world report award | documenting humanity 2026
The World Report Award | Documenting Humanity promotes a renewed form of social engagement through photography. Open to both professional and amateur photographers worldwide, the award highlights visual stories centered on people and their social or cultural realities. These may include public or private narratives, minor or pivotal moments, major human tragedies, or everyday life experiences, as well as intimate and personal human connections. Projects focused on environmental issues, wildlife conservation, and solution-driven photojournalism are also encouraged.
Each year, the contest presents a broad and compelling fresco celebrating excellence in photojournalism and documentary photography. The World Report Award|Documenting Humanity isn't simply a contest that through its prizes economically supports those who are actively engaged in these difficult sectors of photography, but it also provides access to a strong, collaborative community built over the past 15 years, made up of professionals actively engaged with our organization.
The award is organized by the Festival of Ethical Photography, founded in 2010 with the goal of emphasizing ethically significant content and bringing social issues closer to the general public. We believe photography has long been a powerful tool for exposing social injustice worldwide, and through this innovative and multifaceted festival, we seek to explore the relationship between ethics, communication, and photography.
The Festival features over 20 exhibitions by internationally recognized and award-winning photographers, along with talks, workshops, portfolio reviews, screenings, book presentations, photography labs, educational programs for students, and many other events.
Other than the annual event taking place every fall, the organization of the Festival works daily to make sure that the photographers' work is seen and their voices heard.