Photojournalist - (position is now filled)

Using photography and storytelling as a universal language, Collective Roots is seeking a professional photojournalist to investigate racial/ethnic health disparities and bridge the cultural gap by putting a human face on the varied experiences of marginalized people in a way statistics alone can't.[1]   The Photojournalist will formulate and implement strategies for disseminating public health information to at-risk populations and educating policymakers and the community at large.  This campaign begins with an initial assignment of creating six types of feature stories in English and Spanish.

In addition to distributing news to mainstream news outlets, the Photojournalist will create content for various multimedia-rich educational Web sites developed by Collective Roots. The Photojournalist will use crowd sourcing and other collaborative journalism methods to report on the impact of health disparities.  

Project Description

East Palo Alto is home to one of the most densely populated immigrant communities in the San Francisco Bay Area-with 70 percent[2] of its population being Latino. This largely immigrant population faces both a digital and health information divide, where residents and community-based organizations lack access to baseline data on the health status of all residents-regardless of legal status.  Furthermore, research shows that an under-representation of minority health care professionals is directly linked to continued disparities in health, such as poor nutrition, asthma, obesity, diabetes and heart disease-conditions that disproportionately affect these residents and reduce their life expectancy. 

Research Methodology

This project takes a two-part approach to data collection:

Social Documentation
A reporting network of university-level Minority Public Health Fellows and high school-level Youth Health Advocates-selected for their own backgrounds as immigrants-will document conditions under which East Palo Altans work to sustain themselves and interview residents about their strategies for improving their lives.

The Healthy Development Measurement Tool
Health data will be collected, analyzed and disseminated using the Healthy Development Measurement Tool (HDMT). This community-driven process involves partnering with existing immigrant advocacy groups and agencies to assess the overall health of a population experiencing the greatest disparities.

Qualifications

• Experienced photojournalist.
• Bachelor's degree; Masters degree preferred.
• Proficiency in HTML, CSS, WordPress and/or Drupal Content Management Systems (CMS).
• Ability to create and add interactive content to the Web sites (i.e. audio slideshows).
• Develop social media strategy to raise awareness around health disparities in low-income communities of color; monitor web metrics and provide custom reports in Google Analytics. 
• Applicants will be selected based upon their backgrounds as immigrants, coming from an immigrant family, or other experiences that have cultivated a deep understanding and commitment to the immigrant community.

Other desirable qualifications include: 

• Personal understanding of immigrant or underserved communities and the social justice issues they face.
• Ability to work with a variety of stakeholders, particularly youth and other members of the community whose voices are under-represented.
• Fund-raising and grant writing experience preferred; ability to identify, prioritize and execute on opportunities for funding.
• Bilingual and bi-literate in Spanish-English is a plus.

Organization Description

Collective Roots is a non-profit organization that seeks to educate and engage youth and communities in food system change through sustainable programs that impact health, education, and the environment.  We rely on extensive collaborations and partnerships to enable all aspects of our work, and we receive the support of hundreds of volunteers in order to achieve our goals and objectives.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

Collective Roots is an Equal Opportunity Employer and as such we value diversity and actively solicit qualified applicants from all ethnic and racial backgrounds. Our board-adopted policy prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, religion, age, disability, veteran status, political affiliation or belief, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital or family status, or any other basis prohibited by law.

[1] Investing in Our Communities: A Toolkit for Grantmakers, Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrants and Refugees, 2006.

[2] According to the 2000 census, the city is 58.8 percent Latino, but the Ravenswood City School District that serves East Palo Alto reports the ethnic make-up of the population is dominantly Hispanic (70%), African American (20%), Pacific Islander (9%) and other 1%.