Greater Nottingham
I'm a photographer, participatory project practitioner and academic, specialising in creating meaningful images about humanitarian issues through photography and video. Although I work with large organisations and donors, my interest is primarily in the people and communities I collaborate with. My academic research practice explores participatory photography projects in post-conflict environments, working towards creative approaches that address both the roots of conflict and the inherent power relationships in the development sector. I work with a broad range of organisations and donors, from the EC and the UN to smaller security, peace-building organisations. I have over 10 years experience working in the field including: Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan, DRC, Kenya, Bangladesh and Sierra Leone.
I'm responsible for designing and implementing curriculum, such as module design, programme structure and assessment frameworks. Alongside my teaching practice I am working on various AHRC and EU funding applications for creative cultural projects that engage with peacebuilding and community development.
I lead a team of eight academics delivering an undergraduate programme to approximately 120 students. I'm responsible for day to day management of the programme, such as overseeing recruitment, assessment, resources and academic support for students. Key to the role is developing a vision and strategy that reflects contemporary photographic practices, adequately equipping our graduates to enter the creative industries. During my time in the role I have implemented an entirely revalidated programme structure, this involved developing modules, redefining learning outcomes and assessment strategy in line with internal procedures and those of the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA). Following the revalidation I led the implementation of the new programme, refining modules and assessment structure through the modification process, this process of refinement is ongoing. I continue to practice as a documentary photographer and facilitator of participatory photography projects. My research area investigates ways of navigating the ethical complexities of participatory photography projects in the NGO environment.
Lecturer at Lincoln University. My research currently explores practical and theoretical approaches to participatory photography inspired by developments in forensics as a political practice. I teach still and moving image documentary photography.
I'm delighted to be appointed as the external examiner for the BA (Hons) Photography Degree at Teeside University.
I am the Principle investigator for ‘Visualising Peace’ a £50k GCRF (Global Challenges Research Fund) project which is part of the wider ‘Mobile Art’s for Peace’ research project. The project is a collaboration with the Rwanda Film Institute,mental health organisation ‘Uyisenga Ni Imanzi’ and ‘Never Aging Rwanda’. The project uses film-making and art exhibitions to address the barriers young people face in engaging and influencing community members and policymakers. In Visualising Peace, partner organisations UNM, the Kwetu Film Institute, and Never Again Rwanda are developing a participatory action research model that supports young participants to decode the barriers to their civic engagement, explore their political agency, and communicate their ambitions to community members and targeted policymakers. Three participatory films were produced in collaboration with MAP school children in Rwanda and students and staff at the Kwetu film institute. The MAP school children chose to work with three themes on the topic of mental health. Mental Health in schools, Mental health in the family and street connected mental health. Following series of successful events in Rwanda, which gained significant national press and TV coverage, the Rwanda Biomedical Centre has committed to using co-produced creative arts approaches in their new national youth mental health strategy, a significant policy impact. We are pleased to announce that the co-produced films, along with a toolkit for them to be used by partner organisations are now ready to view: https://map.lincoln.ac.uk/.../mental-health-film-series.../
We are a small company specialising in documenting the work of charities and NGOs. Primarily working in sub-Saharan Africa we undertake commissions for organisations including the EU and UN. I provide images for tourism marketing and travel magazines. I also file pictures for Associated Press and the European Press Photographers’ Association. Exhibitions include the National Portrait Gallery London and the 1650 gallery Los Angeles. I have over 7 years experience working in the field including: Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan, DRC, Kenya & Bangladesh.
In November 2022 I was incredibly fortunate to lead a participatory photography project in Morocco’s Ziz valley with Michelle Walsh and Fadma Ait Mous where we spent a week with a group of Amazigh women. During the week we ran classes in photography, made story boards and created photographs. The women decided they wanted to create images that visualised how they live and experience the desertification of their land, with emphasis placed on the far-reaching consequences of climate change on their daily lives. We are now working on a book of these stories, to publish ready for the next UN COP summit. The women proposed ways of adapting to and managing the changes to the climate, that are impacting them so deeply. I love this collaborative approach to knowledge production, that pushes against the established and entrenched post colonial power dynamics. This project was funded by the Emerald Publishing 'Real Impact Interdisciplinary Research Fund Award' the grant exists to find an innovative project that promotes action towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals, through collaboration of disciplines, methodology and research in order to deliver real world impact.