Foto’s Blog: More Partners Photo Fun in Nicaragua
NEW Phodographer Amy Wiza in Managua and Tipitapa Nicaragua, 2012
Amy writes “While traveling throughout Nicaragua, and making stops at Wisconsin/Nicaragua Partners of the Americas projects, it was great fun to spend time with the children and leave them with a photo of themselves. All the participants loved practicing photo diplomacy through Dog Meets World! Perhaps the most fun was watching the kids, their expressions, excitement and anticipation as the photo was printed right before their eyes. I’m fairly certain they had never seen anything like it, and were thrilled to walk away with a photo in hand. Also, we stopped at a center for individual special needs and made photos which they placed on their desks. We took and printed over 100 photos during our short time there.”
Foto’s Blog: Lining up for Photos in Nicaragua
NEW Phodographer Tom Neuhauser in Ticuantepe and Leon, Nicaragua, Summer 2011
Tom Neuhauser attended the Learning Center Trek with Wisconsin/Nicaragua Partners last summer. Wisconsin/Nicaragua Partners of the Americas, Inc. is a not-for-profit, non-political organization working to enhance the quality of life in both Wisconsin and Nicaragua through people-to-people programs promoting cultural awareness and sustainable community development.
Tom visited Wisconsin’s Partner Country (Nicaragua) with team that taught workshops at the Learning Centers, or in Tom’s case – took and printed photos for Dog Meets World, which was very, very well received. What a great collaborations for people-to-people interactions.
Tom recounts: The children were very excited to have a picture of themselves to bring home and share with friends and family. They waited patiently in a long line to have their picture taken and were mesmerized watching the photo actually print on the portable printer. I enjoyed taking part in this project, it was a wonderful experience.
Foto’s Blog: Beautiful children of the Azawak
Phodographer Ariane Kirtley in Azawak, Niger
Ariane along with her husband Denis run Amman Imman “Water is Hope”. They have enthusiastically added photo diplomacy through Dog Meets Word to their projects. See photos of the printer in action as the children await the first photographs that they have ever owned of themselves.
A drought and the violence in Libya has further stressed this subsistence community. Yet in their latest newsletter they write they look forward to their return to Niger to “be welcomed by our dear friends and the smiling, laughing faces of the children we’ve grown to know and love in our Azawak communities. It will be refreshing to sip tea and share stories with our friends, eat fresh vegetables that they’ve been able to grow thanks to the borehole water and listen to songs the children have learned since they’ve begun attending the school that has opened now that water has become available.”
We look forward to more photos of the beautiful children of this remote region.
Foto’s Blog: Foto “Max” returns to Jamaica!
Phodographer Barbara Gilbert at Barbaras Village, Jamaica, 2011
Barbara writes:
It was my 2nd journey to Jamaica as a DMW phodographer. Like last year the poor in the villages were very excited about the printing project. This year I did Dog Meets World at the site of my school on construction day, which has been a 3 year project in the works. Funding was completed a few weeks before my annual trip (my 8th) and Food For the Poor surprised me with the news when we arrived on the site that we were building my school this trip! Day 1, I met the children who were attending summer school (6 of them ages 2-6) and the picture taking began, but I did not have Max (Foto is called Max by the children in this project!) with me. We built the entire school that day! On Day 2 we returned to paint the school-yellow-the color of all my Jamaican projects.
On Day 2, I arrived with Max (Foto the dog) and the printer. We took individual school pictures of each student to print and take home. We took the class picture which the principal and teacher received copies of for the school office. The nicely dressed lady in the photo arrived at the school site and asked for me. She said she had been told we were taking pictures and she had never had her picture taken. She had dressed up for the event and was very excited. As she was walking to work, we only had time to snap the picture and I printed it up later, with the help of the kids to be given to her. The children and principal were fascinated with the printer and the kids enjoyed pushing the buttons. As the picture is printed in a series of colors the children called out the colors as it printed, thus it became a learning project. The children who attend this school all live in shacks with no electricity, bathroom or kitchen. It is an extremely poor community.
Foto’s Blog: Photo diplomacy in St. Lucia
Phodographer Carolyn Lane with Lisa Kuk in Fond St. Jacques, St. Lucia, Sept. 2011
While in St. Lucia, Dog Meets World founder Carolyn Lane introduced photo diplomacy to Peace Corps Volunteer Lisa Kuk (posing with Foto, above left). Lisa is serving with her husband Thom in this southern village in St. Lucia that was the hardest hit by the hurricane of 2010. We “practiced” with two local school children who were thrilled to watch the printing process of their own photo. The Dog Meets World organization donated a printer and supplies so that Lisa may photograph many of the children and families in the area.