About Us

Julie Pham, PhD

Founder and CEO

I’m always looking for the question behind the question. I decided to take my 15+ years of community-organizing, including building a cross-sector collaboration fellowship for the tech industry, founding an ethnic media coalition, running a Vietnamese-language newspaper, and mobilizing small business owners in South Seattle, combined with my 8 years of academic research, to start CuriosityBased. I have deep experience in motivating people from diverse personal and professional backgrounds to connect and collaborate. My approach to belonging and inclusion has been informed by having lived as an expatriate in Germany, France, England, and Vietnam and having grown up as a refugee in the US. I believe learning continues after we leave school, which is why I’m dedicated to helping our clients build learning organizations. I thrive when I’m surrounded by learn-it-all’s.

I have designed and led workshops, lectures, and conferences, ranging from 6 to 2,000 people and have been invited to speak to audiences from diverse industries around the world, from Yangon, Myanmar to Bratterboro, Vermont. As a writer and speaker, I’m known for my willingness to get vulnerable, to reframe the way we look at common assumptions, and to offer practical advice combined with a thought-provoking call to action. I love hosting dinner parties, reading novels, and talking to friends while walking.

Hnin Johnson, MSW, MPA

Project Manager

I actively integrate the Three Marks of Existence into my approach to teamwork and collaboration. Born and raised in Myanmar, and like many teenagers in a least-developed country, I left my home in search of better educational and economic opportunities. Over the years, I’ve lived and worked in various places and held different jobs, which has led me to deeply appreciate Buddha’s teachings and the value of embracing change. My career journey has taken me from being a semiconductor technician to working in social services and now navigating the startup world to support others in their success.

At CuriosityBased, I have contributed to initial research for workshops, assisted in launching Dr. Julie Pham’s book “7 Forms of Respect,” and taken on a generalist role involving tasks such as tech support, research, marketing support, and administrative functions to multimedia design. Outside of work, I dedicate my time to volunteering, baking, practicing yoga at home, and taking short walks in the neighborhood. I strive to live a life of simplicity and service, finding contentment in what I have and can do, and adapting to the ever-changing nature of life by keeping the five precepts as my ethical guide.

Linh Huynh, MSW

Learning and Development Manager

I’m someone who likes to explore people’s thought processes and how they view the world. Being born and raised in Seattle as the child of Vietnamese immigrants, then moving to California, I’ve come to understand what people meant by the “Seattle Freeze”, which refers to locals’ unfriendliness toward newcomers and outsiders. I’ve learned that I don’t enjoy the “Seattle Freeze” because I enjoy chatting with people and meeting strangers from all kinds of backgrounds, as it offers me fresh perspectives on life, even if it’s a short conversation. I especially enjoy helping others understand concepts or solve problems. To me, it’s like solving a puzzle by exploring different ways to explain things. I strive to make a more direct impact with individuals by helping people gain clarity and understanding around concepts and people they are trying to understand.

Because I like teaching, I have become the Senior Learning and Development Specialist on the CuriosityBased Team. I help iterate and facilitate our Learning Experiences, aka workshops, to create the optimal learning environments for learners in virtual and in-person settings. Before CuriosityBased, I’ve worked at nonprofits, educational institutions, and government agencies serving diverse populations. Outside of work, I love anything tea related (especially boba), play tennis, and thrift. I’m currently curious about boxing and baking.

Maia Segura

Marketing Manager

I’m an idea person. But whenever I start a new project, the thing that gets me most excited is not knowing what I don’t know.

Instead of feeling adrift, I lean into my curiosity. As people react to my ideas with their own knowledge and experience, it allows us to come to powerful solutions that none of us could have reached on our own. So, for me, the CuriosityBased principles are both a way of life and a foundation for my business.

My husband and I founded our economic and community development-focused marketing and communications business over a decade ago. We lived in and served one of the most diverse communities in the USA. It was our mission to both find the common ground as a wide community, and to lift others to celebrate their own unique cultural communities. We continue to bring that sensibility to all the communities that we serve through our work – public, private, big or small.

Having lived in places like Thailand, Tasmania, Minneapolis, Long Beach and Sunset Beach, CA, and Seattle, I’ve always kept a mix of cultural creative curiosities including music, visual, and performance arts, global and local travel, cooking and eating. We now live in Southern Vermont with our two cats & two dogs and where I’m also board chair for a community organization that is preserving and activating an 1850’s one-room schoolhouse that serves as our local community center.

Joining CuriosityBased as marketing manager, I am learning what I don’t know, but I’m excited leaning into the team’s collective curiosity as we explore possibilities.

Lourdes Tsukada

Business Development Manager

I am a native-born Cuban who has lived in Venezuela, France, Italy, and Argentina, and I’m fluent in English, Spanish, and Italian. Over the past 23+ years, I’ve built a diverse career that includes roles in international logistics, lending, interpreting, sales, business ownership, and entrepreneurship. I also created and hosted the first live weekly Spanish mortgage Q&A radio show.

As the Business Development Manager at CuriosityBased, I focus on cultivating business relationships, conducting market research, and discovering new opportunities. I enjoy connecting with people from diverse cultures and backgrounds, and continuously enjoy learning along the way.