Bevis Fusha's participation in World Press Photo "New Stories" catalog!

Bevis Fusha a well-known photojournalist in Albania and around Europe took part at the publishing of the latest World Press Photo "New Stories" catalog 2008.
His photos have a great expressing potential and show sensibly, the hard Albanian reality.
Proud of him, as being also a trainer at our school “Projekt 5.6”, we just wish him an honest way towards the truth, through his powerful photos.
We thank him for sending us these pictures. Enjoy them, and maybe one day you’ll have the chance to see the originals.

Below, there is a brief introduction from Adrian Evans and the some description from writer Rodney Bolt.

Introduction from Adrian Evans.

Last year, the BBC broadcast a documentary series, The Genius ofPhotography. Anyone watching could have been forgiven for thinking thatphotography was the exclusive preserve of Europeans and North Americans.Sadly, the same can be said of photojournalism. Too often we view Africa,Asia and Latin America through the lens of the outsider. Our globalizingworld is not quite global as we are given to believe.Our understanding of events around the world is largely shaped by themedia. Yet how often do we ask who takes photographs? Or who owns thenewspaper and the TV stations that influence our mental world view? If westep back we see a media landscape dominated by Western organizations,providing us with their own perspectives on current affairs. There isnothing new in this. History has always been written by those who havebest access to the means of telling their stories.Photojournalism is no different. Through whose eyes did we see the VietnamWar? Whose photographs do we see from the developing world, from Darfurand Congo or from Afghanistan and Iraq? Or perhaps more importantly, whoare the photographers working for? The newswire bylines suggest andabundance of local photographers, but their photographs tell the storythat the magazines and newspapers wish to tell, not their own.And yet there is a rich tradition of photojournalism in the developingworld. Its a tradition that has largely been ignored by the mainstream, orhas failed to gain access to the necessary distribution channels. This isbeginning to change. The internet is opening up a world where borders arebroken down and location has little importance. As the director of a photoagency, I am now able to work with ease with photographers wherever theyare based. More importantly, this change is opening the way to ademocratization of the media, causing a shift in the balance of power fromthe publishers to producers and consumers of information. However in spiteof these changes, perceptions of the world have barely altered. Thepotential of the new forms of communication that digitalization promises, has yet to be fully realized.Outsider views on the developing world traditionally tend to veer betweenthe pessimistic and the romantic, while never really engaging with therealities of how people live. In the World Press Photo ; New Stories, thephotographers were working in the countries in which they lived; theirchallenge was to present new perspectives on familiar themes.Kemal Jufri from Indonesia, provided and original take on the issue ofeducation, building a story not around children but focusing on theincredible achievements of twin sisters Rian and Rossy, unassuming Jakartawomen who used their own money to single-handedly set up schools forunderprivileged children in the city slums. He shows us what twoindividuals can achieve without any government or institutional support, despite obstacles placed in their way by local authorities.In "Lucas and the Jam factory", Peruvian photographer Mariana Bazoconfronts the perception that people living in poverty are helplessvictims with little control over their own lives. She narrates a storyabout a group of friends from the barrios of Lima, determined to find away out of the cycle of poverty. These young people do not see being pooras an insurmountable barrier." On contrary, it makes us resourceful" Lucastold Mariana.

World Press Photo " New Stories" book
Environmental Hotspots from writer Rodney Bolt

The environmental awareness in Albania.
When life is hard and you are struggling to make ends meet, caring for the environment can sometimes appear a luxury.
In Albania the environmental issues are serious. Soil and water contamination from industrial pollutants rank with the worst on the continent.
Disposal of domestic and other waste in Albania is also a cause for concern, as hazardous materials are not separated out.
A former chemical and pesticide plant at Durres, on the central Albania coast, is one such disaster point.
Near Vlore in the south of the country, attempts to prevent people living on the mercury-contaminated site of another former chemical factory have failed.
In the western district of Fier, emissions from oil fields where pumps and treatment facilities are not working properly are poisoning the soil and groundwater, and harmful gases are evaporating from open tanks.
The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) has highlighted a number of industrial sites as environmental hotspots, posing immediate risks to human health and requiring urgent action.
Albania’s aspiration to membership of the European Union is waking the government to environmental issues.