Changing worlds with photography.

Booomers International, Ghana -  Annalise Kaylor

"While the rest of the world has been improving technology, Ghana has been improving the quality of mans humanity to a man." - Maya Angelou

All of my life, I’ve been passionate about sustainability projects, and have specifically sought out causes and organizations that understand that empowering people and changing lives is a huge part of creating a more sustainable world. Booomers International, does exactly that and more. The more I looked into their work, the more I knew I needed to help tell their story and share their powerful mission with the world. You can read a little more about Booomers and the work they do in this piece from CNN's African Start-up series.

I was drawn to the Booomers project because they are a great example of how social enterprise can lift up people and make a positive impact at the local level, but also on a more global scale. Booomers has created a place for rural youth, ages 18-29, to learn about all aspects of business, from working with supply chain in procuring bamboo from Ghanan farmers to manufacturing and crafting their bamboo products. Soon, they can add sustainable farming to that list, as they just bought a 50-acre parcel of land to start cultivating their own bamboo, too. Bamboo is fast-growing, thriving in soil conditions that are often inhospitable to other plants, and a single acre of bamboo can fix approximately 25 metric tons of atmospheric carbon dioxide in a year! All of this work combined - sourcing, farming, manufacturing - has resulted in a small, but important online shop, selling bamboo bike frames and products so the money can be invested back into their enterprise.

Bikes are everywhere in Ghana, and with good reason - towns, schools, and basic needs are often many miles apart. The Booomers Bike to School programs improves the lives of vulnerable Ghanan children, especially the girls, by providing them with bikes to get to and from school. Their work also helps support literacy development, as the Ghana Educational Service reported in 2010, that 64% of school children could not effectively read or write. And further, Booomers helps support a scholarship program so those children have the basic needs for school - supplies and their uniform - taken care of.

In order for great organizations like Booomers to continue to grow, they need powerful marketing materials like videos and photography. By donating my time and talent, I will create new videos that could help them earn more grants, seek private donations that help them expand their reach, and help their voices be heard.

I spent nearly two decades in digital marketing before making the career change to full-time visual storytelling. For me, that change was largely based around my passion for amplifying the voices of those who need to be heard most. My background in marketing helps me take the strategic needs of the business side of an organization and translate those needs into compelling narrative told through my photography and videography.

In supporting me, and this project, those who choose to donate will be helping me help the people of rural Ghana, and specifically the children of rural Ghana. Because this project taps into my passions for sustainability in farming and education and literacy for all, I can tell the Booomers story effectively, and with a fresh perspective.

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
• Visas
• Vaccinations
• Health Insurance
• Travel Insurance

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.

PWB is not responsible for any donations made outside of these pages.

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 photographers/videographers assigned cause and PWB, which is also a volunteer-run organization.

PLEASE DONATE GENEROUSLY !

Learn more about PWB.

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