George Osodi, Nigeria —
George Osodi is an internationally-acclaimed photojournalist, renowned for documenting culture and environmental degradation in his native Nigeria."The Lagos Uncelebrated series is my photographic journey that investigates Lagos as one of the fastest growing cities in the world, but one that lacks the basic amenities that make a mega city. Today, half of the world's population lives in cities -- more and more mega cities with more than 10 million inhabitants are springing up. Those in the underdeveloped world are often characterized by a fast growing population, immense poverty, complete lack of town planning and massive abuse of the environment.The makeup of these cities is changing all the time, so by doing the project over a long timescale, I wished to capture and celebrate as much of contemporary Lagos as possible."
'Trading Places', a shot of people at an open street market in Lagos 2013.
George Osodi, Nigeria —
A newly-built housing estate by the Lagos State Government at the evicted slum of Badia East in Lagos 2015. The state government flattened Badia East in February 2013 to clear land for an urban renewal. The neighborhood's residents were cast out without warning or compensation and left to fend for themselves. Osodi: "Here is an estate that has been built in a very organized manner, even though it was built on the land that they evicted and displaced the commoners from. Some people are more equal than others."
George Osodi, Nigeria —
Makeshift wooden structures seen at night at the Okobaba slum at the Lagos Lagoon waterfront in 2013. Residents of the slum await eviction as the area has been marked for demolition by the state authorities."Okobaba may soon disappear and what you'll see in this space is skyscrapers. But then, the big question is -- what happens to the people, the inhabitants of this slum?"
Mikhael Subotzky, South Africa —
Mikhael Subotzky is a South African documentary photographer whose work explores marginalization and racial equality post-apartheid. "Equality, in a social sense, is characterized by fair opportunity for all regardless of background. This extends from civil rights and freedom of speech to equal access to social services such as education and health. In a country that has been institutionally unequal for so long, particularly along racial lines, we are rightly very sensitive to the many forms of inequality that still exist. For that reason, the sight of a black doctor treating the eye problems of a white patient is just as poignant as the sight of school children who are born after democracy visiting and learning about the symbol of Apartheid oppression, Robben Island."
Eye test, Sabona Eye Center (Queenstown), 2014
Mikhael Subotzky, South Africa —
School Group Visits Robben Island, 2014. Robben Island houses the prison where former President and Nobel Peace Prize Winner Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for 18 of his 27 years of incarceration. South Africa's current President Jacob Zuma was also imprisoned there.
Mikhael Subotzky, South Africa —
Patient, Sabona Eye Center, 2014
Sebastiao Salgado, Brazil —
Revered Brazilian photographer Sebastiao Salgado has traveled to over 100 countries to document social issues. He is a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador and has won numerous photography prizes.This photo of a son in his fathers arms is part of Salgado's series on the Awa tribe.
Salgado: "My images of the Awa, a nomadic hunter-gatherer tribe of the north-eastern Brazilian Amazon, reveal the devastating consequences of deforestation. They shed light on the lives of the Awa, who have become knows as Earth's most threatened tribe."
Sebastiao Salgado, Brazil —
Illegal loggers' tracks go deep into the Amazon forest in Awa territory. These tracks are then used by farmers who transform the forest into pasture for the cattle ranching."The Awa depend on the forest for their food and survival, yet over past decades their land has been invaded and more than 30% of their territory has been deforested -- despite being demarcated by the Brazilian government. Groups are now fighting to stop the loggers whose activities, if left unchallenged, could result in genocide. "I hope these images shed light on the Awa's fight for survival and call on people all around the world to fight for equal rights for all indigenous peoples."
Tanya Habjouqa, Jordan —
Jordanian photographer Tanya Habjouqa focuses on gender, social, and human rights issues in Palestine. Here, Mona Ennab, a "Speed Sister" from Ramallah, trains with colleague Noor Daoud at the Qalandia check point during a quiet lull in Ramadan. Open spaces for practicing racing and drifting are limited in the West Bank.Habjouqa: "The speed sisters, the first all female auto racing team in the Middle East represent all that is beautiful within the West Bank. During this moment, they took the opportunity, at the very edge of possibility, to find a place to train."
Tanya Habjouqa, Jordan —
The Gaza Parkour team practices in a cemetery on the outskirts of their refugee camp in Khan Younis, Gaza. The walls show damage from past Israeli incursions."Equality is something that is innate. You see it in every child that you meet, whether it's a child in Darfur or in Iraq, a child in poverty, in a refugee camp, or in the city in New York. You see it within them; a curiosity, a hunger to live and be, and despite that, it is something that on the ground is not a reality... I have seen this desire to enjoy life, to give a better sense of possibility and future for their children. It runs the span of any culture, any religion."
Ian Teh, Malaysia —
British-Malaysian photographer Ian Teh has focused on social, environmental and political issues in China and South-East Asia. Pictured, Mr. Yusriadi and Mr. Muhamat are migrant Indonesian plantation workers at a palm oil estate in Sungai Pelek, Malaysia."Malaysia's labor laws exclude migrant domestic workers from key protections, so they don't get a weekly day of rest, annual leave etc. There are none of these protections for them and they are open to abuse."
Sim Chi Yin, China —
China, Guangzhou, 2014 . A worker does an impromptu pole-vault across a puddle on the fringes of an urban village surrounded by new skyscrapers in Guangzhou, China's southern metropolis. All over China, people are being moved off the land and into apartment blocks, while rural land is turned into towns as China is swept by a government urbanization push. In 2012, a watershed was reached -- for the first time, there are more Chinese living in urban areas than rural ones.Chi Yin is a fourth-generation overseas Chinese, born and raised in Singapore. She was named as the British Photographic Society's 'One to Watch' in 2014.
Chi Yin: "This unique part of Guangzhou illustrates the massive urbanization that's going on around China, but at the same time the uneven distribution of income and wealth. Five minutes walk from this is the US embassy is where a lot of expats hang out, a lot of posh hotels have opened up. Yet inside this urban village there are half-demolished, rat-infested buildings that are mostly lived in by migrant workers, who have come from all over China to build those skyscrapers."
Sohrab Hura, India —
Madhya Pradesh, 2014. People from a nearby village, Pati, cutting rocks to widen the local roads. The work is part of the government-initiated Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, which offers minimum wages of just over $3 (£2) a day.New Delhi-based photographer Sohrab Hura has been photographing the effects of India's economic boom on the lives of rural Indians."Far too many people in the villages in India have to do work like this all day, just to earn a little over £2 per day. I don't think this can ever be considered equal."
Yuri Kozyrev, Russia —
Moscow, Russia October 2013. Harry Ben'Ka staging a kiss-in with his partner.In 25 years, Russian photojournalist Yuri Kozyrev has documented the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Arab Spring and the war in Afghanistan.
Kozyrev: "The spot where I took photos of Harry and his partner staging a kiss-in is the most recognizable place in Moscow. This is also the site where Boris Y. Nemtsov, a prominent Russian opposition leader and former first deputy Prime Minister, was shot dead on the 25th of February this year."
