CEF and Getty Images: Clicking for a Cause
From Robert Brown, Chair, Compassionate Eye Foundation:
We are thrilled that Compassionate Eye Foundation (CEF) Founder, Robert Kent is one of twenty photographers selected for the September issue of Photo District News Magazine, in their “Concerned Photographer” feature. (Note that the PDN feature article is available by subscription only.) It is an exceptional honor for Robert to be recognized in this publication. All of us at CEF are very proud!
Members of a Guatamalan women's group, supported by CEF
Robert Kent created CEF from the heart. He saw an opportunity to help those in need through his own talents and those of his generous peers in the creative industry. Since its inception in 2006, CEF’s mission has been to support, honor, and empower those in developing nations in order to expand educational opportunities, basic health services, and tools for economic development.
A student served by the school that CEF built in Guatemala
CEF creatively adopts a stock photography model to generate funds for its much-needed work. Photographers and other generous volunteers from the creative industries donate their time to create saleable images that CEF offers for commercial licensing, through our partnership with Getty Images. CEF receives the photographers’ royalty share and Getty Images donates an additional portion of each license fee to support CEF’s projects. This unique and innovative model enables CEF to leverage the donations made by the volunteers and turns this revenue into a significant contribution to people on the ground.
Graduates of CEF's first school in Guatemala
CEF’s annual fund raising event, the Summer Solstice Shoot, involves hundreds of people from around the world in an incredible display of charity and effort. Photographers and their teams (producers, models, art directors, make-up artists, editors…an impressive list of volunteers) spent a tremendous amount of time in preparation and on locations donated to CEF, in London, Vancouver, Los Angeles and New York. Some of images generated from these photo shoots are already edited and submitted to Getty Images to be part of CEF collection on gettyimages.com.
Imagery created during those days will make a huge difference over the coming years to CEF, and more importantly, to the communities we support. Over the past two and a half years, our images have raised $350,000 which as enabled us to support educational projects and programs in Guatemala, South Africa, Sierra Leone and Lai, India and funded a number of income and livelihood enterprises in Ethiopia. To find out more about our Foundation and the communities it supports, please visit our website: www.compassionateeye.org.
On behalf of CEF, I thank everyone for their contribution of time and talent, and thank everyone at PDN Magazine for recognizing Robert Kent’s ingenuity and compassion, which flourishes in an amazing effort through the cooperation of all supporters and Getty Images.
Tags: CEF, Charity, Compassionate Eye Foundation, Getty Images
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