The Generosity Journal

What is your creative background and how did you get involved in photography?

I grew up in Scotland and when I was 14 I got my first SLR Camera. I pestered the school to start teaching photography. I got 2 other friends to do the class, but the teacher always just sent us away as he couldn’t be bothered teaching us, so I enrolled in a night class at Aberdeen College, then studied photography full-time for 2 years. I then went traveling and was just shooting for fun, it wasn’t until I discovered the incredible music in New Zealand that I really found my calling for music photography and portraiture.

What led you to start/get involved with your charities?

It was actually music and photography that led me into charity work. Musicians are the most generous people and they showed me how you can donate your time to make a difference in this world. I’d just come out of a long-term relationship and needed a change, my friend had volunteered with refugee children from Burma who are refugees or migrants in Thailand, I worked out a way I could teach them photography and art and then raise $10,000 to support their education and nutrition through a fundraising exhibition. I now co-manage the charity, SpinningTop, which was originally started by Anita Roddick, the Founder of The Body Shop. All these trips working with vulnerable children made it so obvious how lucky most of us have it here in NZ and that we should all be donating a little to help those in need, hence One Percent Collective was born. We exist to inspire generosity and to simplify regular giving, so charities can spend more time working on impact and innovation. So far we’ve raised over $110,000 for our partner charities and have worked with some of NZ’s best musicians, creatives and businesses who all get involved with their kind dollars or generous time.

We love you The Generosity Journal! How did the idea come about and when / what where the goals?

Thanks! I studied graphic design in Wellington for 9 months when I first moved here. As an end project, I designed a free publication called Exposure Lifestyles. It featured mainly my images and interviews with musicians and creatives. We also got creatives to design the covers with stars such as Taika Waititi, TrustMe, Mephisto Jones and more getting involved. I really missed the gifting culture of having a beautifully crafted print publication that could be shared with friends to inspire them. That’s when the idea of The Generosity Journal came about, we wanted to spread positive, inspirational media about the good things happening in NZ and beyond. Creating the publication has meant a lot more donors to our charities and to others in NZ as well as people getting inspired to do more in the community and to just do lots more little generous things in their lives, which of course has a ripple effect on all those who get touched by their generosity. Plus having such talented creatives like Goodfolk, Gina Kiel, Natasha Vermeulen and more involved, has really brought the charitable world into something that will appeal more to the younger generations, who are of course the future!

What have been some of the highlights and people you have met via doing The Generosity Journal?

Just receiving so many emails from people and messages on social media about how it’s the best thing they’d seen in years makes it all so worthwhile. A friend also told me about how one of her patients was reading it in her waiting room and told her that it’s the best thing she’s ever read as it reminded her of all the people she has met in her years of volunteering for the community she lives in, such cool words to hear!