Animal Photojournalism Fellowship

The program will support the Fellow in the following:

• Story development, execution and shooting technique
• How to investigate animal industries
• Post-production
• Using networks and developing partnerships

The Fellow will work remotely with Jo-Anne McArthur and other team members over a series of meetings beginning in June 2024 for approximately six months. The Fellow will receive funding to cover project costs and a stipend for the duration of the Fellowship, totalling $6,500 CAD. We Animals will promote the project upon completion.

The Fellowship is open to those with a track record of shooting high-quality animal photojournalism and who would benefit from professional guidance on their craft.

Minimum requirements: DSLR camera (no mobile device shooting), demonstrated experience in photography, one to two well-presented work samples (please upload enough images to show us a representative sample of your work. We suggest no less than 20-25 and no more than 50-100).

Applicants must apply as individuals and be able to communicate in English at an intermediate level (use of translation apps/software is permitted). Because our Fellows are ambassadors of We Animals and of animal photojournalism, Fellows must embrace vegan values and a non-speciesist philosophy.

Proposals: Applicants must have a clearly defined project pitch that would benefit from WAM’s support. The proposal’s focus must be on farmed animals or animals used for food more broadly, have a beginning and an end date, and must include a preliminary field plan detailing how the location(s) will be accessed. This can be a project that you have already started and need support to finish.

Timeframe: Applicants must be able to commit to the length and time commitment of the Fellowship. The 2024 Fellowship will run for around six months and will roughly require two to three hours per month during the planning and promotional stages, as well as time in the field. The Fellow must commit to executing their project within the timeframe of the Fellowship.

Note: there is an opportunity for the focus and details of the project to shift during the Fellowship and for some flexibility in the timeline.

Applicants agree to license the content created during the fellowship to We Animals Media under our current licensing terms.

We Animals Media (WAM) brings visibility to hidden animals through compelling photojournalism. As the world’s leading animal photojournalism agency, our mission is to document the stories of animals in the human environment — those used for food, fashion, entertainment and experimentation — and to connect those stories to the individuals and organizations who can amplify their reach. Our global investigations and stories expose our complex relationships with animals, create ethical and cultural shifts in society, and empower human capacity for compassion and change.

WAM is a federally incorporated non-profit based in Toronto, Canada.

We’d like to extend our thanks to everyone who applied to the 2024 Animal Photojournalism Fellowship. We are thrilled to announce that we have awarded two Fellowships this year!

Meet our 2024 Fellows, Bogna Wiltowska and Ira Moon.

Curious to know what this opportunity looked like for our past Fellows, Seb Alex and Havva Zorlu? Check out Seb’s portfolio here and Havva’s portfolio here.

Interested in learning about animal photojournalism but not ready to apply for the Fellowship? Check out our We Animals Media Masterclass, an online and self-paced video series designed to teach the basic foundations of animal photojournalism. The eight episodes follow WAM’s Founder and Photojournalist, Jo-Anne McArthur, as she covers the lessons she has learned from almost two decades in the field.

If you have a story idea unsuitable for the Fellowship program but want to pitch it to us, please do so here.

If you have existing content you would like to license to We Animals Media, please submit a Stock Site Submission Form.