

By now you probably know what Positive Activism is:
Positive Activism is my new initiative providing free, high quality websites and promotional content to small, under-funded human rights organisations in South Africa.
It is funded through the sale of exclusive artworks to individuals and organisations around the world who share my vision and want to join me on my mission to create tangible, positive change.
At The Start Line
I came up with the idea for Positive Activism in 2018. I wrote down the bones of it and started sketching out how it might look and feel. After 6 long years, I am finally at the start line; the place where I get to "launch the product", the place where the work begins.
It has taken me so long to get here because I was missing the one crucial element that made it all make sense.
I was missing the WHY.
In the years since I came up with the first idea a lot has changed; I moved cities, I started a family and I made a lot of work. With every photograph I took I asked myself the same question; "Why am I doing this?"

Working With Purpose
I have always wanted to make work that has a purpose.
Not a subtle changing of the narrative, or a valuable document of our times for the history books of the future; but an immediate, tangible purpose. Something that can change lives now, that can be of use to someone today.
As I was making my long term project "The Actionists" in 2023/24, several of the people that I was featuring asked if I could help them create a website.
I learned that a website can be the defining factor in their success, making them visible to possible funding organisations. An internet search is the first port of call for most people when they want to quickly find out about an organisation and, without a website, it can be a dead end.
I realised that creating a compelling web presence can be really expensive; you need good photographs, quality writing and a simple but effective design...all skills that I have.
I concluded that, I could find a way to fund this idea then I could make something that has an immediate purpose to those small organisations whilst simultaneously creating documentary photographic projects that can be repackaged as exhibitions and articles for years to come.
These are compelling stories in their own right. The origin stories, the passion and dedication of individuals working to create change at the the detriment of their own personal lives, financial stability and safety.
I realised that I could still tell these stories but if the primary focus is on supporting the organisation, I can do it with a purpose that is immediate and valuable to them.
So I found my WHY, and I am really excited about it.
BUILDING A BETTER SOUTH AFRICA
I have a vision for building a better South Africa by supporting the people who are already doing the hard work; providing invaluable services to their communities. There are hundreds of them around the country, passionately advocating for the right of others, operating on a shoestring out of the kindness of their own hearts.
They form small organisations, encourage friends and family to get involved, and spend their own money, what little they have, on the resources they need to keep going. I've seen it happen and I know the impact that they have on their communities.
My dream is to find these extraordinary people and empower them with the tools to support themselves and expand their reach, whilst they continue to help everyone else around them.
That's my dream and my job now is two fold; make the work and find the funders.
