£3000 windfall for Jodi Windvogel

South African documentary photographer Jodi Windvogel, has been awarded the prestigious Marilyn Stafford FotoReportage Award 2025, for her work Life Under Occupation: Inside Cissie Gool House & Cape Town’s Housing Crisis.

Windvogel’s work is rooted in long-form storytelling, often focusing on deeply personal narratives. This photo essay documents daily life inside Cissie Gool House, a former public hospital in Cape Town that has been occupied since 2017 by over 1500 people resisting displacement. Transformed into a self-organised community, the occupation responds directly to Cape Town’s deepening housing crisis.

‘Life Under Occupation’ focuses on the strength, dignity, and mutual care that residents build in a space marked by legal uncertainty. Rather than framing the occupation as a protest alone, the work highlights it as a solution – an act of urban resistance and survival led by working-class families. By partnering with housing justice organisations, the images will support local advocacy and public education, contributing to wider efforts to rethink housing policy and urban belonging. The project is both personal and political – an act of visual solidarity aimed at shifting narratives and creating space for more inclusive, people-led futures.

The Marilyn Stafford FotoReportage Award of £3000, supported by Nikon UK and facilitated by FotoDocument, is granted annually to a professional female photographer towards the completion of a compelling and cohesive documentary photo essay, which addresses an important social, environmental, economic or cultural issue, whether local or global that has a focus on positive solutions. Nikon’s sponsorship empowers these female photographers to craft compelling and honest narratives, acting as a catalyst for social change.