TransCultural Exchange’s Fellows bring a new generation’s vision and inspiration to the organization, extending its reach and deepening its impact to foster cross-cultural understanding, bridge divides, and promote peace and goodwill for generations to come.
Coco Allred is an artist, educator, and arts administrator based in Cambridge, MA, and Seattle, WA. Her practice explores the intersections of public space, aesthetics, and experimental pedagogy. With a background in sculpture, printmaking, interdisciplinary programming, and intergenerational teaching, Coco designs participatory environments that activate space as a site for collective learning and resistance. Coco has a BFA program at Carnegie Mellon University with a concentration in Sculpture and a minor in Human-Computer Interaction, and a master’s degree in Art, Culture, and Technology from the School of Architecture and Planning at MIT.
Frank Haotian Cong is a media artist and educator based in Cambridge, USA, and Shanghai, China. His practice and research explore the poetic possibilities between computational systems and biological media. He has exhibited, curated, and presented at a range of art, design, and technology institutions and events, including Première Vision in Paris (2016), the Consciousness Reframed Conference (2017), Out of Control at Songjiang Art Museum (2018), Ars Electronica in Linz (2019), the Shanghai Science Festival (2020), Lab2 at Liu Haisu Art Museum (2022), and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (2023–2025). Frank is the founder of Knot Cafe, an independent art studio. He has also held teaching positions at institutions including New York University Shanghai, the Shanghai Institute of Visual Arts, the China Academy of Art, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Jessica Hernandez is a DJ, sound artist, and curator. In terms of visual art, her interests include sculpture, installation, and textiles. She is also drawn to work that relates to archives, engages with text, and explores the ontology of objects, Blackness, and the Caribbean. As a musician and sound artist, her practice relies on the heavy processing of found samples and field recordings. In 2024, she and Aaron Michael Smith founded Transporter, an experimental music series located at the Boston Cyberarts Gallery. With Lori Martinez, she organizes WWL — a working group for queer and non-binary musicians. She runs Project One, a mix series mostly dedicated to techno. She graduated with a B.A. in Peace Conflict Studies in 2020 and an M.A. in History at the University of Virginia in 2022. She began working with UVA in 2022 and became Managing Director in 2024.
Daniel Keating, Jr. is an artist, civic technologist, and public servant based in Boston. His work investigates complex systems through embedded practice. Currently he’s positioned himself within public infrastructure as an MBTA bus operator to document civic life through accessible poetry. Before turning to cities, he spent years working on a farm in Amesbury, Massachusetts, an experience that continues to inform his understanding of systems, seasons, and the labor that sustains communities. He has served as Boston’s Inaugural Emerging Technology Fellow, developing AI translation services for underserved language communities, and as Highway Administrator for Newburyport. His work has been presented at Harvard Kennedy School of Government and exhibited at MIT Media Lab. He also holds dual degrees in Urban and Organization Studies and Management from UMass Amherst by way of Northern Essex Community College.
U-Meleni “Mel” Mhlaba-Adebo is a Zimbabwean-American multidisciplinary artist, published author, poet, and educator based in Boston, with an international practice spanning the United States, Nigeria, and Zimbabwe. Her work uses storytelling as a methodology for cultural preservation, social impact, and cross-cultural exchange. She is a 2025 Baldwin for the Arts Fellow and a 2023 Brother Thomas Fellow, and in 2023 received a Certificate of Recognition from Boston Mayor Michelle Wu for her creative and community impact. Her work has been presented at the Museum of Fine Arts Boston and Harvard Graduate School of Education. She is the author of Soul Psalms, with writing published in Mothering Egg Review, Ipikai Journal, and Write On The Dot Journal, and included in Under the Skin. She is founder of Maoko Project and a former board member of Mass Poetry.
Mary Muldoon is a photographer, mixed media artist, grant writer, and arts administrator. She specializes in street photography, capturing moments across New England, South Carolina, and Europe. She also enjoys experimenting with mixed media, exploring ideas of scale, volume, and creativity through playful and unconventional approaches. She has experience supporting exhibitions, coordinating events, contributing to grant research and writing, and managing digital archives across gallery and public arts settings. Her work includes assisting with large-scale festivals, coordinating artist workshops, organizing logistics, and supporting marketing and communications efforts. As an arts administrator, Mary is focused on developing sustainable arts programming, expanding opportunities for cross-cultural collaboration, and building accessible, community-driven cultural initiatives. She graduated from the College of Charleston in 2024 with dual degrees in Studio Art and Arts Management.
A recent graduate from Boston College with a B.A. in Linguistics, Veronica Redlitz joined TransCultural Exchange in 2023 as an intern. Now Assistant to the Director, she has a variety of responsibilities and has gained experience across many areas of nonprofit administration. Veronica has contributed to the planning and execution of several events for the organization, including its 2025 International Conference on Opportunities in the Arts: Avenues for Daring. In her work on TCE TV (TransCultural Exchange’s TV series), she is responsible for researching and locating archival images and footage, creating subtitles, obtaining copyright and talent permissions, organizing script files and general ongoing support. Veronica also manages marketing and communications for TransCultural Exchange. She runs the Instagram and Facebook accounts as well as conducts email outreach campaigns, leveraging these platforms to expand the organization’s global network.
Qudrat Wasefi is an Afghan composer and trumpeter. He studied music at the Afghanistan National Institute of Music and founded a choir for children from AFCECO orphanages, composing patriotic songs that embodied Afghan Resilience. He released the moving music video “The Children of War,” capturing the resilience and innocence prevailing amidst adversity. His composition “A Candle of Hope in the Darkness” united Italian musicians, and performances with the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra and a string quartet in Melbourne showcased the fusion of music’s universal language with Afghanistan’s cultural tapestry. Notably, he orchestrated the Afghan song “Ay Shakh-e Gul” for the “American Festival Chorus,” at Utah State University. In early 2023, he founded the “Afghanistan Freeharmonic Orchestra” who had a series of concerts in Boston in October 2023, aiming to reunite Afghan musicians who have lost connection or hope amidst their homeland’s challenges. His music serves as a catalyst for peace and freedom.
Abigail Worden is a recent honors graduate from the Suffolk University Studio Art program and holds a minor in Graphic Design. Throughout their degree they focused on the intersection of traditional physical media and modern digital processes. They specialize in publication design and production as well as fine art adaptation for advertising. While at Suffolk they led an organization that provided free technicians and equipment for local performance groups.