Kay Bounkeua

Kay Bounkeua is a mom, wife, and daughter to strong and loving immigrants who journeyed from Laos into New Mexico.

She received her master of public health degree from the University of Michigan, was the first Asian American woman to serve as a New Mexico state legislator, and has over fifteen years of executive leadership in local and national nonprofits and boards.

She is a graduate of the Asian Pacific American Women’s Leadership Institute, W.K. Kellogg Foundation’s Community Leadership Network, and the Clinton’s School of Public Service. She is a current board member at NM Center on Law and Poverty and ChangeLab Solutions.

To better support communities and leaders, Kay launched Ma Der Collaborations in 2024, an independent consulting business that provides services around organizational capacity building and development, policy and advocacy support, leadership building for emerging and current leaders, and program design and implementation for nonprofits, businesses, governments, and foundations grounded in deep relationship building and storytelling.

Q: Our theme is “Building Belonging in Albuquerque”. What does this mean to you, and what can people do to nurture this?

Bounkeua: I am beyond blessed to be the mom to an incredibly thoughtful six year old daughter, and I often think of belongingness in a way that she might be able to understand both intellectually and while feeling it in her soul, heart, mind and body. After school, I often ask her these questions: who did you play with at recess? How did you help your class today? What was your favorite thing you learned?

Through her answers, I’m able to get a sense of who her community is and how she is included and includes others, if she has the confidence and ability to offer her gifts to the larger group, and if there are opportunities that exist, resonate, and are accessible to who she is as a growing person.

Similarly, I reflect on whether everyone in Albuquerque has the ability to access opportunities, is included and deeply connected to communities, and is able to engage in and have the power to make change within spaces that both see and value their inherent humanity while being invested in and resourced to grow their full potential. It strikes me that these basic fundamentals are a critical part of what drives belongingness for children, adults, and whole communities.

Q: What do you hope to see for our community’s growth in the next few years?

Bounkeua: In 1984, the year I was born, leaders in the APINH community began to formulate the idea of building a community center that honors, supports, and regenerates the APINH community, specifically the children and future children who will become our leaders. While there has been incredible ground gained for our communities - and proudly by our communities, we have yet to see the manifestation of this space. This is a legacy we cannot pass on to the next generation - my daughter cannot be advocating for this same goal when she’s 40.

I hope that we are able to see the completion of an APINH center for the entire state of New Mexico where we - the collective ‘we’ inclusive of and beyond APINH people - are seen, valued, and acknowledged and where we can further dismantle the myth of a tricultural state.

Q: Who were your mentors, and how do you honor those who came before us? Do you have any advice for people looking to find their own mentors?

Bounkeua: My mentors are and have always been my parents, immigrant leaders, emerging leaders, social change drivers, and the natural world that holds us - all of whom consistently show up, lead with love, boldness and through joy, and who are deeply rooted in their values. I hope I honor my ancestors by remembering their names, their journeys, and furthering the legacies they have built - whether through policy and systemic changes, through care and softness in nurturing relationships with all beings including the natural world, or seeing out their vision of belongingness and healing for all.

Q: Can you talk a bit about your heritage and why APINH visibility is important to you?

Bounkeua: I grew up in a mixed-status family, with cultural, historical, and geographic ties to Laos, China, and Thailand. I experienced how deeply policy decisions impacted my family’s ability to access education, employment, and healthcare and how often APINH communities were made smaller or altogether forgotten when it came to civic participation.

Our ability to speak our home languages, surround ourselves with our communities, and share our gifts within community processes were often met with fear, retaliation, and stigma. Unfortunately, these same conditions across the nation are continuing, reemerging and being amplified for Black, Indigenous and communities of color.

If our communities continue to be othered for the sake of a few being able to hold power, we will never see a world where all of our children can thrive to their full potential.

Visibility for all, including APINH communities, is necessary in order to see, recognize, and honor the humanity within everyone.

Q: As the first Asian-American woman to service in the New Mexico Legislature, what did that moment mean for you personally and for our community?

Bounkeua: For me personally, it was a moment where someone like me - who grew up feeling like such an outsider in this state because of how I looked, the languages I spoke, and having grown up economically poor - could bring these lived experiences into a position that could make a powerful impact for communities across the state. It was a moment in history where I hoped my daughter and all children could see themselves reflected, and know that they could break through any barriers put in their path.

For our community, the moment had nothing to do with me and was a reflection of how far our state still has to go in being representative of the people that reside here. It was also a moment of remembering - remembering that so many people paved the way to make room for someone with my background to be in leadership, and that so many APINH leaders have served and are currently serving in different leadership capacities across the local, state, and national levels.

Ultimately, I chose not to run again for my seat so that I could be present for my daughter, who was two when I was first appointed - and was a decision that I knew deeply aligned to who I am as a person.

Q: What advice would you give to the next generation of Asian Pacific Islander Native Hawaiian leaders interested in public service or politics?

Bounkeua: Know who you are and what you stand for so you can ask yourself every night if what you accomplished that day is something you can be proud of and something that honors the ancestors who guide you. If you’ve lost your way, if you no longer are able to find joy, lead with love, and care for yourself and those you have responsibility towards through your work, surround yourself with those who can guide you back on your path of remembering your life’s purpose.

How to Support Kay Bounkeua’s Work

Contact at madercollaborations.com