Biography:
Sara Hylton is an award-winning photographer and explorer recognized for her compassionate and intimate approach to human rights issues. Hylton is a faculty member at the International Center of Photography and holds an MA from Kings College...
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The sun rises over the Valley of Fort Qu'Appelle, Saskatchewan. The Cree and the Saulteaux First Nations were once nomadic in these lands in search of buffalo. It was here, in 1874 where their rights and privileges to 75,000 miles of land would be signed over to the Queen under Treaty Four.
Simran, 31 at the time, walks through the Banstand area of Bandra in Mumbai, India on December 6, 2017. Simran is part of the secretive and hierarchical community of hijras, which includes intersex and transgender people. Each day she visits this area and asks tourists and locals for money. She must give a portion of all the money she makes to her guru.
A view of the Hunza Valley in Gilgit-Baltistan on July 13, 2018. Hunza Valley, in Northern Pakistan, borders the Xinjian region of China and the Wakhan Corridor of Afghanistan. Among the most moderate sects of Islam, Ismaili Muslims are the majority inhabiting this region that boasts high education rates for girls, religious tolerance, and stability.
A little boy runs along the train tracks outside of Ghum station as the steam-engine toy train prepares to depart in the Darjeeling area of West Bengal, India on April 8, 2019. The toy train, a main tourist attraction in the region, is fuelled by coal and emits hazardous smoke as it passes through towns and villages in the Himalayan foothills. Coal extends far beyond this tourist attraction. With a growing population and rising urbanization, the country still relies heavily on cheap, dirty energy energy -- coal -- in order to fuel the needs of a rapidly developing nation. According to the 2018 World Air Quality Report, 18 of the 20 most polluted cities in the world are in India and 1.24 million citizens die annually from air pollution.
Wood burns in preparation for a sweat lodge on the outskirts of Regina, Saskatchewan. Many women facing the loss of a loved one have turned to sweat, ceremony and traditional teachings. “The healing started from that first sweat. I sweat for four days,” said Gwenda Yuzicappi, whose daughter was found dead on Little Black Bear First Nation on May 7th, 2008. “I still need all those ceremonies” said Ms. Yuzicappi.
Girls at an Afghan refugee settlement on the outskirts of Islamabad, Pakistan study at a madrassa where they learn the Koran on July 11, 2018. For many Pakistani and Afghan families, madrassas are the only option to educate their girls. Religious schools provide Koranic teachings to approximately 3.5 million children and teens, and critics suggest that some of these institutions introduce young minds to a radical view of Islam.
A bride participates in one of the many rituals of marriage in the Ismaili culture in Hunza Valley, Pakistan on July 14, 2018. This bride is marrying for love rather than family arrangement.
Megha Kumari, 9 at the time, is massaged by her mother and other villagers after losing feeling in her legs from a seizure in the village of Harijan Mahala in Jharkhand, India on December 19, 2016. "Harijan Mahala" describes this Dalit colony who have not received their full rations of rice due to discrimination, almost all households have reported at least one female who suffers from anemia. Patriarchal attitudes in the country result in girls bearing the brunt of India’s high rates of malnutrition and disease.
Members of the Awami National Party (ANP), a leftist Pashtun nationalist party, rally in a rural area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on July 8, 2018 during the lead-up to Pakistan’s election. ANP is Pakistan’s most secular, liberal party which has made it a target of the Pakistan Taliban. A few days after the rally, leader Haroon Bilour was killed in Peshawar by a suicide attack claimed by Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). It is worth noting that there was not a single woman at this rally.
Biki Malavath, whose age is unknown, holds her great granddaughter, nicknamed Milky, who is the youngest member of the village on March 19, 2018. Laxmapur Thanda, just outside of Laxmapur village, is a village for Lambadi people, a scheduled tribe considered one of India's more disadvantaged communities.
An old Kashmiri man travels by train departing from Baramulla, the beginning of the train line in Northwestern Kashmir, headed towards the capital, Srinagar on July 6, 2016. This was during a relatively stable day in the valley. Two days later, militant Burhan Wani of Hizbul Mujahideen was killed by Indian security forces and the entire region spiralled into protests and violence, the valley was shutdown for months and trains were inoperable.
Mary Tremblay, 33, finds solitude in nature in Saskatchewan’s northern town of La Ronge. Mary’s sister, Julie Houghton, was found dead in a ditch along the highway between Quinton and Raymore back in 2005. Her death remains unsolved. "I would like to find the man who killed my sister” said Mary. 33 cases of missing and murdered indigenous women remain unsolved in Saskatchewan, but numbers are likely to be much higher.
Relatives of Isaac Malish, 43, a South Sudanese refugee, mourn his death in a hut at Kuluba collection center in Koboko district, Northern Uganda. Refugees from South Sudan may undergo severe physical and mental strain while seeking refuge and making the journey to Uganda, and even upon arrival, many have little access to medical care. Mr. Malish left behind five children. Sara Hylton for the Los Angeles Times
In Harsil, Uttarakhand on June 27, 2019. Taken on assignment for National Geographic's "Sea to Source: Ganges" expedition. Through the expedition, the international, all-female team of scientists are working with National Geographic and international partners to scientifically document plastic waste in the Ganges watershed and support holistic and inclusive solutions.
In Harsil, Uttarakhand on June 27, 2019. Taken on assignment for National Geographic's "Sea to Source: Ganges" expedition. Through the expedition, the international, all-female team of scientists are working with National Geographic and international partners to scientifically document plastic waste in the Ganges watershed and support holistic and inclusive solutions.
Youngsters dance at a day club at Nyukoron cultural center in Juba on a Sunday afternoon. Day clubs have become a trend as the youth of Juba seek fun but cannot go out at night due to checkpoints and security issues.
Tourists from Karachi pose for a selfie overlooking the Karakoram mountain range in Hunza Valley on July 15, 2018. The group of young women came to "escape city life" they said.
A village procession takes place near Sita Ram Sahni's home that calls upon the ancestors in Rasalpur, Dharnipatti, Bihar on Nov. 13, 2019. Rasalpur is largely a village of laborers and fishermen. Taken on assignment for National Geographic
March 18, 2018 - Venkatesh Appala, 45, grows capsicum (bell peppers) in his greenhouse near Laxmapur village in Telangana state. He began his greenhouse in January 2017, and he estimates receiving a profit of 46,000 rupees in one year, just over $700 USD. He is using the extra income to save for his daughter's dowry which can run up to $10,000 USD.
March 20, 2018 - Early morning scenes of Bowenpally Market in Hyderabad, a wholesale vegetable market that sells produce from Kheyti farmers to local street vendors.
Abida Azadmanish, 54, an Afghan refugee in Islamabad, Pakistan, stands with one of her students, Abid Khan, 18, on July 10, 2018. Ms. Azadmanish teaches both male and female Afghan refugees like Abid, whose father makes an income through garbage picking. Abid has since graduated and dreams of becoming an engineer. Ms. Azadmanish is committed to helping students like Abid see a future different from their parents, but she faces many challenges, including a cut in funding which has forced her to close her classroom (pictured here), and relocate classes to her small home.