Blog Post #4 - LF

This is a picture of me at a community meeting in the Namanongo community. I was here on a site visit with several of my coworkers from the Zambian Governance Foundation (ZGF). This trip is part of ZGF’s new project which encourages local philanthropy in communities. ZGF helps different communities establish their own strengths and resources in order to make positive changes. This community meeting was to discuss the potential of getting a hammer mill for the community. I chose to post this picture because it captures part of the work I am doing in Zambia with ZGF. It also shows me in a very realistic setting meaning that it is not a typical tourist photo. This photo is also meaningful because it was an essential cultural learning moment for me. This was the first time I had been to a rural village in Zambia, and I was very interested to learn how developed Lusaka city is compared to the villages. Despite this, I was impressed by the number of community members that showed up at this meeting to support the project and were excited to make it happen. Community is such a big part of Zambian culture and I like this photo because it depicts this characteristic of the culture.

This picture was taken by my boss at ZGF and posted on ZGF’s Facebook page. I believe this photo is an example of ethical photography because it does not directly show anyone’s face. Additionally, it is not depicting people in a manner that may be taken in a negative light. The picture captures the reality of the meeting and everyone intently listening to what was happening.