is an ongoing photography project documenting the people and communities of Barbados.

Barbados was the first island colonised by the British for the purposes of enslavement. In 2021, after 396 years of colonial rule, the British monarch was removed as head of state, and Barbados became a republic. Despite this removal, the effects of colonialism still reign supreme today.

The legacy of enslavement is one of structural dependency and underdevelopment. And now with the impact of eco-colonialism, Barbados has inherited even more to navigate. Despite contributing less than 0.01% to the world’s CO2 emissions, Barbados is highly vulnerable to climate change. Rising seas are eroding the coast. Crop yields are impacted by extreme and unpredictable weather. The sea spews excessive sargassum at the coast. It rots, releasing hydrogen sulphide, which harms respiratory health, fisheries and tourism. Bajans living in Chattel Houses are prey to volatile weather and most new build properties are bought by offshore buyers.

The legacy of displacement is an absence of archive—focused on survival, there is no time or space for it. My grandmother was born in Barbados and lured to England during the Windrush period. She came without her three children and brought no family photos—a whisper of colonialism is the things we are forced to leave behind.

There is a lack of photographic access to the people of the island–the few photobooks available focus on beaches or chattel houses. Like all Caribbean islands, Barbados’ economy is tourism-dependant, meaning the country’s efforts are plugged into displaying the imperialist past, with little focus on much else. I ask: what does it look like to centre ourselves, write our own stories?

Each time I ask to photograph a Bajan person, I hear "why you wan tek a picture of me?" Pre-20th century, only white births in Barbados were registered.

With a focus on consensual image making, through street portraiture, the project aims to create a living archive of the people of Barbados–which is among, if not, the, first intentional project of its kind.

A complex chronicling, this project is an intentional reclaiming of a countries identity, as well as an essential documenting of a people threatened by the environmental impact of eco-colonialism. A displaced people, being displaced yet again. My people, who deserve to be seen and to record their own history.