ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Monika Bulaj - Photographer
Monika Bulaj’s stunning, painting-like photographs blur religious and cultural divisions, exploding stereotypes. She is a TED Fellow.

Why you should listen

Monika Bulaj is a photographer and writer who explores -- in Asia, Africa, Latin America and Eastern Europe -- the dim areas of monotheism, where the sacred can transcend borders: Bonfires, dances, cults of the dead, possession rites. She describes outskirts and deserts, frontiers and megalopolis. And the world of the last ones: nomads, farmers, immigrants, outcasts, untouchables and impure.

Her photos and reportaging have been published by GEO, National Geographic (Italy), La Repubblica, periodicals by Gruppo Espresso and Rcs, Courrier International, Gazeta Wyborcza (Poland), Internazionale, Freundin, Teatr (Poland) and other international magazines.
She has displayed more than 50 personal exibitions in Italy, Germany, Ungheria, Bulgaria, Egypt.

Her books include Libya felix, a travel into Sufism and the world of the Tuaregh; Figli di Noè, on minorities and faiths in Azerbaijian; Rebecca e la pioggia, on the nomadic tribe of the Dinka of South Sudan; Gerusalemme perduta with Paolo Rumiz, the special correspondent of La Repubblica, on the pellegrinage in the research of the Eastern Christians; Genti di Dio, viaggio nell'Altra Europa, a synthesis of 20 years of research in East Europe and Israel, and her latest book, Bozy ludzie. 

She has screenwritten documentaries, among which is the movie Romani Rat (2002) by M. Orlandi, on the Holocaust of the Roms, with the contribution of the Shoah Visual History Foundation. She's the director, photography director, and screenwriter of the documentary Figli di Noè, about the villages of Caucasus on the border between Dagestan and Azerbaigian.

Bulaj is a TED Fellow. Read TED's Q&A with Monika Bulaj >>

More profile about the speaker
Monika Bulaj | Speaker | TED.com
TEDGlobal 2011

Monika Bulaj: The hidden light of Afghanistan

Monika Bulaj: Afghanistans skjulte lys

Filmed:
669,507 views

Fotograf Monika Bulaj deler stærke, intime billeder af Afghanistan -- af hjemliv, af ritauler, af mænd og kvinder. Bag overskrifterne hvad ved verden så egentlig om dette sted?
- Photographer
Monika Bulaj’s stunning, painting-like photographs blur religious and cultural divisions, exploding stereotypes. She is a TED Fellow. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

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My travelsrejser to AfghanistanAfghanistan
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Mine rejser til Afghanistan
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beganbegyndte manymange, manymange yearsflere år agosiden
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begyndte for mange, mange år siden
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on the easternøstlige bordergrænse of my countryLand,
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ved mit lands østlige grænse,
00:24
my homelandfædreland, PolandPolen.
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mit hjemland, Polen.
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I was walking throughigennem the forestsskove
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Jeg gik gennem skovene
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of my grandmother'sbedstemors talesfortællinger.
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fra min bedstemors historier.
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A landjord where everyhver fieldMark hidesskjuler a gravegrav,
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Et land, hvor hver mark gemmer en grav,
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where millionsmillioner of people
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hvor millioner af mennesker
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have been deporteddeporteret or killeddræbt
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er blevet deporteret eller dræbt
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in the 20thth centuryårhundrede.
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i det 20. århundrede.
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BehindBag the destructionødelæggelse,
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Bag ødelæggelsen
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I foundfundet a soulsjæl of placessteder.
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fandt jeg stedernes sjæl.
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I metmødte humbleydmyg people.
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Jeg mødte ydmyge folk.
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I heardhørt theirderes prayerbøn
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Jeg hørte deres bønner
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and atespiste theirderes breadbrød.
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og spiste deres brød.
00:57
Then I have been walking EastØst for 20 yearsflere år --
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Siden har jeg gået mod øst i 20 år --
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from EasternØstlige EuropeEuropa to CentralCentrale AsiaAsien --
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fra Østeuropa til Centralasien --
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throughigennem the CaucasusCaucasus MountainsBjerge,
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gennem Kaukasusbjergene,
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MiddleMidten EastØst,
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Mellemøsten,
01:09
NorthNord AfricaAfrika,
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Nordafrika,
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RussiaRusland.
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Rusland.
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And I ever metmødte more humbleydmyg people.
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Og jeg mødte hele tiden flere ydmyge folk.
01:17
And I shareddelt theirderes breadbrød and theirderes prayerbøn.
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Og jeg delte deres brød og deres bønner.
01:20
This is why I wentgik to AfghanistanAfghanistan.
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Det er derfor, jeg tog til Afghanistan.
01:23
One day, I crossedkrydsede the bridgebro
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En dag krydsede jeg broen
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over the OxusOxus RiverFloden.
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over Oxusfloden.
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I was alonealene on footfod.
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Jeg var alene til fods.
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And the AfghanAfghanske soldiersoldat was so surprisedoverrasket to see me
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Og den afghanske soldat var så overrasket over at se mig,
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that he forgotglemte to stampfrimærke my passportpas.
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at han glemte at stemple mit pas.
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But he gavegav me a cupkop of teate.
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Men han gav mig en kop te.
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And I understoodforstået
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Og jeg forstod,
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that his surpriseoverraskelse was my protectionbeskyttelse.
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at hans overraskelse bestod i min beskyttelse.
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So I have been walking and travelingrejsende,
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Så jeg har gået og rejst,
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by horsesheste, by yakyak, by trucklastbil, by hitchhikingblaffe,
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til hest, med yakokse, med lastbil, ved at blaffe,
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from Iran'sIrans bordergrænse
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fra Irans grænse
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to the bottombund, to the edgekant of the WakhanWakhan CorridorKorridor.
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til bunden, til kanten af Wakhankorridoren.
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And in this way
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Og på denne måde
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I could find noorNoor, the hiddenskjult lightlys of AfghanistanAfghanistan.
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kunne jeg finde noor, Afghanistans skjulte lys.
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My only weaponvåben
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Mit eneste våben
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was my notebooknotebook and my LeicaLeica.
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var min notesbog og mit Leica.
02:12
I heardhørt prayersbønner of the SufiSufi --
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Jeg hørte sufiernes bønner --
02:14
humbleydmyg MuslimsMuslimer,
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ydmyge muslimer,
02:16
hatedhadet by the TalibanTaliban.
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hadet af Taleban.
02:18
HiddenSkjult riverflod,
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Skjult flod,
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interconnectedsammenkoblet with the mysticismmystik
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indbyrdes forbundet med mysticismen
02:22
from GibraltarGibraltar to IndiaIndien.
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fra Gibraltar til Indien.
02:25
The mosquemoske where the respectfulrespektfuld foreignerudlænding
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Moskeen, hvor den respektfulde fremmede
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is showeredoverbruses with blessingsvelsignelser
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bliver badet i velsignelser
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and with tearstårer,
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and i tårer
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and welcomedhilste as a giftgave.
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og budt velkommen som en gave.
02:39
What do we know
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Hvad ved vi
02:41
about the countryLand and the people
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om landet og folket,
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that we pretendlade som om to protectbeskytte,
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som vi påstår at beskytte,
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about the villageslandsbyer
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om landsbyerne,
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where the only one medicinemedicin
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hvor den eneste medicin
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to killdræbe the painsmerte and to stop the hungersult
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til at slå smerten ned og stoppe sulten
02:53
is opiumopium?
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er opium?
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These are opium-addictedopium afhængige- people
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Disse er opiumafhængige folk
02:58
on the roofstagene of KabulKabul
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på Kabuls tage
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10 yearsflere år after the beginningstarten of our warkrig.
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10 år efter vores krigs begyndelse.
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These are the nomadNomad girlspiger
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Disse er nomadepigerne,
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who becameblev til prostitutesprostituerede for AfghanAfghanske businessmenforretningsmænd.
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som blev prostituerede for afghanske forretningsmænd.
03:12
What do we know about the womenKvinder
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Hvad ved vi om kvinderne
03:14
10 yearsflere år after the warkrig?
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10 år efter krigen?
03:16
ClothedPåklædt in this nylonnylon bagtaske,
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Indsvøbt i denne nylonpose,
03:18
madelavet in ChinaKina,
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lavet i Kina,
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with the namenavn of burqaburkaen.
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med navnet burka.
03:24
I saw one day,
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Jeg så en dag
03:26
the largeststørste schoolskole in AfghanistanAfghanistan,
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Afghanistans største skole,
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a girls'piger schoolskole.
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en pigeskole.
03:31
13,000 girlspiger
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13.000 piger,
03:34
studyingstudere here
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der studerer her
03:38
in the roomsværelser undergroundunderjordisk,
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i lokalerne under jorden
03:41
fullfuld of scorpionsskorpioner.
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fyldt med skorpioner.
03:44
And theirderes love [for studyingstudere]
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Og deres kærlighed [til studierne]
03:47
was so bigstor that I criedråbte.
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var så stor, at jeg græd.
03:52
What do we know
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Hvad ved vi
03:54
about the deathdød threatstrusler by the TalibanTaliban
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om dødstruslerne fra Taleban,
03:57
nailednaglet on the doorsdøre
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der er sømmet på dørene
03:59
of the people who daretør to sendsende theirderes daughtersdøtre to schoolskole as in BalkhBalkh?
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til de folk, der vover at sende deres døtre i skole som i Balkh?
04:05
The regionområde is not securesikre, but fullfuld of the TalibanTaliban,
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Regionen er ikke sikker, men fyldt med Talebanere,
04:08
and they did it.
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og de gjorde det.
04:10
My aimsigte is to give a voicestemme
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Mit mål er at give en stemme
04:12
to the silentstille people,
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til det stille folk,
04:15
to showat vise the hiddenskjult lightslys
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at vise det skjulte lys
04:19
behindbag the curtaingardin of the great gamespil,
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bag det store spils gardin,
04:22
the smalllille worldsverdener ignoredignoreret by the mediamedier
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de små verdener, der bliver ignoreret af medierne,
04:25
and the prophetsprofeter of a globalglobal conflictkonflikt.
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og den globale konflikts profeter.
04:27
ThanksTak.
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Tak.
04:29
(ApplauseBifald)
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(Bifald)

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Monika Bulaj - Photographer
Monika Bulaj’s stunning, painting-like photographs blur religious and cultural divisions, exploding stereotypes. She is a TED Fellow.

Why you should listen

Monika Bulaj is a photographer and writer who explores -- in Asia, Africa, Latin America and Eastern Europe -- the dim areas of monotheism, where the sacred can transcend borders: Bonfires, dances, cults of the dead, possession rites. She describes outskirts and deserts, frontiers and megalopolis. And the world of the last ones: nomads, farmers, immigrants, outcasts, untouchables and impure.

Her photos and reportaging have been published by GEO, National Geographic (Italy), La Repubblica, periodicals by Gruppo Espresso and Rcs, Courrier International, Gazeta Wyborcza (Poland), Internazionale, Freundin, Teatr (Poland) and other international magazines.
She has displayed more than 50 personal exibitions in Italy, Germany, Ungheria, Bulgaria, Egypt.

Her books include Libya felix, a travel into Sufism and the world of the Tuaregh; Figli di Noè, on minorities and faiths in Azerbaijian; Rebecca e la pioggia, on the nomadic tribe of the Dinka of South Sudan; Gerusalemme perduta with Paolo Rumiz, the special correspondent of La Repubblica, on the pellegrinage in the research of the Eastern Christians; Genti di Dio, viaggio nell'Altra Europa, a synthesis of 20 years of research in East Europe and Israel, and her latest book, Bozy ludzie. 

She has screenwritten documentaries, among which is the movie Romani Rat (2002) by M. Orlandi, on the Holocaust of the Roms, with the contribution of the Shoah Visual History Foundation. She's the director, photography director, and screenwriter of the documentary Figli di Noè, about the villages of Caucasus on the border between Dagestan and Azerbaigian.

Bulaj is a TED Fellow. Read TED's Q&A with Monika Bulaj >>

More profile about the speaker
Monika Bulaj | Speaker | TED.com

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