Veronika Châtelain

Veronika Châtelain was born in Lenapehoking (/ləˈnɑːp) / Brooklyn, New York to immigrant parents. She is a cultural producer and grant maker working with visual artists, storytellers, and creatives who challenge the false and dangerous narratives of BIPOC communities. As an advocate for Caribbean and African diasporic art, she collaborates with and supports artists from communities that question systemic racism and distorted histories through critical engagement and collaborative initiatives. Ultimately she aspires for her work to drive institutional transformations that will radically support equity among Black and Indigenous spaces. While receiving a Masters degree in International Affairs with a concentration in media and culture from The New School, she worked on a thesis which presented research and analysis of the impacts of Western Evangelism on the Haïtian and Caribbean communities and their ancestral religions.

Châtelain is currently the Grant Partnership Lead for the Culture and Art program at Open Society Foundations, where she oversees the Moving Walls Fellowship for documentary artists and co-leads the initiative for the African Cultural Heritage Restitution.