Guatemala: Fotokids

OUT OF THE DUMP

Fotokids was founded in Guatemala in 1991 by ex-Reiters photojournalist, Nancy McGirr, and was originally called Out of the Dump. The project began with a group of six children aged 5-12, who lived and worked in Guatemala City's vast garbage dump. Over the years, the project grew to include hundreds of children from other economically poor areas of the capital.

Since 1996, Fotokids has expanded to include communities outside Guatemala City. The Children in Conflict program documented the effects of 36 years of war on three Guatemalan communities, Santiago Atitlan, Santa Maria Tzeja and Guatemala City, creating strong links between urban and rural youth. Currently Fotokids involved over 80 young people ages 7 to 21, in six distinct communities, including Santiago Atitlan and Las Mangas, Honduras.

The purpose of Fotokids is to help small groups of Central American young people from the poorest of barrios develop useful, employable skills as a means to self-exploration, expression, and discovery. Through intensive, long-term personal relationships with teachers and mentors, participating children learn to use photography, creative writing, and computers as tools to examine their lives, families, communities and environment bridging the global technology divide.

In 2008, Pura Vida committed $25,000 to fund the addition of a third story to their Guatemala City facility. This addition will add two classrooms increasing capacity and allowing an additional 20 children to participate each year. Most students stay in the program through high school and into college. Fotokids brings children's dreams to life, gives them opportunities to succeed and become self-sufficient and productive adults.

Fotokids truly transforms lives and drives self-sustainability.

"Fotokids has changed my dreams, before Fotokids I wanted to become a secretary and now I want to be a computer engineer." – Josefa Ratzán, Santiago Atitlan

"Fotokids has impacted me so much. I don't know what I would have done without Fotokids. I would have never had the opportunities that now have. I am in the University studying journalism, I have traveled! Nobody gives you this in Guatemala. My parents did not go to school at all. Fotokids has totally, completely changed my life. I can defend myself because I am educated and reached a certain level where people listen." - Andreaus Sososof, Santiago Atitlan