Collage of Upper Kanawha Valley landscapes, wildlife, community heritage, and environmental concerns from the Photovoice project.
Expand to read a detaied image description: Photovoice Image Collage
The Southern West Virginia Photovoice Project collage for the Upper Kanawha Valley, Kanawha County, brings together photographs illustrating the region’s natural beauty, community heritage, and environmental concerns. Across the center, a large banner reads “Southern West Virginia Photovoice Project — Upper Kanawha Valley, Kanawha County.” Beneath it is the project’s statement: “Their images ~ Their words ~ Their ideas for change.” Surrounding the banner are overlapping photographs showing:
Natural beauty: A brilliant orange and pink sunrise over wooded mountains, a snow-covered mountain landscape, a hillside displaying autumn foliage, a rocky cliff covered in icicles, and a pink flower in bloom.
Local plants and traditions: Garden vegetables growing among marigolds, a large morel mushroom held in someone’s hand, and an old well covered with a concrete slab and stacked bricks.
Environmental concerns: Discarded bottles and cups in a roadside ditch, piles of cut logs left on a cleared mountainside, a large industrial pipe lying among vegetation, and a mountain landscape marked by extensive surface mining.
Together, the photographs illustrate the contrasting themes of natural beauty, community identity, local traditions, environmental degradation, and residents’ ideas for protecting and improving their communities.

The Upper Kanawha Valley Photovoice Group was located in Kanawha County, West Virginia and included the communities of Cabin Creek and Winifrede. Members of the Upper Kanawha Valley Photovoice Group included (in alphabetical order):

Terri Bailey, Anna Boswell, Kandace Edwards, JoAnn King, Linda Pullen Perdue, Stella “Sue” Pullen, Kathy Stout, Loretta Watkins, and Lahoma White

From September of 2008 to May of 2009, these nine women created more than 80 photostories telling the story of their area. Their photostories fall within the five major themes listed below. Click on a theme to view a selection of photostories from that category.

Themes

Click on the theme heading to view the photostories in that category. Expand the image by clicking on it.

Clean residential lane runs alongside railroad tracks, with houses, trees, and a forested mountain in the background.
Three photographs show groups of highschoolers walking along wooded mountain trails and gathering beside an off-road utility vehicle.
Four young people stretch on the floor of a boxing gym, sitting on exercise mats with their legs extended before training.
Five children perform a Christmas play on a church stage, including three dressed as angels with white robes and wings.
Two holiday displays show a house covered in Christmas lights and a yard decorated with pumpkins, hay bales, and a scarecrow.

A hand holds an unusually large morel mushroom with a broad, textured cap and thick, irregular stem.
Massive, flat-topped boulder balanced on a narrow stack of layered rocks, surrounded by trees and mountain vegetation.
Several dark, rectangular openings cut into a weathered rock face above a shallow pool, surrounded by woodland vegetation.
Wide, muddy pond in a mountain clearing, with vehicles crossing shallow water and wooded hills surrounding the open area.
Old well covered by a square white concrete slab topped with a short stack of red bricks, surrounded by grass and fencing.
Small pony stands in a fenced, leaf-covered pasture near two wooden outbuildings, surrounded by dense autumn woodland.

Morning sunlight filters through bare tree branches, illuminating mist rising above a wooded valley and distant mountain ridge.
Narrow rural road curves through dense vegetation toward a mountainside covered with trees displaying vibrant autumn foliage.
Snow-covered hillside and trees glisten beneath a clear blue sky, with evergreens and a wooden fence in the foreground.
Shallow woodland stream flows over rocks and patches of ice, surrounded by bare trees, mossy banks, and scattered snow.
Two garden photographs show small green tomatoes growing among yellow marigolds and watermelons beneath sprawling vines.
Long clusters of icicles hang from layered rock cliffs, forming frozen cascades against the dark stone surface.
Brilliant orange and pink sunrise clouds spread across the sky above dark mountain ridges and silhouettes of leafless trees.
Two views of a wooded mountain landscape show a narrow dirt road winding through autumn trees and forested hills in the distance.

Pond filled with murky, pale green water, surrounded by gravel, large rocks, sparse vegetation, and wooded hillsides.
Cut logs, tree stumps, and piles of branches scattered across a cleared mountainside, with standing trees in the background.
Large piles of cut tree trunks and discarded logs lie beside a dirt logging road, surrounded by standing forest.
Two views of a littered roadside show discarded bottles, cans, and other trash scattered near a wooded creek and bridge.
Discarded tires, metal scraps, and other garbage scattered among trees and underbrush on a wooded mountainside.
Discarded plastic bottles, soda cans, and disposable cups collected in a muddy roadside ditch filled with leaves and debris.
Discarded plastic bottles, cans, and other litter scattered along a grassy roadside beside a utility pole and wire fence.

Small, three-sided school bus shelter with a slanted roof stands beside a gravel turnaround near a wooded mountain road.
Five ripe tomatoes lined up on a windowsill, illuminated by sunlight filtering through a sheer curtain.
Abandoned concrete-block building with boarded windows, a rusted doorway, and stained exterior walls beside a rural road.
Two playground scenes show children smiling beside a merry-go-round and climbing on a large yellow dome-shaped jungle gym.
Discarded plastic bottles, cans, and other litter scattered along a grassy roadside beside a utility pole and wire fence.
Two views of a littered roadside show discarded bottles, cans, and other trash scattered near a wooded creek and bridge.