I am a photographer living in Victoria, British Columbia. My photography focuses on creating a visual narrative on social issues like land rights, environmental abuse and poverty. I look for cracks in what is presented, I search behind the veil of normalcy to see the untold story. I am a witness to injustices, I seek hidden truths. I wish for my images to connect people, to break biases and objectively but intimately show a real moment. Through this campaign, I hope to shed light on sensitive issues, to go beyond standard documentation, and reveal the humanity and emotions that are actually affected.

I knew about Female Genital Mutilation before this journey began. But it wasn't until I dug deeper that I undiscovered the incredible horrors of it. It's tradition is rooted mainly in ignorance of sexual health, and of stubbornly following cultural norms. Writer Abigail Haworth, in a 2012 piece in The Observer wrote,

"Hdjella led me to a four-year-old girl who was lying down. As the girl squirmed, two midwives put their faces close to hers. They smiled at her, making soft noises, but their hands took an arm and a leg each in a claw-like grip. "Look, look," Hdjella commanded, as a third woman leant in and steadily snipped off part of the girl's clitoris with what looked like a pair of nail scissors. "It's nothing, you see? There is not much blood. All done!" The girl's scream was a long guttural rattle, which got louder as the midwife dabbed at her genitals with antiseptic.

In the dingy, crowded room, her cries merged with the sobs and screeches of other girls lying on desks, the grating sing-song clucking of the midwives, the surreally casual conversational hum of waiting mothers. There was no air.

Outside in the courtyard, the festive atmosphere grew as girls and their mothers emerged from the classroom. There were snacks and music, and later, prayers.

Ety, 40, was elated. She had brought her two daughters, aged seven and three, to be cut. "I want them to be teachers. Being circumcised will bring them good luck," she said. Ety was a farmer who came from a village outside Bandung. "Daughters should be pure and obey their parents."

Pastoralist Child Foundation is an organization that works with the Samburu and Maasai women and community leaders in Archer's Post, Kenya. Through educational workshops and community events they aim to "discuss the myths, facts, and harmful effects of FGM and child marriage amongst other important topics like teen pregnancies and disease." Their goal is to completely eradicate the practice of Female Genital Mutilation by 2030. For more information about the organization visit http://pastoralistchildfoundation.org/ 

I will be travelling to Kenya in November, 2018 with Pastoralist Child Foundation to document their work as an NGO in the area. Photographing their work with local women and community leaders, my aim is to assist the organizations goal in educating people about this dangerous, unnecessary and barbaric tradition. 

Every year, our photographers and videographers donate hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of their time to document the work of grassroots initiatives that are making a real change in this world where it is most needed. By capturing, honouring and witnessing humanity at its best, we are not only inspiring many, but we are forging new narratives of what is and what is possible. 

You can help by supporting our photographers and videographers (See the side bar to the right to see fundraisers for our most recent recruits).

Each of our official photographers/videographers is assigned a GroupRev fundraising page by PWB upon acceptance. These pages are a privilege we offer that are intended to make our programs accessible to all and enable our volunteer photographers/videographers to raise their program fees and subsidize or cover these necessary project-related expenses:

• Airfare
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The following expenses are the sole responsibility of the photographer/videographer:

• Privately arranged travel / Equipment & Equipment Insurance / Software / Extra Baggage Fees / Donation perks / Clothing / Postage/Postcard / Prints / Etc.

Photographers Without Borders® (PWB) envisions a world where we all put ourselves in each others' shoes and work together. Our mission is to inform and inspire positive change by visually communicating the ways that grassroots initiatives are addressing problems in their communities. PWB is registered as a charity in the United States with 501(c)(3) status and is registered as a not-for-profit organization in Canada. All donations are calculated in US Dollars and are tax-deductible for Americans and Canadians with US income.

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Any overage amounts raised on GroupRev will be donated with the photographers direction, 100% to the Organization, 100% to PWB or split 50/50, between the photographer's/videographer's assigned cause and PWB, which is also a volunteer-run organization.

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All donations are calculated in US Dollars and are tax-deductible for Americans and Canadians with US income.