Zaatari Camp, Jordan

Zaatari is one of the world's largest refugee camps, housing more than 80,000 people displaced by the Syrian civil war. In 2018, we partnered with Questscope, a Jordanian organization that has implemented successful mentoring, education, and emergency aid initiatives for thousands of disadvantaged youth. We led a week-long session where we trained thirty youth on the basics of photography. These youth grasped the key concepts of photography and captured life in Zaatari camp, highlighting their own experiences to share with a global audience. We have led subsequent photography training courses at Questscope, supported by our growing network of volunteer photographers who have supported our programming across the globe. 

In 2019, we opened a brand new school in Zaatari in cooperation with Questescope. The school has provided daily photography and computer literacy courses to over 120 youth between the ages of 13-20.  Students are taught by Mohammad Attawi and Israa Abd Al Soud who are refugee photographers from Syria.

“The Catalyst Foundation was proud to provide seed funding to Lens on Life for their innovative photography programming in Jordan, which not only put cameras in the hands of displaced young people but also gave them the opportunity to show their work at world-class galleries and exhibition spaces. It is both inspiring and important to see the world through the eyes of their young students.” 

– John Sexton,  CEO of the Catalyst Foundation for Universal Education and President Emeritus of New York University

“Photography is one of the things I am most grateful for in life. I have learned so much about how to document moments that catch my attention and capture moments that can then live forever in a photo.”

— Ibrahim Al-Hariri, Student in Zaatari Camp  

Isra’a Abdulmawla Alsoud, Zaatari/ @israa_journalist

Isra’a joined Lens on Life Project to share her story with the world through the photos she takes. She is a graduate of the Faculty of Journalism and Media at Zarqa University in Jordan and received her certificate in digital marketing from Efe Jordan. She was previously a liaison officer for UN Women and a staff member at UNFPA.