Carlton Turner is a performing artist, organizer, policy shaper, lecturer, consultant, and facilitator. He co-founded and is Co-Director of The Mississippi Center for Cultural Production in 2016 in Utica. MCCP uses story to address food insecurity and to support community, cultural, and economic development.Before founding MCCP, Turner was the Executive Director of Alternate ROOTS, a regional arts service organization based in the South, supporting artists working at the intersection of art and social justice.