Documenting Climate Change at the Margins

Start date: 14 June 2022
End date: 14 June 2023
Funder: Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)
Value: £14,952
Partners and collaborators: FOTEA Foundation, Uganda Press Photo Award
Primary investigator: Dr Neil J. W. Crawford
Co-investigators: Katie McQuaid

Documenting Climate Change photo of man on a boat at the bank of a river.

Climate change is impacting all people in Uganda and beyond. The diversity of impacts on different communities, however, is little understood, particularly how impacts - and environmental challenges broadly - are disproportionately felt by those already marginalised by their age, gender, sexuality, disability, and other social factors.

To tackle this, University of Leeds’ staff working on the GENERATE project partnered with the FOTEA Foundation to deliver the ‘Documenting Climate Change’ photojournalism masterclass. The masterclass ran in Kampala, Uganda and online during July-August 2022, facilitated by experienced photographers Georgina Goodwin and Edward Echwalu. Through the masterclass, participants received training on photojournalistic, documentary, and research skills, and were invited to examine and creatively communicate the myriad ways climate change affects everyday life in towns and cities.

The work produced during the masterclass formed the basis of an exhibition that ran at the Uganda National Museum (February-March 2023) and online on Showroom (February-May 2023), as well as the open-access book, ‘See Change: Visualising the Urban Climate Crisis’. The exhibitions and book feature the work of photographers Aídah Namusoke, Derrick Milimo, Oluwatosin Eiseke Bolaji, Wasswa James, Katumba Badru Sultan, Mildred Apenyo, Nicholas Shawn Mugarura, Sam Brian Kiseka, Timothy Namara and Vanessa Mulondo.

Publications and outputs

Crawford, N.J.W., A. Kućma, K. McQuaid and S. Nantongo (2023) See Change: Visualising the Urban Climate Crisis (Kampala: FOTEA Foundation) ‘See Change: Visualising the Urban Climate Crisis’ Transport Gallery, Uganda National Museum, 15 February - 17 March 2023. ‘See Change: Visualising the Urban Climate Crisis’ Showroom, 15 February - 15 May 2023. “Stakeholders call for inclusion of vulnerable in climate change efforts” Feature by NTV Uganda, 17 February 2023.

Downloads

Online Exhibition - https://showroom.works/v2/seechange/ Book - https://www.ugandapressphoto.org/updates/visualising-the-urban-climate-crisis

Project website

https://www.ugandapressphoto.org/updates/visualising-the-urban-climate-crisis