The recent MDG summit reminded me of "Access to Life", a multimedia project conducted by Magnum Photos and The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria that sent eight noted photojournalists (including Steve McCurry, whom I deeply admire) to nine countries to document the effects of free antiretroviral treatment on over 30 individuals with HIV/AIDS. Goal 6 of the MDGs (set forth a decade ago) is to "combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases", which includes providing universal access to ARV treatment by 2010.
What strikes me about the "Access to Life" project is 1) the respect shown for personal narratives and the honesty with which these stories are portrayed, and 2) how the integrated use of images/audio shared through a variety of different channels can effectively raise awareness worldwide. The website is great in allowing easy access to these narratives: http://www.theglobalfund.org/html/accesstolife/en/
Really powerful videos. Thanks for posting.
ReplyDeleteThese are great, Thanh. But where are the women photographers?
ReplyDeleteMargie - that is a great question, and one that I doubt anyone has addressed in detail. I haven't been able to find much about how the photographers were chosen, just that they are among the "world's best." I happen to know plenty of phenomenal women photographers who would have done just as good if not better a job than the ones selected for the project! I'd be interested to see if the Access to Life project has spurred other creative multimedia efforts targeting HIV/AIDS, especially ones developed and carried out primarily by women media professionals.
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