The Fulbright Alumni Association of Sri Lanka (FAASL) will be hosting two presentations

Sanjana Hattotuwa

Devaka Seneviratne

on

on

Shooting Revolutions:

Using photography for

social & political change

The way we perceive our world and bear witness changed dramatically with the advent of photography.

From Neda Agha-Soltan in Iran to Menik Farm in Sri Lanka, mobile phone photographs in particular, and digital photography in general is changing how we react to what otherwise would have been marginal, peripheral or erased. These developments raise new questions about the future of photojournalism, and importantly, how a deluge of images both actively contest and are yet often held hostage to underlying frameworks of production and access, including economic, technical and gendered aspects.

Using iconic photography juxtaposed with current events, this presentation will attempt to flesh out some of the key aspects of photography’s new age, and what it means to be part of it.

Photojournalism in

Post-Conflict Sri Lanka:

The use of imagery in documenting recovery and rehabilitation in the North and East.

Photography can capture elements that other forms of reporting sometimes cannot. This presentation will look at the power of imagery in storytelling and will discuss the impact of documentary photography and photojournalism in the areas of environmental preservation and social documentation in Sri Lanka.

The presentation will go through a series of images capturing life in what once were conflict areas. The images will include people in the last remaining camps, hopeful returnees (both IDP and refugee) and

developmental work.

Sanjana Hattotuwa is a Senior Researcher at the Centre for Policy Alternatives (www.cpalanka.org). He is the founder and currently co-curator of Groundviews (www.groundviews.org), an award winning citizen journalism initiative. A TED Fellow, Sanjana uses Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) to strengthen reconciliation, a just peace, human rights and democratic governance. He blogs at ict4peace.wordpress.com and sanjanah.wordpress.com

Devaka Seneviratne is a professional photographer who undertakes commercial photography assignments as well as documentary assignments for developmental agencies. He has worked as a photographer since 2004 and before that as a television producer and writer.

www.devakaseneviratne.photoshelter.com