The VII Foundation / VII Academy, Arles

The VII Foundation's mission is to transform photojournalism by supporting new generations of journalists and highlighting stories that advocate change. In a world where beliefs and actions are increasingly disconnected from facts and realities, changing documentary journalism is a matter of urgency.

The VII Foundation trains emerging photojournalists from communities under-represented in the media, and provides them with the equipment they need to carry out their work.
These professionals are on the front line, bearing witness to urgent challenges common to us all.
The VII Foundation teaches essential skills and strategies to photojournalists to ensure that the truth is documented and made available to the public worldwide, seeking to make decisions and choices based on facts and not rumors.

Our training is free of charge and delivered by professional journalists who, for decades, have been working on the front line, in the most striking and complex situations in our societies. At a time when the global media is underfunded and dying out, our graduates are helping to ensure that the global conversation continues and is fueled by reporting from the work of local people, rather than unsourced, unaccredited rumors and factual manipulation.

In addition to giving voice to over 1,200 new voices in journalism from more than 100 countries, we organize conferences and critical debates that question the context, purpose and impact of images. We create large-scale, long-term documentary projects, exhibitions and films that reveal complex realities, advocate change and serve as a resource for those in power, the public and journalists worldwide.

The VII Foundation includes VII Photo, acquired in 2023, as well as three educational initiatives: VII Academy, VII Community and VII Insider.