We would like to take this opportunity to thank PhotoWings and Suzie Katz, President and Founder, for a generous contribution to Blue Earth this week in support of our mission.  This donation will be used to modernize our technology, improve the efficiency of our work on behalf of project photographers, and expand our ability to communicate with our members and supporters.  Without donations from committed sponsors such as PhotoWings, we would not be able to continue raising awareness about endangered cultures, threatened environments, and social concerns through photography.

Like Blue Earth, PhotoWings is an organization dedicated to promoting positive change in our world through photography.

PhotoWings’ mission is to highlight and help facilitate the power of photography to influence the world.  PhotoWings is a vehicle for bringing together people from divergent perspectives who share an interest in photography, whether from a need to help illustrate an important cause or for the pure passion for images.

The PhotoWings website hosts an impressive collection of resources for photographers, including extensive directories on all aspects of photography from finding funding and publishing to copyright guides and lesson plans for photography classes.  Visitors to PhotoWings will also find a collection of interviews with photographers, curators, and photography scholars discussing their work.

In addition to her work with PhotoWings, we are proud to note that Katz is a longstanding member of the Blue Earth Advisory Board and has been a regular contributor to our organization.

Once again, our thanks to PhotoWings and Suzie Katz for their ongoing support of this important work!

- Bart J. Cannon, Program Manager

In addition to the ongoing and very popular exhibit at the Field Museum in Chicago, Florian Schulz is generating additional exposure for his project Freedom To Roam through his multi-media efforts. This new trailer for Freedom To Roam was presented at the AWL film festival, which marked the 20th anniversary of the Exxon Valdez oil spill.

- Bart J. Cannon, Program Manager

Our friends at PhotoAlliance have announced they are offering a photographic workshop at Mono Lake with artist Robert Dawson.

Our workshop will explore the spectacular beauty of the eastern Sierra desert lake called Mono. Our base camp will be in the small town of Lee Vining. It is located on Highway 395 near the shore of Mono Lake and at the western edge of the Great Basin. It will serve as a convenient departure site for visits to the South Shore Tufa Grove, Panum volcanic cinder cone, Lee Vining Canyon, Tuolumne Meadows and many other beautiful features of the Eastern Sierra.

The workshop runs for four days, Friday May 22 to Monday May 25, 2009.  There are only 15 slots available, and registration is $495.  I understand these workshops are very popular and sell out quickly, so register today!

- Bart J. Cannon, Program Manager

© Frans Lanting

Happy Earth Day greetings from everyone here at Blue Earth!  But in addition to celebrating, maybe we can also take the time to get some work done.  Visit the Earth Day Network to find out about events across the globe and how you can get involved.

The best celebration is one that makes a difference!

- Bart J. Cannon, Program Manager

Some Blue Earth members may be most familiar with John Trotter through his project with our organization, No Agua, No Vida.  However, as I have recently been reminded, photographers do have other experiences and aspects of their lives outside of their photographic projects with us.

A few days ago, the Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma published a video featuring an interview with John regarding a violent attack he suffered in 1997 and the aftermath.  This interview details part of the work on a personal project he is conducting, The Burden of Memory.  It is a deeply personal interview, which records the events surrounding the event, his ongoing recovery, and his reflections on the experience in conducting this very intimate photographic work.

I will let John speak in his own words, but I do want to thank him for allowing us all a glimpse into his life outside of his Blue Earth project.  Readers can view a gallery of photos from The Burden of Memory on John’s website.

- Bart J. Cannon, Program Manager

Aerial view of the flooded area west of Santarem, Brazil.  One of the most extreme droughts recorded in the Amazon was followed by one of the worst floods, straining the local population even further. © Daniel Beltrá/Greenpeace

Once again, we are very pleased to announce the recognition of a Blue Earth photographer for outstanding work.  Yesterday at the Sony World Photography Awards Gala ceremony in Cannes, France, Daniel Beltrá received The Prince’s Rainforests Project Award.  This prestigious award was founded by His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales and is intended to bring attention to “the global role played by rainforests in climate change and aims to achieve consensus about how the rate of deforestation might be slowed and stopped.”  Beltrá’s comments on the day call the award a “tremendous honor” and an “incredible opportunity to work as part of a team of the most qualified professionals that are focused in protecting the world’s tropical rainforests.”

This award is a very competitive one, and we couldn’t be happier to see Beltrá’s work in the Amazon be given the recognition it deserves.  Learn more about Beltrá’s work on his Blue Earth project Amazon: Forest At Risk and view a small gallery of recent images.

- Bart J. Cannon, Program Manager

We are pleased congratulate Blue Earth photographer Carlos Javier Ortiz for winning the 41st Annual Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award in the Domestic Photography category for his project Too Young to Die.  Awarded by The Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights, the juried honors are intended to recognize “outstanding reporting on issues that reflect Robert F. Kennedy’s concerns, including human rights, social justice and the power of individual action in the United States and around the world.”  Too Young to Die is a critically acclaimed examination of “the intended and unintended victims of gun violence,” those who today are suffering from “an epidemic that not only plagues lower-income, urban neighborhoods, but also affects youth from all walks of life.”

The RFK Journalism Awards will be presented at a ceremony on Thursday, May 28, 2009 at George Washington University.

Once again, our congratulations to Carlos!

- Bart J. Cannon, Program Manager

Our readers may recall that Anna Mia Davidson is one of several photographers selected to take part in a project by the USA Network, entitled American Characters.  The project is intended to celebrate “America’s characters-the interesting, dazzling, and distinctive people, from all walks of life, who make this country extraordinary.”  Davidson will be interviewed on the TODAY show (NBC) tomorrow, Wednesday April 15th, between 9-10 a.m. EST.  She will be speaking about her photographic work on organic farms as part of the project.

Set your TiVo now!

- Bart J. Cannon, Program Manager

© Tim Matsui

Blue Earth is proud to host Tim Matsui presenting “A Chapter of Human Trafficking: Cambodia,” the fourth lecture in our new series on documentary photography that focuses on global environments, social, and cultural issues. Tim will be speaking in Seattle, WA at the Henry Art Gallery on Saturday, May 9th at 2 p.m.

Tim will speak about his ongoing work documenting the complexities of human trafficking and exploitation, highlighting his time in Southeast Asia. With an eye toward regional policy, Tim will provide glimpses into reality of human trafficking and methods employed to counter exploitation. While the story can be as simple as a child sold by his or her parents, the complexities lie in education, poverty, health care, gender equality; these turn human trafficking, he believes, into a mere symptom of a greater problem. Tim will put a face to one small part, and help the audience better understand their role, in the global slave trade.

Tim Matsui is a Seattle-based multimedia journalist covering alternative energy, the environment, and social issues like human trafficking and sexual violence. He co-founded the 501(c)3 non profit FEAR Project, the Travel and Outdoor Photographer’s Alliance, and speaks with international visitors hosted by the US State Department and World Affairs Council. Tim is a past Blue Earth Project Photographer, for his sexual violence work, and is a recipient of grants from the Open Society Institute, Fund for Investigative Journalism, and King County 4Culture.

All lectures are held Saturdays, 2 p.m.at the Henry Art Gallery Auditorium, 15th Ave NE & 41st Street in Seattle.  Admission is free for Henry Art Gallery and Blue Earth members; $5 for students w/ ID or $10 for general admission.  Tickets will be available at the door.

Is your membership up-to-date?  Renew today and attend all events in the Blue Earth Lecture Series for free!

- Bart J. Cannon, Program Manager

In his Blue Earth project Domestic Landscapes: Eastern Europe, Netherlands based photographer Bert Teunissen brings attention to the rapidly disappearing but “distinctive and celebrated atmosphere that the old Dutch masters - Vermeer, De Hoogh, Israëls and Rembrandt - captured in their paintings.”  His work examines how “daylight illuminates the domestic interior, and dictates the way the interior is used and decorated.”  His work is a deeply personal glimpse into the homes of Europeans across the continent whose lives are still shaped by the natural cycles of light and darkness – a pattern that few people living in Europe now experience.

Teunissen has just added a large collection of new photographs to his project gallery taken during his recent travels in Hungary.  This expedition is only the first of seven trips he will be completing during the next two years for the project.  Current locations on the itinerary include the Ukraine, Russia, and Moldavia.

Don’t miss the new collection!

- Bart J. Cannon, Program Manager

© Benjamin Drummond & Sara Joy Steele

The Houston Center for Photography is hosting an opening reception for the exhibition “Human Nature” this Friday from 6-8 p.m.  Blue Earth project photographer Benjamin Drummond & Sara Joy Steele have four prints in the show.

Human Nature raises questions about the current state of our relationship to the natural environment — are we living for success, or excess? What kinds of stewardship methodologies are being practiced? How are we managing other species´ relationships with Earth? What types of energy are we using? What does population growth/urban sprawl look like on the landscape? What activities are taking place on a local level to support local farmers and growers and promote community?

The exhibition runs from April 3 - May 10, 2009 and features several impressive works by photographers examining aspects of important environmental issues today.  If you are in the Houston area, I recommend setting aside time to visit the Center.

- Bart J. Cannon, Program Manager