2023
The PhotoVoice Statement of Ethical Practice is a set of considerations and principles which govern how PhotoVoice designs and delivers participatory photography programmes. It is intended to be universal, and applicable across all countries, projects, and topics.
Ethical considerations arise as an everyday part of participatory engagement with community groups, especially when the resulting images are used publicly. PhotoVoice recognises a range of considerations may arise across different activities. If these are not given due attention prior to – as well as during – participant engagement, there is the potential for the activities to do more harm than good.
THE PURPOSE OF THIS DOCUMENT IS TO:
- highlight the full range of potential considerations that might arise in an activity
- make others, particularly facilitators, partner organisations, and funders, aware of the typical ethical considerations which should be considered
- demonstrate the standards that PhotoVoice regards as responsible practice
- create a framework for discussing and agreeing procedures for managing ethical issues
- set a baseline of ethical considerations which can be universally applied, regardless of the country or context in which engagement is taking place
This updated and revised version of PhotoVoice Statement of Ethical Practice was first published in July 2023.
The latest revision, published in April 2026, incorporates new principles on the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in participatory photography.
It is released under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).
You are free to:
- Share – copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format
- Adapt – remix, transform, and build upon the material
Under the following terms:
- Attribution – You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
- NonCommercial – You may not use the material for commercial purposes.
- ShareAlike – If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you must distribute your contributions under the same license as the original.
- No additional restrictions – You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.
If referencing this document, please use the following citation:
“The PhotoVoice Statement of Ethical Practice 2023 (PV23-01.2) was written by PhotoVoice (www.photovoice.org), a UK based non-profit organisation specialising in designing and delivering participatory photography programmes worldwide. It is available at https://photovoice.org/soep”
Hard copies of the PhotoVoice Statement of Ethical Practice can be purchased here.
Revision history:
- First published as PV23-01 on July 2023
- PV23-01-1 published December 2023
- PV23-01-2 published September 2024
- PV23-01-3 published June 2025
- PV23-01-4 published April 2026
This document will be regularly revised and updated. Please link only to this page if sharing or referencing it, to ensure the most up-to-date version is included. Linking directly to the PDF will result in broken links.
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