Self-Declared Nomad With a Cam
Guess who’s been camping at Edirisa on Lake Bunyonyi for a week? Jonathan Fontaine – winner of a 2023 World Press award for documentary photography! He popped by for “just a couple of nights” (famous last words), and ended up sticking around much longer, bewitched by the calm charm of our village haven.
Have a nosy at Jonathan’s Instagram and you’ll spot “travelling for 11 years” right at the start of his bio. Not an exaggeration at all — the man and his trusty tent have been globe-trotting for over a decade. He does swing by Motherland France now and then, but he’s got no permanent base anywhere on the planet. He is a self-declared nomad, and it was actually his nomadic colleagues from Ethiopia that earned him his World Press stripes. Our cool guest got a honourable mention documenting their struggles during the brutal two-year drought!
Jonathan’s fascinated by all sorts: the environment, human rights, overtourism … and whatever else tickles his curiosity. He doesn’t wait around for assignments — he hunts down the stories that stir him, then finds outlets to share them. Not exactly a cash cow of a career, but he’s mastered the art of frugal freedom, and he wouldn’t swap it for anything.
But he doesn’t want that kind of lifestyle for the folks of Lake Bunyonyi! Hearing how investors are a grabbing a plot after a plot, he advised locals to not sell but lease their lands to others. Why would they turn landless when they could instead be partners?!
Yet don’t get him wrong — he’s not wishing that kind of life on the good folks of Lake Bunyonyi! When he heard how investors have been snapping up plot after plot, he was quick to offer a bit of friendly wisdom: don’t sell, let them rent from you! Why give it all away when you could stay rooted and cash in? Partners, not bystanders — that’s Jonathan’s idea.
Now grab your imaginary passport and leave the hard truths of Bunyonyi behind: we’re taking you on a whirlwind photo tour through his lens. And as for what he’s cooking up here in Uganda? Our lips are sealed … until summer!
featured image by Levi Ayebare
