Winner of the photography contest Human Nature
The coltan is a mineral essential in manufacturing of electronic components. Credits: Judith Prat
Judith Prat is the winner of the sixth edition of the photography contest Human Nature (previously the Man and the Environment). « The theme Human Nature proposes a look at the way humans can be influenced by his environment, that is to say by the conditions, both natural and cultural, that make up the frame of his life and that are susceptible to have an impact on him », explains Michel Tremblay, director of the festival.
The Spanish photographer visited Rubaya in North Kivu of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to photograph working conditions of coltan miners. The DRC has 80% of world reserves of coltan, a black or reddish-brown mineral essential in manufacturing of electronic components. The country was plunged into an extremely complex conflict with some 20 different armed groups in North Kivu and South Kivu that are financed out of the control of the mines. Miners working conditions are extremely difficult and dangerous, the mineral extraction being done in a traditional way.
This year's selection committee was composed of Laurence Butet-Roch (Freelance photo editor, writer and photographer, Member of the Boreal Collective), Martin Tremblay (Photographer for La Presse), Éric Côté (Photographer, TV Director and Board member of Groupe Photo Média International), Amélie Ferland-Dufresne (Director of communications and programming for the Centre for Sustainable Development), Aude Crispel, (Web developer for the Centre for Sustainable Development) et Roger Lemoyne (Freelance photographer, People in the News Prize World Press Photo 1999)
The photos will be displayed during the sixth edition of Zoom Photo Festival Saguenay from November 4 to 29, 2015 and the Centre for Sustainable Development in Montreal in January 2016.
