Hey, I’m Ariel. I’m a queer, multiracial author, editor, media strategist, creative director, activist, organizer, traveler, event planner, plant mom, and sometimes-poet based in Brooklyn, New York City.

I hold two degrees in publishing and currently serve as editorial strategy director at the Vera Institute of Justice, where I spend my days working with writers, researchers, data analysts, and advocates to develop publications and content with the goal of ending mass incarceration in the United States. Before Vera, I spent eight years in different roles on the communications team at Lambda Legal, the oldest and largest LGBTQ and HIV civil rights legal organization in the world, where I ultimately served as deputy digital director.

I have also been a member of Wanderful’s team for over a decade. At Wanderful, I offer programmatic support and creatively direct our mission and vision, and am a founding organizer for the WITS Travel Creator Summit, an international gathering that brings content creators, industry members, and thought leaders together to learn, collaborate, and build a more ethical and diverse travel industry. My work at Wanderful also encompasses the Bessie Awards and Wanderfest.

My passion is for communication and expression, particularly in service of equity and justice. A child of the 90s, I have grown up fascinated by the ways in which storytelling manifests in art and in our hyperconnected world, learned to code HTML at 13, have edited for authors across the globe, and have had my work recognized by Forbes, Refinery29, Teen Vogue, the Shorty Awards, World Travel Market (WTM), and more.

In my professional life, I can often be found editing everything from research reports to personal essays, developing and deploying multichannel multimedia projects, and collaborating with experts on cutting-edge event programming.

In my personal life, when I’m not traveling, I can often be found walking around my Brooklyn neighborhood and attempting to pet every single dog I meet.

SOME BRANDS & ORGS I’VE WORKED WITH