Step 1: Teach. Step 2: See what develops.
Photographs, and the need for them, are a part of daily life in the DRC. Job applications require them, the local administration insists on them for filings, and conferences and workshops are invariably documented with a ‘Photo de Famille’ at their conclusion. In Goma, people treasure the few photos of marriages, births, and graduations they’ve managed to keep in the wake of so much destruction.
The photos don’t take themselves though; someone is behind the camera; teaching photography and computer literacy skills. With CAMME’s support, children who may have never had an opportunity to touch a camera otherwise learn framing, composition, technique, and how to tell a story through the power of imagery.
Even in a place like Goma (DRC), computer literacy is essential. Professional jobs with NGOs, the UN, local businesses, and more all require knowledge of software, systems, and the ability to function in a digital environment. Through the Media Lab, CAMME provides this training to young adults seeking these skills as well as practice in terms of internship. After the training, young adults who finished their photography training at CAMME are eligible for job placement within the organization, as well as in other institutions around the country and beyond. CAMME provides equal job placement to all graduates, and gives equipment to those who finish the photography program.
Beginning in 2016, CAMME used a grant to construct the photography lab, and our teachers Michel Lunanga Ushindi and Michel Basizi trained dozens of young adults to create compelling images that document more than war, poverty, and death but focused on their communities, their lives, and their vision for a better future. The Goma photography operations are supported by a generous grant from the Lens on Life project, an American organization based in New York working to support photography with local grassroots organizations around the world. In Kinshasa, CAMME plans to begin photography operations supported by generous donations of CAMME supporters.
For those demonstrating strong potential, CAMME, with the help of various donors around the world helps provide scholarship funds for higher-level computer education, further advanced level training and college scholarships to select students.
Today, the lab hosts classes with young adults in a solar-powered lab providing state-of-the-art equipment to teach photography, film, and design. Perhaps most importantly, the photographers at Lens on Life have passed on their skills to local teachers, who today instruct the next generation of youth, teaching them to turn their visions into reality. If you’d like to support the lab, please consider a tax-deductible contribution to CAMME.