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Invitation to an intergalactic week in the ZAD – Notre-Dame-Des-Landes – August 12th to 20th

An autonomous zone against an airport project and its world
For over 50 years, farmers and locals have resisted the building of a new airport for the French city of Nantes (which by the way already has one). Now in these rich fields, forests and wetlands, which multinational Vinci wants to cover in concrete, an experiment in
reinventing everyday life in struggle is blossoming. Radicals from around the world, local farmers and villagers, citizen groups, trade unionists and naturalists, refugees and runaways, squatters and climate justice activists and many others, are organising to protect the 4000 acres of land against the airport and its world. Government officials have coined this place “a territory lost to the republic”. Its occupants have named it : la zad (zone a défendre) zone to defend. In the winter of 2012, more than a thousand of riot police attempted to evict the zone, but they faced a determined and diverse resistance. This
culminated in a 40,000 people strong demonstration to rebuild some of what had been destroyed by the French State. Less than a week later, the police was forced to stop what they called “Operation Cesar”. Since then, la zad has been progressively freeing itself from the state and consumerist society and has been connecting with other struggles,
regionally and beyond. The movement is alive with the possibility of victories.
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Participatory photography WITH migrants and refugees

Throughout the so-called “refugee crisis” we have seen how photography can be a powerful tool in shaping public perceptions of “what is going on”, which in turn effects public opinion, political discourse and institutional solutions (or the lack of them) .
We believe that one necessary step in the path towards empathy and dialogue is to be presented with the full multidimensional story, not just the usual media portrayals of victims or threatening strangers.
This year we will facilitate the production and visibility of images of these people in transit from their own point of view. Also, we will multiply the effect of our work by compiling and sharing what we learn along the way. Continue reading →