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Dear friends, As we look ahead to the new year, hope can feel…in short supply. Not because we don’t want it.But because so much feels uncertain, polarized, and beyond any one person’s control. If you’re feeling that thinness of hope, you’re not alone – and you’re not broken. This week, I read two New York Times […]

Shubhodeep Roy, 24, is an award-winning documentary photographer from Kolkata, India, whose practice combines visual storytelling with a deep sense of social responsibility. As the year comes to a close and the holiday season invites both reflection and pause, we wanted to share a story that gently reorients our attention. Shubhodeep Roy, a documentary photographer

TLDR RECAP OF TORONTO THROUGH OUR EYES Event Photos taken by Geoff Fitzgerald Dear SeeingHappy Community, Exactly three weeks ago, the SeeingHappy team flew to Toronto for the Toronto Through Our Eyes showcase – a special partnership with the Canadian Positive Psychology Association. It was the first time either of our teams had ever attempted something like this,

Dear SeeingHappy Community, We are just three days away from unveiling Toronto Through Our Eyes: A Community Showcase, and we are excited to share this moment with you. In September and October, about one hundred people from across Toronto and around the world have contributed their voices to this project, creating a collective portrait of the

Written September 21st, 2025 This month, I walked through a dream and a movie. Some places feel like they’ve lived many lives, a quiet hilltop town in Sicily, is one of them. For most of the world, it’s a speck on the map. For me, it’s sacred ground. It’s the town where The Godfather, my

Credit: Audience at Guggenheim during the Lancet Photo Essay Launch (2025). Photograph by Filip Wolak. Information from this Article is Sourced from the Corresponding Press Release On September 25, 2025, at the Guggenheim Museum in New York, a landmark moment for the arts and health movement unfolded. The Jameel Arts & Health Lab and The Lancet launched the first

A global photography showcase celebrating resilience, kindness, and hope. Dear SeeingHappy Community, We are delighted to share that the Visions of Renewal exhibition, first launched last July, has traveled from the World Congress of Positive Psychology in Brisbane to the University of Pennsylvania. It is now open in the front atrium of the Annenberg School for Communication

Photo mosaic of entries from the University of Cape Town (UCT) Flourishing Community Showcase Kinship, Ubuntu, and Community Through Photography In this issue, we reflect on the often-unnoticed work of kin keeping, the African philosophy of Ubuntu meaning “I am because we are,” and how both come alive through photography. Alongside Mandy’s reflections on the

Dear SeeingHappy Community, Some cities are best understood not through skylines or headlines, but through the everyday moments that define them: a smile exchanged in a taxi, a mural that brightens a gray morning, a neighbor lending a hand. These are the kinds of moments that carry belonging, beauty, and hope, and they deserve to

Dear SeeingHappy Community, Last month, I had the honor of speaking at the International Positive Psychology Association’s World Congress in Brisbane. My talk was titled: “What Are You Looking At? (The Radical Act of Seeing Happy)” – a question meant not to challenge, but to invite. We began with a photo – the winning image

AFTER our “Visions of Renewal” contest CAME to a close, we’ve taken time to reflect on the extraordinary photographs shared with us over Seven weeks. We are deeply moved and humbled by the incredible response, which has reminded us just how profound and universal the human longing for hope and renewal truly is. In the

Dear SeeingHappy Community, The Visions of Renewal photo contest has come to a close, and what an incredible journey it has been. With over 850 entries, this contest has been one of the most energizing and inspiring experiences for our team. Reviewing your photos and stories reminded us of the beauty, creativity, and care that exists across so

WINDMILL OF COLORSBY MAYANK TIWARI“Every rainbow fills me with urgency, knowing it’s fleeting. On a trip from Stockholm to Gothenburg, I captured a windmill framed by a fading rainbow—an unforgettable, fleeting gift from nature.” Dear SeeingHappy Community, Some moments, like a rainbow stretched over a windmill, remind us how quickly beauty can appear, and just

We are pleased to announce that SeeingHappy’s founder, Mandy Seligman, will be presenting at the second international Symposium on Photography in Coaching on November 16th, 2024. If you are looking to learn more on how to capture unique perspectives and emotions visually, deepen self-awareness, build self-confidence and various personality strengths, create a visual dialogue, develop creativity, and reconnect with yourself, others, and

Photo mosaic of entries inspired from “Buddhist Lantern Festival Celebration” by Mohammed Azgor Ali Riaz Dear SeeingHappy Community, We are thrilled to announce the winners of the Hope in Action photo contest! With over 1,000 submissions from talented photographers worldwide, the incredible images we received have powerfully captured the essence of hope in action: showing that even the smallest

PEACE BY NIKA PAILODZE Dear SeeingHappy Community, We want to extend our thanks to all of you who attended our “Hope in Action” webinar two weeks ago. Your presence and engagement made the event truly special, and we hope you left feeling inspired and motivated. Your support continues to fuel our mission to spread joy

Dear SeeingHappy Community, First of all… WOW! We are absolutely stunned by the amazing submissions we have received so far from the Hope in Action photography contest. If you haven’t already taken a look, we recommend checking out the contest gallery: This Thursday at 9 PM EST, join Mandy Seligman, Arlen Solodkin, and me, Roger Irwin,

Dear SeeingHappy Community, We have an exciting opportunity to showcase your photographic talent and inspire global change! The “Hope in Action” Photography Contest, sponsored by The Hope Circuit (Instituto de Bienestar Integral), SeeingHappy, and the Primals Project, is now open for submissions.A photograph is more than an image; it is a powerful catalyst for change. As part

When did you last go on an adventure? Using photography to explore and capture the world around us offers a unique way to see beauty in the everyday and transform our perspective. This powerful medium allows us to slow down, observe closely, and appreciate the intricate details and fleeting moments that often go unnoticed. Whether

Dear Friends, Just the other day, I saw a beautiful quote from Helena Bonham Carter, and it made me stop to think: “I think everything in life is art. What you do. How you dress. The way you love someone, and how you talk. Your smile and your personality. What you believe in, and all

Dear Friends of SeeingHappy, We’re excited to share with you a collaboration with Imperial College London that, while specifically designed for their community, reflects the mission we hold at SeeingHappy. Imperial College is introducing the “In Motion: Imperial with ‘SeeingHappy’” photo challenge, a contest that resonates with our ethos of capturing and sharing moments of

Dear Photo-Friends, In a world filled with challenges and complexities, it’s more important than ever to find moments of joy and serenity. That’s why we’re thrilled to introduce “World Happiness 2023” a captivating photography book that showcases happiness in its purest form across the globe. The book is made by the Happiness Strategy foundation and

Dear SeeingHappy Community, We are thrilled to announce the winner of our first photo competition focused on the primal world belief “Needs Me”. For those curious about the inspiration behind the contest, it stems from the groundbreaking work of Dr. Jer Clifton at the University of Pennsylvania, who has identified 26 primal world beliefs (primals)

When is the last time you felt truly grounded? Embracing the life stories of others, captured in each frame, becomes a catalyst for personal growth and well-being. Photography allows us to delve into diverse cultures, fostering empathy and connection as we share in the joys and challenges of individuals worldwide. In the narratives of Mariam

Happy 2024 Everyone~ And just like that, we’ve stepped into a new year! Yesterday, there’s a strong likelihood that you or one of your friends captured photos of colorful bursts of fireworks against the night sky. This almost instinctual reaction to photograph fireworks mirrors an idea that might elevate your sense of hopefulness as you

PRIMALS COMPETITION ENDING We are nearing the end for our first ever photo competition, “NEEDS ME”. Every day we are amazed by the unparalleled creativity and perspective you all have brought to this competition. It is incredibly inspiring to see the unique ways the SeeingHappy community contributes to the world. If you haven’t had a

PHLOURISH IS HERE This week SeeingHappy is announcing our PHLOURISH program – we are putting the entire program on our site along with a library of photographic prompts. The main aim of our program is to show how photography, both the skills of photography and the content we photograph, can lead to different ways of

This week we would like to introduce you to three more artists: Edgar Degas, Louise Nevelson, and Henri Matisse. Each one of these artists are trailblazers in the history of modern art. They each experimented with motion, contrast, and color, and challenged both artists and viewers to expand their perception of what art could be.