We were recently fortunate enough to receive donations towards purchasing a small digital camera for the jacobs well unit in Bangalore. Hooray! There are many reasons why we’re excited to have this tool for the whole team to use.
jacobs well is not just a standard production unit. As a fair trade company we place a lot of importance on being open and accountable to those who support us and do business with us, and the value of visual storytelling can’t be underestimated as a part of that. We want to tell stories about the issues we strive to combat and raise awareness of, stories about our work, stories illustrating how jacobs well and the fair trade way of business can make a difference. Images can transcend language barriers and convey messages and situations that people might not otherwise be able to imagine.
Storytelling is important but it is also crucial to us that what we share is done with respect and authenticity. By having a camera for team use in the unit, the jacobs well staff themselves will be able to decide what they want to share about their work and lives, and how they want to do so. It is their business, and with their own camera they can be in charge of what gets documented!
We also don’t believe in offering dead-end jobs. No sir! We strive to create an environment of continual learning and skill progression, with respect to both career opportunities and personal life skills. Is taking a photo merely about clicking a button on a camera? That’s not what we think! In addition to learning basic photographic skills, the training accompanying the new camera will be an exercise in critical thinking and communication. Subjects such as what stories we want to share, what language we use and the different audiences we want to connect with will empower team members with transferable skills that they can build on for future roles both within jacobs well and outside.
So, you can see that there is a real need for this camera with respect to sharing what we stand for, playing our part in raising the profile of the fair trade movement, and providing our talented staff with further opportunities to grow. But we also want to have some fun! It will give us another way to flex our creative muscles, and with so much artistic talent in the team it is very likely someone might have a real passion for photography that we can encourage!
Many thanks to our kind supporters for enabling us to purchase this camera. Stay tuned here on the blog and on the jacobs well Facebook page to see the latest shots from the unit!