Port-au-Prince, Haiti– July 11, 2024 – The Caribbean Culture Fund (CCF) announced the winners of its first round of grants this morning in an online forum attended by nearly 200 creatives from across the region.

The inaugural grants total USD 250,000 and will be distributed to projects from Barbados, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, the Dominican Republic, and Haiti. The winners were selected by an independent pool of jurors including Maria Elena Ortiz, Loira Limbal, Edouard Duval Carrie, Kristina Newman-Scott, Georgia Popplewell, John Hunte and Diogenes Ballester.

Maria Elena Ortiz, who served as Moderator of the jury, congratulated the applicants for the overall excellence of their ideas. “The selection process for us was quite enriching,” Ortiz noted. “We got to learn from new artists or practitioners we would not know about, and also see how the work of artists that we knew will continue to grow. .

“I encourage you to continue to take advantage of all the orientation sessions that the Caribbean Cultural Fund provides. As part of the selection process, we also wanted to make sure that all the participating countries were represented, as well as have a cohort of projects that nurture each other and that very much speak together of what they’re trying to do collectively” she added. 

At the announcement event, the CCF also introduced its second call for proposals through its partnership with the Andrew Mellon Foundation. Support from the Mellon Foundation will increase the number of grants the CCF will distribute, add funding for residencies, fellowships and exchanges and support the creation of a searchable database of funding opportunities to be made available via the CCF website, caribbeanculturefund.org. 

The partnership will also promote and support advocacy efforts for increased funding in arts and culture.

Details of the winning projects and the next call for proposals will be available online at caribbeanculturefund.org. For more information, email [email protected]. 

About the Caribbean Culture Fund (CCF):

The Caribbean Culture Fund is dedicated to raising and distributing funds to artists and arts organisations in the Caribbean and its diasporas. By promoting social and cultural justice, the CCF aims to foster intercultural dialogue and mutual understanding through financial resources and support programs for individual and collaborative projects.