Bring MYN to the Everglades!

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As you have probably noticed, Paul Marcellini has been one of our most prolific contributors to MYN. Well, today Paul needs your help! He has been accepted to display his images in the Ernest Coe Visitors Center of Everglades National Park for the month of May 2012 and needs to raise funding to pay for the cost of producing the exhibit. We hope you’ll consider donating something today. South Florida is region that is rich with wildlife but its species are being overrun by non-native, invasive plants and animals. This exhibit will offer visitors to the Everglades an opportunity to see some of the spectacular wildlife that can and should be protected and appreciated! Visit the link below to learn how you can contribute.

Go here to see the Kickstarter project donation page or continue reading below.

From Paul:

Hey everyone! Welcome to my Kickstarter page for my Everglades Exhibition of Meet Your Neighbours images. I am extremely happy to be one of dozens of global photographers working to promote our native flora and fauna.

Founded in 2009, Meet Your Neighbours (www.Meetyourneighbours.net) is a worldwide photographic initiative created by Niall Benvie and Clay Bolt. The project is dedicated to reconnecting people with the wildlife on their own doorsteps – and enriching their lives in the process. These creatures and plants are vital to people: they represent the first, and for some, the only contact with wild nature we have. Yet too often they are overlooked, undervalued.

As Aldo Leopold said, “The last word in ignorance is the man who says of an animal or plant, “What good is it?” If the land mechanism as a whole is good, then every part is good, whether we understand it or not. If the biota, in the course of aeons, has built something we like but do not understand, then who but a fool would discard seemingly useless parts? To keep every cog and wheel is the first precaution of intelligent tinkering.”

And so I have set out, documenting any little creature and plant I can in South Florida. With a field studio (http://meetyourneighbours.net/field-studio-technique-history/) that minimizes stress on these wild critters, the Meet Your Neighbours team has created a unique body of work. The pure white background takes out the surroundings and forces the viewer to focus on the unique subjects at hand. This allows the small details and intricacies to be noticed.

I have spent countless hours over the past year pursuing these images, and although it is not an income based project, it is a passion. I want to educate the people of South Florida and introduce them to the “neighbours”. I have been fortunate to be accepted to display in the Ernest Coe Visitors Center of Everglades National Park for the month of May 2012. This show will require even more of my time, and of course, display costs. This is why I am asking for help. YOU would be supporting the education of thousands of visitors and allowing me to continue pursuing this project. This is just the beginning, I plan to display it wherever and whenever I can. I am already confirmed for Biscayne National Park in 2013.

Thanks for your time and especially for your support, it means the world to me. To see all of my images from this project go HERE.