Say Cheese

Back in November of 2020 we partnered with Fuji Film North America and taught children in Nakivale Refugee Settlement the power of photography.  With Instax cameras and film donated by Fuji in hand, we gathered an energetic group of children, ages 7-16. After a brief bit of instruction, they set out and photographed what caught their eyes:  mostly their friends and families, teachers, the nearby buildings, livestock and sometimes their thumbs (ha!).  We all smiled and laughed as their smiling, surprised and shy faces slowly emerged on the developing film.  These children have endured so much in their short lives and to see them joyful, expressing themselves and bonding through art, play, and experimentation made for a perfect afternoon.

Nakivale is the oldest refugee settlement in Uganda and home to over 130,000 refugees fleeing from 6 nearby countries.  With a return home or acceptance from a host country unlikely, these families are looking to plant roots and to start a new safer life right in the refugee settlement.  These photos told this story.  We witnessed hard-working families, struggles, happy children, community, beautiful landscape and a sense of hope. 

 We are returning back to Uganda this month and Fuji Film graciously donated more cameras and film so that we can capture even more moments.  And now that we have a little more experience wrangling a group of excited kids, we’ll be expanding this project into Kyebando, an urban slum in Kampala.

Have a look some of the photos from our trip in November