, and community gathering spaces, exploring how creativity can help us know ourselves, care for one another, and imagine more just ways of living.

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Bevelyn’s mixed media practice explores positive body image, ecological justice, ancestry, and human connection. With an ongoing invitation of whimsy, her work examines the complexity of being human with the hope that her work is also a call to action.  She is interested in the stories held in our bodies, families, and landscapes: what we inherit, what we choose to carry forward, and what is ready to be released. 

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Bevelyn serves as Co-Director of the Collective on Racial Equity (CORE) in the Food System. Her work connects racial justice, food justice, and community leadership through workshops, arts-based engagement, and gatherings designed for for reflection and accountability.​ As cofounder of Mother Tree Permaculture, Bevelyn helps cultivate learning spaces rooted in ecological relationships, racial equity, and collective care. Her contributions connect the practical work of tending land with questions about culture, belonging, and power. Bevelyn is a coach and avid cheerleader- if you are working with her, your are bound to move toward your goals with strategy and a ton of support. 

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She has served on several boards including Transplanting Traditions Community Farm, School for Living Futures, The NC Climate Justice Collective, and the National Rooted in Community Youth Network. 

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Her work has been recognized with NC State University’s Chancellor’s Creating Community Outstanding Staff Award (2023) and the North Carolina Environmental Justice Network’s Steve Wing International Environmental Justice Academic Award (2026).

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Her academic grounding includes studies in International Studies, Sociology, and Anthropology at Guilford College and a master’s degree in Intercultural Service, Leadership, and Management from SIT Graduate Institute. She was a Bonner Scholar, Multicultural Leadership Scholar and currently celebrates her acceptance into the National Council of Elders network. 

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Across these interconnected practices, Bevelyn returns to an invitation: know yourself deeply, practice kindness toward yourself, and let that awareness shape how you show up for others.