I Am Because We Are

Ilvy Njiokiktjien

With a higher proportion of the Dutch population finding co-living as a solution to the rising cost of living, providing elder-care, living sustainably, and coping with loneliness, alternative options have become more available and diverse. Njiokiktjien’s project investigates co-living arrangements across the Netherlands, offering insight into what is leading people to choose this lifestyle.

This reportage has been supported by the Solutions Visual Journalism Initiative, organized by World Press Photo Foundation and MIAP Foundation.

Artist Bios

Ilvy Njiokiktjien

Ilvy Njiokiktjien is an independent photographer and multimedia journalist based in the Netherlands. She has worked in many parts of the world, with a focus on Africa. As a news and documentary photographer, she covers current affairs and contemporary social issues.

She was born in the Netherlands, and after leaving school she studied for a year in South Dakota (USA), before returning home to study journalism and photography. She graduated in 2006, and started working as a freelance photographer.

Her work has appeared in The New York Times, TIME, Newsweek, Der Spiegel, STERN, Telegraph Magazine and many others.

Her pictures have been exhibited in several museums and photo festivals. After working on a story about the right-wing organization Kommandokorps in South Africa, she was listed by PDN as one of the 30 New and Emerging Photographers to Watch. She was also named as one of twelve participants in the 2012 World Press Photo Joop Swart Masterclass.

Accolades include a Canon AFJ Award, two World Press Photo Awards, and two POYi’s Awards. In 2013, Ilvy Njiokiktjien became Photographer of the Nation in The Netherlands. In that year, she travelled extensively throughout the Netherlands to photograph 100 birthday celebrations. She believes that showing the way people celebrate, also shows much about their culture.

Organizations

The VII Foundation

The VII Foundation’s mission is to transform visual journalism by empowering new voices and creating stories that advocate change. In a world where beliefs and actions are increasingly out-of-sync with facts and realities, transforming visual journalism is an urgent task. Education is at the heart of The VII Foundation. To deliver our mission, we have an educational stream of three programs – VII Academy, VII Community (in partnership with PhotoWings), and VII Insider (in partnership with PhotoWings).