Hope in Shadows Calendar

This image has an empty alt attribute, its filename is 2024_HIS-calender_COVER_resized.jpg

Every year in May, our Hope in Shadows calendar project engages up to 150 Downtown Eastside (DTES) community members in a photo contest. Participants are provided a theme, disposable camera and training on how to gather consent from photo subjects, and sent out into the streets for 5 days to take images of their lives. Returned cameras are developed, resulting in up to 2500 images for a jury of community members and staff to parse down to the Top 30.

These images are taken to public events and community centres for ballot voting and the finalists are published in the annual calendar. Finalists and photo subjects are honoured at our annual calendar launch event and awarded certificates, award money and copies of the image.

Starting in October, the calendar is purchased by Megaphone vendors for $10 and sold on the street for $20, with vendors keeping the profits. Every year, dozens of vendors return to Megaphone during the calendar season to sell calendars to be able to afford holiday gifts for friends and family, or to increase their income.

If you don’t have your 2024 Hope in Shadows calendar yet, please find your local vendor to buy one. Your purchase really makes a difference!

Why is this project important?

Despite communities grappling with poverty and social marginalizion being subject to extensive scrutiny and reporting, the media rarely captures the complete story. Hope in Shadows showcases photography that counters prevailing narratives and captures the essence of marginalized communities with familiarity and affection. It allows participants to reclaim their image.

Through award-winning photography featured in a widely circulated calendar, the project highlights lived experiences and prompts reflection on the barriers hindering equal participation.

The Hope in Shadows calendar project was created by Pivot Legal Society in 2003 and gifted to Megaphone’s vendors in 2016.