By Mercy Wambui, edited by Lydia Kibandi — Gataka, Kajiado region, Kenya. — At first sight, Malvin looks like any other ordinary 15 year-old boy. He has recently made the transition into manhood after going through his initiation rite. Malvin will also be celebrating his birthday this month. However, unlike many boys his age, Malvin’s birth was coupled with many complications, which almost…

by Bonnie Chiu After eight years of serving Lensational as its CEO, I have decided that I will be stepping down this year. Although it has been a heartfelt decision, I believe that my stepping down will bring fresh thinking and energy to the global movement we have built. …

By Kiraiyan Katamboi — introduced by Lydia W Kibandi #ThroughHerEyes is a new monthly column dedicated to sharing the stories and perspectives of under-represented women. Each month, a story by a Lensational storyteller is published on Azickia’s website. Female genital mutilation (FGM) has persisted as one of the major challenges…

A photo essay by photographer Fibi Afloe #ThroughHerEyes is a new monthly column dedicated to sharing the stories and perspectives of under-represented women. Each month, photographers from the Lensational network share their visual work and perspective on Azickia’s website. …

Her COVID-19 stories is a collaborative series aiming to document the experiences of women, and especially low-income women, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Join us in sharing your stories on ‘Women & COVID-19’! See our creative brief here. This blog is updated every time we share a new story. ‘Not everyone in Mathare is respecting COVID-19 restrictions’

Lydia Wanjiku It all started with an encounter. In early 2018, Lieutenant Col Faye Cuevas, former senior vice president at International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) had an unfading encounter with ‘Mama Esther’, who is one of the leaders at Esiteti village, just south of Amboseli National park in Kenya. Faye and…

The coronavirus crisis has been indiscriminate in hitting all of us. But we also know that some places with vulnerable health systems will be hit harder than others. This means that our network of women storytellers, whose communities have less access to health care and information, will also likely be…

By Bonnie Chiu On Day 11 of staying at home — what started as self-quarantine then evolved into a lockdown in London — I have been reflecting on what photography can do to help us cope in these difficult times. Can it lift our spirits up, or help us document…

Bonnie Chiu, Founder and CEO of Lensational When I started Lensational 7 years ago on this day, I didn’t really know what it would mean to be a founder. …