The document describes a participatory photography project called PhotoVoice and See it Our Way that empowered young people in communities affected by human trafficking. The project trained participants in photography skills and had them document the risks and impacts of trafficking in their communities. The images and stories were then used locally and internationally to raise awareness and influence policies to prevent trafficking.

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PhotoVoice
and
See it Our Way

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A world in which everyone has the means to speak
out and be heard, in order to represent themselves
and work towards positive social change.
VISION
MISSION
To empower disadvantaged and marginalised
individuals and communities to improve their
social and economic situation through
photography and digital media by creating images
as a tool for change.

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“Participation is involvement by a local population and, at times,
additional stakeholders in the creation, content and conduct of a
program or policy designed to change their lives. Built on a
belief that citizens can be trusted to shape their own future,
participatory development uses local decision making and
capacities to steer and define the nature of an intervention.”
USAID publication: Participatory Development as New Paradigm:
The Transition of Development
Professionalism, by Ray Jennings, October 2000
Why Participation?

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• Accessible (for participants and audiences)
• Immediate
• Versatile
• Effective
• Creates external focus for discussion
• Enables self-exploration and self-
representation
• Crosses cultural and language barriers
• Combination of documentary and subjective
viewpoint
Why Photography?

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Exploring and supporting innovative
uses of participatory photography
• Therapeutic Photography
• Photography with young refugees
• Photography with vulnerable women
• Photography for Advocacy (coming soon!)
• Sensory Photography
Resources:
www.photovoice.org/shop/info/methodology-series

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All girls like to look at themselves in the mirror, but I have never been able to do
this. When I touched the rear view mirror of this car and felt the cool shade of the
surrounding trees, I really wanted to use my camera to record the reflected image.
By Li Ning, China
From Sights Unseen: Photography by Blind and Visually Impaired People

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Because of my HIV status,
the doctors suggested I
had an abortion. I didn’t
do it, and now my children
pray for my health. The
most important thing is
that they have no such
diagnosis themselves.
By Katya, St Petersburg,
Russia
From We Are Together:
Photographs by young
people living with HIV

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Whoever we are, we are still children in our souls. I dreamt from early childhood to attend
school; I don’t know why my parents were against that. Then I grew up and started to pass
exams. There are children who want to go to school but no one understands them. Then
they start running away from homes and try to survive with other street children, some of
whom take drugs and are ill. By Viktoria Parshnuk, St Petersburg, Russia
From We Are Together: Photographs by young people living with HIV

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This is Muktaran Bibi, who with her family is engaged in the separation of garbage.
By Munna Kumar, India
From Images of Foul Play: Photographs by members of the Dalit community

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When I entered the slum, this mother came with a photograph of her lost daughter;
I want to help her get her daughter back through my photographs.
By Jyotiprava Nayak, India
From Images of Foul Play: Photographs by members of the Dalit community

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She cannot go out without
permission, even to take her
photograph her father-in-law
had to give permission. She will
live her life within these four
walls and die here as well.
By Mahjabeen Bhat, India
From Images of Foul Play:
Photographs by members of
the Dalit community

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She looks so happy eating that fruit. I can understand that happiness of getting
something that you can never afford.
By Rajkumar Bohat, India
From Images of Foul Play: Photographs by members of the Dalit community

23. See it Our Way
Young people speak out about the risks and root causes of human
trafficking in their communities.
No one deserves to be
left alone.
By Sakhatel, Armenia

24. Human Trafficking is the term used to describe the trade in people – for whatever
reason. It could be for manual labour, domestic work, prostitution, begging rings or
babies for childless couples. In all cases, someone is making money out of another
human being. It is modern day slavery.
See it Our Way
These hands pray for
freedom.
By Gohar Hakobyan,
Armenia

25. Victims of trafficking are not always abducted – they could be tricked with an offer
of well paid employment or marriage, or in some cases will see the arrangement as
an opportunity for a better life. The root causes may therefore be existing poverty
and social deprivation, rather than simply the criminal activities of the traffickers.
See it Our Way
By Janet, Romania

26. In 2010, international charities PhotoVoice and World Vision joined forces to run
photography workshops with young people from communities affected by human
trafficking and child slavery across Middle East and Eastern Europe.
See it Our Way
By Janet, Romania
Photo treasure-hunt activity,
Romania
Photo by Matt Daw

27. Workshops were held in Albania, Armenia, Lebanon, Romania and Pakistan.
The risks and realities of human trafficking are different in each country, and between
them they represent source, transit and destination countries used by traffickers.
See it Our Way
By Janet, Romania
Albania, Romania, Lebanon, Armenia, Pakistan… so many
places in the world fighting together against trafficking.
By Adelajda, Albania

28. The young people participating in the project used their new photography skills to
explore the risks and impact of human trafficking on them and their communities. In
some cases this process caused them to reconsider what can count as exploitation.
See it Our Way
Workshop, Lebanon
By Jenny Matthews

29. The work will be used locally and internationally to raise awareness and myth-bust
about the reality of human trafficking, and to shed light on what can be done to stop
people becoming victims to exploitation.
See it Our Way
By Janet, RomaniaI know what trafficking is.
I can never be deceived.
By Rima Nazaretyan, Armenia

30. In Armenia, an exhibition will tour schools to inform older students soon to leave
school of the risks they face from apparently attractive overseas work schemes.
See it Our Way
Your passport is your identity, do not
trust it to anybody else
By Gohar Hakobyan, Armenia

31. In Lebanon a campaign aimed at drivers in Beirut will encourage them to see street
children as victims of exploitation and not as a nuisance or a service to use.
See it Our Way
A child should always be happy,
not alone, not on the streets.
By Ahmed Abass, Lebanon

32. The Workshop Process
•Photography skills
•Visual literacy
•Exploring and discussing the issues
•Deciding what needs to change
•Copyright, consent & model release
•Creating images for campaigning
•Writing captions
•Having fun!

33. Outputs & Outcomes
•Local staff trained in a new tool
•Local exhibitions and campaigns
•Local press interest in issues
•Participants have new skills
•Participants know more about
issues
•Increased confidence
•Images used in campaigning

34. We all know stories of children disappearing from our area…
By Mariglena, Albania
See it Our Way

35. Not thinking about trafficking is
not going to make it go away.
By Mariglen, Albania
See it Our Way

36. Don’t make quick judgments on things you see; sometimes it’s hard to tell if a
child is a victim or just playing. By Mariglen, Albania
See it Our Way

37. For trafficked people the sight of their future is limited. But there is hope,
since we know that in a dark room even a small window can shed light to cast
away this darkness. By Rodolf, Albania
See it Our Way

38. Many girls in our
neighbourhood miss out on
school and have to do
housework. I hope that our
pictures and messages clean
up misconceptions about
trafficking.
By Bukurie, Albania
See it Our Way

39. This is where the most vulnerable families in our neighbourhood live. The river
often floods taking away their few belongings. From the lack of money and poor
conditions people become vulnerable to traffickers. By Rodolf, Albania
See it Our Way

40. This baby bear was born in freedom, captured, and now is chained to make
money for its owners. If you don’t question things they will never change.
By Elis, Albania
See it Our Way

41. A child shouldn’t be on the street. You shouldn’t exploit your child for money.
By Ibrahem, Lebanon
See it Our Way

42. A child shouldn't sacrifice his studies to do shoe shining.
By Ahmed Hmedi, Lebanon
See it Our Way

43. A cat shouldn't be in a cage, it should have its freedom‚ children also should
have their freedom. By Soha, Lebanon
See it Our Way

44. A child shouldn’t work at this age, he should be at school.
By Ahmed Abass, Lebanon
See it Our Way

45. The boy I photographed
didn't want to show his face.
We should respect his right
not to show his identity.
By Talal, Lebanon
See it Our Way

46. She’s a 16 year old teenager and, even at such a young age, she knows all
about life …she lives with an older man and his daughter. Poverty has left
her no choice. She thought it is better than being with her alcoholic parents.
By Janet, Romania
See it Our Way

47. Lost childhood…
once you’ve lost it,
you can never have
it back.
By Oana Gociman,
Romania
See it Our Way

48. Money can buy children, but not their love.
By Sirghe Alexandra, Romania
See it Our Way

49. Although they are just
children, they have the
responsibilities of grown ups.
By Patriciea Gherman,
Romania
See it Our Way

50. Poverty makes us stronger and it can make us change mentality very early in
life, hoping that sooner or later things will get better.
By Ana-Maria Ocneanu, Romania
See it Our Way

51. If our parents don’t care about us, at least we have each other.
By Oana Gociman, Romania
See it Our Way

52. “I'm a lonely woman. My husband has died and my daughter went abroad a
long time ago to work as a photo model and has not returned.”
By Israyelan ITS, Armenia
See it Our Way

53. Because of hard social situations people leave their homes and go abroad
looking for jobs. Think hard before leaving and be very aware, you may be
trafficked. By Donara, Armenia
See it Our Way

54. These swings are empty but that's not bad because at this time the children
are in school and are being educated. By Rima Nazaretyan, Armenia
See it Our Way

55. Money becomes a trap for people looking for a good life. Do not believe in
fairy tales of earning big money easily. By Gohar Hakobyan, Armenia
See it Our Way

56. See it Our Way
Ragpicking
By Hikmat, Pakistan
This boy is collecting waste
near a forested area. This is a
dangerous, deserted area –
there are a lot of drug addicts
here. They can easily grab the
children and take them away
into the bushes.

57. Domestic violence By Kainat, Pakistan
In this photo the man is beating his wife. In the morning she has to work as a domestic worker
and then when she returns home she has to cook for her husband and children. This is when
her husband starts to beat her, usually over petty matters. He’s an addict and has withdrawal
symptoms in the morning and takes his frustration out on the family.
See it Our Way

58. Corporal punishment By Shabana, Pakistan
Nadeen is 10, he’s at the tuition centre. At the end of the class the teachers
inspect our nails and if they are dirty or too long, she hits us – Nadeen’s nails were
too long so she hit him on his fingers.
See it Our Way

59. Sweet 16 in my culture By Amjad, Pakistan
I took this picture of Mehak behind the fence because it shows how young girls like
us aren’t allowed out and how we are locked in all the time. It feels like a prison; it’s
like we’re behind bars all the time.
See it Our Way

60. Ragpicking By Faizan, Pakistan
He’s a ragpicker and he’s feeling cold. If he doesn’t make enough money
during the day he has to go out at night and work until he reaches the
target his parents have set for him.
See it Our Way

61. See it Our Way
Ragpicking
By Ismail, Pakistan
This ragpicker was playing and
fell down and started laughing.