Chch Children’s Photographs to be Exhibited Internationally

18th June, 2013

Christchurch Children’s Photographs to be Exhibited Internationally

This week the voices of Christchurch children will take centre stage in the Philippines with the UNICEF NZ children’s photographic exhibition ‘Christchurch: See Through my Eyes’ on display at Yuchengco Museum in Manila.

The exhibition, brought to the Philippines by the New Zealand Embassy in association with UNICEF NZ, showcases photos taken by 24 children from Christchurch. The photos illustrate how the devastating earthquakes of 2010 and 2011 affected their lives and communities.

Previously shown at Canterbury Museum and St. James Theatre Gallery in Wellington, the exhibition comprises of 24 photographs selected from thousands taken by the children aged 11 to 14. Each image is supported by a caption, sharing the true voices of the children on how the earthquakes have affected their lives and communities.

Dennis McKinlay, UNICEF NZ Executive Director, said “Children have a unique perspective of living through a natural disaster and it’s important to recognise and share their experience.

“New Zealand and the Philippines have both had their fair share of disasters in recent years and therefore we are pleased that through this exhibition others have the opportunity to view and learn from these powerful images.

“Like the New Zealand Embassy, we were very impressed with the high standard of the children’s photographs. The quality was confirmed by the popularity of the exhibition which was visited by more than 102,000 visitors while on display at the Canterbury Museum.”

Reuben Levermore, New Zealand Ambassador to the Philippines, said “We hope that the exhibition will encourage people to reflect on how to best prepare for disasters, including here in the Philippines, which is one of the most vulnerable countries in the world when it comes to natural disasters.

Tomoo Hozumi, UNICEF Philippines representative, said, “New Zealand has been one of the important partners for UNICEF in the Philippines in our response to emergencies. Those countries which are on the "Pacific Ring of Fire" - be it the Philippines, New Zealand or Japan where I am from - share the same challenges in terms of high susceptibility to major disasters.

“For us, occurrence of disasters is not a matter of "if" but "when", so all the more reason why disaster awareness and preparedness is so crucial. My hope is that this exhibition will help enhance understanding, compassion and commitment to disaster awareness and preparedness in the Philippines.”

New Zealand is a long standing development partner of the Philippines providing humanitarian assistance to communities affected by natural disasters. New Zealand has extended humanitarian assistance to communities affected by natural disasters, including tropical storms in recent years.

UNICEF has been working to improve the lives of children in the Philippines since 1948. In the Philippines UNICEF works to help children develop to their full potential by promoting and providing education, protecting children’s rights, and caring for children in emergencies and disasters.

Participating schools:
Bamford School
Catholic Cathedral College
Central New Brighton School
Christ’s College
Christchurch East School
Discovery One School
Freeville School
Kaiapoi Borough School
Kaiapoi North School
Linwood Intermediate
Manning Intermediate
Marion College
Mount Pleasant School
Our Lady of Fatima School
St Martins School
South New Brighton School
Wainoni School

About UNICEF
UNICEF is on the ground in over 190 countries and territories to help children survive and thrive, from early childhood through adolescence.

The world’s largest provider of vaccines for developing countries, UNICEF supports child health and nutrition, good water and sanitation, quality basic education for all boys and girls, and the protection of children from violence, exploitation, and AIDS.

UNICEF is a charity funded entirely by the voluntary contributions of individuals, businesses, foundations and governments.

Every $1 donated to us is worth at least $10 in the field thanks to the way we work in partnership with governments, local NGOs and other partners - www.unicef.org.nz

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