Behind the Scenes - A Tuareg family gently sleeps

Let me set the scene: The assignment is Global Climate Change for National Geographic Magazine. We learned that vast areas of the sub-Sahara were changing due to decades of drought. Over the past 40 years lakebeds have dried up, though in some places there is still a deep water base and water can be drawn from wells. To investigate people who were living in these areas I visited a clan of Tuareg living about 80 kilometers outside of Timbuktu, Mali. They are nomadic peoples, living for centuries around a huge lake system that provided water for themselves and their animals. As nomadic herders they moved their herds constantly around this huge lake system dotted with patches of green.

I spent five days with this family, traveling out to their camp in a 4-wheel drive vehicle with an interpreter from Timbuktu named Mohammad and a grizzled Tuareg tribesman also named Mohammad. I wasn’t really surprised that the head of the clan we visited was also named Mohammad. He was a teacher and spoke his tribal language Tamasheq, as well as fluent Arabic and French. We arrived with a live goat, a case of bottled water and case of canned chicken (just in case). The goat was much appreciated since meat had become scarce due to the droughts since the 1970’s. After greetings and drinking tea several men of the family built a fire in a sand pit. When the sand pit got scorching hot they buried the slaughtered goat to roast for a number of hours. Later as we ate some goat meat in the fading light, even my interpreter Mohammed, from Timbuktu, confessed that the meat was a bit sandy and we both ate a tin of chicken later. Over dinner we discussed the reason for my visit and it was agreed that I was free to photograph whatever I liked.

One day when the men went off on a hunting expedition nearby I stayed with the women back at camp. It was a sultry afternoon and as the family took a nap in their tent, I did too. After playing with the baby and combing the youngest girl’s hair her mother Waled curled up for a nap and indicated I should do so as well. At some point I woke up and saw that everyone was asleep. I photographed the family asleep, using about a roll of film, framing each shot a little differently. The child on the right, a 12-year-old girl, shifted a bit, the mother moved her hand, but everyone stayed asleep. I napped off again too. I still have the two beaded bracelets that the twelve year-old girl pushed onto my arm as a gift. 
When I arrived back in Timbuktu a few days later to rest for a day and tour the city a young messenger from the airport came to tell me the airplane was there a day early. I had to hustle to leave so I never really got to see much of the city. Perhaps I’ll have a chance to return one day.

 This picture was first published on the cover of the National Geographic Magazine for a story on climate change (Solving the Climate Puzzle, May 1998) and later on the cover of the book Women Photographers At National Geographic. In 2011 it was named one of the 50 best pictures of National Geographic. At the same time I am offering a similar image taken at the same time that was used as part of the climate change story.

Over the years friends have asked me about purchasing prints as art to display in their homes or offices. At last I set up my website to be able to offer signed art prints for sale in several sizes!

The first prints are these pictures of the family asleep, my most requested images. I thought I 'd make my offer a little different. Each month I'll donate 10% of my sales to a cause or non-profit that I have discovered. I’ll tell you about the organization and provide a link to their website. After that month has passed you may still designate your donation to go to a past organization I have spotlighted. I will sign each photograph and include a description about the story behind each picture, about the people I met and locations traveled.

Groundwork Opportunities
 The organization I am spotlighting for February is Groundwork Opportunities  based in San Francisco. Their primary work is in Africa but also have projects in Cambodia. GO identifies and partners with local leaders in the developing world who have designed sustainable programs to address community-based issues, such as a lack of clean water, healthcare, or education. Once a partnership is established, GO provides the community with the start-up capital and guidance needed to turn their vision for a better world into a reality that will scale across multiple countries. 


The particular project I am donating the 10% of prints sales to this month is to a farming project in Uganda. 


Jo Wulffenstein and Michelle Bratt, enthusiastic supporters of this cause, are hosting a fund raiser/auction where they live in Juneau, Alaska this February 25th. I know they have a float plane ride to a lodge for dinner and a helicopter ride to a glacier and a lot of other cool stuff as part of the auction. I also donated a print for the auction. Their specific project is to raise $10,000 to build a piggery in Uganda. This farm can influence change in the lives of thousands of people, and educate them on the specifics of pig farming.


Since 2005, GO has partnered with The Uganda Rural Community Support Foundation, URCSF, in Masaka, Uganda.  to leverage local skill sets by training subsistence farmers in traditional and sustainable farming methods at a model farming cooperative.

To purchase a print go to http://joannabpinneo.photoshelter.com/gallery-list, Click on Fine Art Prints, choose a print to purchase, click on Buy Image in the upper right, and follow the instructions to shopping cart and check out.

If you see a picture on my website not listed in the Fine Art Print Gallery that you’d like to purchase as a print simply write to me and chances are I can order a print of that image for you.