2011 GRANT WINNERS

2011 / 2010 / 2009 / 2008 / 2007

Project: “Red Thistle” – the Northern Caucasus Journey

Summary: An exploration of the critical Northern Caucasus area and its peoples. Wars have been fought there for centuries – most recently in Chechnya. Monteleone examines the stubborn, rebellious culture of this region, which is part of Russia, but whose inhabitants differ in ethnicity, religion and social customs. “If you shoot in the Caucasus, the echo will be heard for centuries,” says an old proverb from the region.

Project: Guatemala: The Other War

Summary: A look at how Guatemala’s 36-year-long armed conflict has evolved into another kind of violence: Guatemala has the highest homicide rate in the world. The same social inequalities that fueled civil war have also helped create a generation of young people who have turned to the Maras, and gang life, after the peace accords that ended the conflict did not bring them any hope for a better future.

Project: Women Warriors: Bangladesh

Summary: An examination of the post-conflict experiences and struggles of the Bangladeshi women who played a frontline role as combatants in Bangladesh’s war of independence, and their fight for their rights in the aftermath of that conflict. (Note: the images here are from a previous part of Herman’s work on Women Warriors, shot in Vietnam)

Project: Bosnia and Herzegovina: If Chaos Awakens the Madness

Summary: An exploration of the ongoing aftermath of Bosnia’s 1992-1995 conflict. Mastrorillo and Ciarabellini consider “outward normality,” the “acceptance of chaos,” and “the seeds of madness” as they portray the scars of the war on both people and infrastructures – and also show what is beneath the surface, a chaotic uneasiness that hangs over Bosnia’s future.

Project: Too Young to Die

Summary: A long-term project about the aftermath of conflicts being waged nightly on the streets of Chicago, Philadelphia, Los Angeles and Boston. Ortiz seeks to educate the public about the effects of youth violence on young victims, their families and society as a whole.