DANCING IN A MINEFIELD: Search for Other Ways of Being
(In Development)
(In Development)
Introduction
Cultural diversity makes our world a fascinating place. Each culture in the words of author and anthropologist Wade Davis is a unique answer to the question of what it means to be human.
Some scholars estimate that there are more than 3800 cultures in the world, yet, many of those ways of living are rapidly changing or vanishing completely. An indicator of this decline is the loss of language. Every two weeks, anthropologists estimate a tribal elder dies with the last remaining knowledge of his language and culture which are usually passed down from generation to generation. Within a generation or two, many of humanity’s life experiences, beliefs, values, and traditions may be lost forever.
Globalization, technology, and climate change are rapidly changing the economic landscape of the planet and driving people and languages out of existence. Mauritanian nomads, one of the world’s last remaining nomadic cultures, are slowly moving to urban centers as global warming, overpopulation, limited space, and pollution of their desert environment has made their lives more and more difficult.
Some changes may benefit a culture by moving it towards a way of living that is more comfortable, nourishing, and supportive. Who is to say that Mauritanian nomads shouldn’t want their children to be educated and have secure jobs in cities, believing that their traditional lifestyle is no longer a certain way of life? Hopefully, all people should benefit from progress without sacrificing their ethnicity.
I am only one of many individuals who appreciates that society is made up of many different groups with different interests, skills, talents, and needs: from the Huli in the mountainous terrain of Papua New Guinea to the Nagas in the hills of Northern India; from the San people in the deserts of Northern Namibia to the Dukha reindeer herders in the taiga of northern Mongolia; from the Shuar in the Oriente of Ecuador to the Bedouins in the deserts of Israel and Jordan.
Follow me as I take you on journeys to remote and sometimes dangerous places, hoping to learn more about ways of life that teach us other ways of thinking, doing, and being before they change or vanish forever.
"When you travel, you have a choice,” Craig Storti wrote in his book Why Travel Matters. “You can be a tourist and have a nice time, or you can be a traveler and change your life."
My choice was to be a traveler and celebrate the life-altering effects of travel with its unparalleled opportunities for self-improvement and personal growth. To enjoy the differences, without judging or comparing, knowing that no culture is better than others, and understand as deeply as possible the cultures I might experience.
In October 2017, I stepped into Shughnan, a small Afghanistan village, wielding a video camera that might resemble a lethal weapon to some. Expecting Ismaili villagers to throw stones or react in anger, I was greeted with looks of curiosity, the occasional smile, and even a “thumbs-up.”
In the words of Ben Groundwater, "People are grateful you’ve come to see things with your own eyes. The travel experience is at its best when it surprises you, when it forces you to question your assumed knowledge when it changes your worldview for the better."
In December 2009, I was drawn into the world of the Bayaka forest people in the Central African Republic. I saw a vanishing way of life that psychoanalyst Manfred Kets de Vries considered a model of team cohesion for modern corporate culture. Leadership for the Bayaka does not belong to one person. All members of the group have the right to make decisions.
In March 1993, I shot a documentary featuring the Dogon people of Mali for the Journey Women: Off the Map television series. The Academy for Future Science reported that the Dogon’s harmonious community, the beauty of their architecture and art, and their elaborate cosmology give us reason to reassess our own ideas about what constitutes a high or low level of human development.
Cultures with ancient, traditional skills and knowledge contribute to the well-being of both developed and developing worlds. Visiting places governments and international media consider dangerous is one thing, but seeing such places hoping to film or photograph different ways of life is quite another.
In her book, “The Enthusiast’s Guide to Travel Photography,” Jordana Wright reminds us that most democracies protect photography as a right of free speech. However, some countries don’t like the idea of people walking around taking photos randomly or even forbid photography in many places. She advises photographers to research first to ensure they won’t attract unwanted negative attention from officials while taking pictures abroad.
Although there may be no full-proof way of protecting a photographer from harassment or intimidation while traveling in foreign places, there are many things a photographer can do to reduce the risks. They can follow numerous guidelines and ethical codes to help reduce problems abroad, but there is no absolute way to avoid difficulties. Bad things can happen anywhere at any time and are often beyond one’s control.
As you join me in retracing my journeys, you will no doubt witness my attempts to balance the benefits and risks and assess, in hindsight, my photographic judgment - both good and bad.
My efforts to some may resemble a stumbling understudy to the likes of Steve McCurry, Jimmy Nelson, or Phil Borges, but the learning process is often complicated, confusing, and sometimes akin to dancing in a minefield.
Douglas Spencer
Cultural diversity makes our world a fascinating place. Each culture in the words of author and anthropologist Wade Davis is a unique answer to the question of what it means to be human.
Some scholars estimate that there are more than 3800 cultures in the world, yet, many of those ways of living are rapidly changing or vanishing completely. An indicator of this decline is the loss of language. Every two weeks, anthropologists estimate a tribal elder dies with the last remaining knowledge of his language and culture which are usually passed down from generation to generation. Within a generation or two, many of humanity’s life experiences, beliefs, values, and traditions may be lost forever.
Globalization, technology, and climate change are rapidly changing the economic landscape of the planet and driving people and languages out of existence. Mauritanian nomads, one of the world’s last remaining nomadic cultures, are slowly moving to urban centers as global warming, overpopulation, limited space, and pollution of their desert environment has made their lives more and more difficult.
Some changes may benefit a culture by moving it towards a way of living that is more comfortable, nourishing, and supportive. Who is to say that Mauritanian nomads shouldn’t want their children to be educated and have secure jobs in cities, believing that their traditional lifestyle is no longer a certain way of life? Hopefully, all people should benefit from progress without sacrificing their ethnicity.
I am only one of many individuals who appreciates that society is made up of many different groups with different interests, skills, talents, and needs: from the Huli in the mountainous terrain of Papua New Guinea to the Nagas in the hills of Northern India; from the San people in the deserts of Northern Namibia to the Dukha reindeer herders in the taiga of northern Mongolia; from the Shuar in the Oriente of Ecuador to the Bedouins in the deserts of Israel and Jordan.
Follow me as I take you on journeys to remote and sometimes dangerous places, hoping to learn more about ways of life that teach us other ways of thinking, doing, and being before they change or vanish forever.
"When you travel, you have a choice,” Craig Storti wrote in his book Why Travel Matters. “You can be a tourist and have a nice time, or you can be a traveler and change your life."
My choice was to be a traveler and celebrate the life-altering effects of travel with its unparalleled opportunities for self-improvement and personal growth. To enjoy the differences, without judging or comparing, knowing that no culture is better than others, and understand as deeply as possible the cultures I might experience.
In October 2017, I stepped into Shughnan, a small Afghanistan village, wielding a video camera that might resemble a lethal weapon to some. Expecting Ismaili villagers to throw stones or react in anger, I was greeted with looks of curiosity, the occasional smile, and even a “thumbs-up.”
In the words of Ben Groundwater, "People are grateful you’ve come to see things with your own eyes. The travel experience is at its best when it surprises you, when it forces you to question your assumed knowledge when it changes your worldview for the better."
In December 2009, I was drawn into the world of the Bayaka forest people in the Central African Republic. I saw a vanishing way of life that psychoanalyst Manfred Kets de Vries considered a model of team cohesion for modern corporate culture. Leadership for the Bayaka does not belong to one person. All members of the group have the right to make decisions.
In March 1993, I shot a documentary featuring the Dogon people of Mali for the Journey Women: Off the Map television series. The Academy for Future Science reported that the Dogon’s harmonious community, the beauty of their architecture and art, and their elaborate cosmology give us reason to reassess our own ideas about what constitutes a high or low level of human development.
Cultures with ancient, traditional skills and knowledge contribute to the well-being of both developed and developing worlds. Visiting places governments and international media consider dangerous is one thing, but seeing such places hoping to film or photograph different ways of life is quite another.
In her book, “The Enthusiast’s Guide to Travel Photography,” Jordana Wright reminds us that most democracies protect photography as a right of free speech. However, some countries don’t like the idea of people walking around taking photos randomly or even forbid photography in many places. She advises photographers to research first to ensure they won’t attract unwanted negative attention from officials while taking pictures abroad.
Although there may be no full-proof way of protecting a photographer from harassment or intimidation while traveling in foreign places, there are many things a photographer can do to reduce the risks. They can follow numerous guidelines and ethical codes to help reduce problems abroad, but there is no absolute way to avoid difficulties. Bad things can happen anywhere at any time and are often beyond one’s control.
As you join me in retracing my journeys, you will no doubt witness my attempts to balance the benefits and risks and assess, in hindsight, my photographic judgment - both good and bad.
My efforts to some may resemble a stumbling understudy to the likes of Steve McCurry, Jimmy Nelson, or Phil Borges, but the learning process is often complicated, confusing, and sometimes akin to dancing in a minefield.
Douglas Spencer