Christina Hawatmeh, the CEO and founding father of Scopio, a community-based picture market, and the co-author of The Year Time Stopped: The Global Pandemic in Photos, sat down with Jessica Abo to speak about her new e-book and the facility of human resilience.
Jessica Abo: Christina, let’s begin along with your firm. How did you provide you with the thought for Scopio?
Christina Hawatmeh:
I noticed on social media, we have been sharing essentially the most unbelievable photographs of our lifetime, however then the subsequent day they have been gone on social media. And I needed a spot the place we may look again and have this as an archive. I invented a solution to pull photographs from social media after which get the rights and be capable of distribute them. Individuals from greater than 190 nations do this right this moment on Scopio they usually add their photographs in lower than a couple of minutes after which the entire world can use them.
Inform us a bit bit extra about the way it works and what’s the person expertise like?
Hawatmeh:
Individuals come to Scopio as a result of they’ve one thing within them they need to share. Whether or not it’s a second or this unbelievable picture. They add that and in lower than a couple of minutes with a narrative and a photograph, after which anybody around the globe is ready to then entry and use that. The copyright proprietor retains the rights and in addition could be employed on their artistic abilities in order that they may earn a dwelling and actually be linked with the remainder of the world to actually change visible perceptions and the way we see ourselves and the way we see different individuals.
The 12 months Time Stopped The International Pandemic in Images lately got here out. What are you able to share about that course of?
Hawatmeh:
We knew that with a view to give this concept justice, we actually wanted it to be from each nook of the world as a result of we have been all experiencing this. On Scopio, we have now greater than 1,000,000 photographs right this moment and it grows daily. We already had unbelievable works that have been uploaded. We curated them. We went again to the artists. We requested them for extra data if we felt just like the story wasn’t full sufficient. And we actually dug into all people’s feelings. On each web page, you are both going to snigger, you are going to cry, you are going to really feel anger, you are going to really feel frustration. You’ll really feel each single human emotion on this e-book. And we determined we weren’t going to depart any topic behind. With a view to actually take care of this difficult challenge, we did that from a world perspective. We did that from all these completely different themes and we broke the e-book into two sections, one known as Alone and the opposite Collectively.
What do you need to say to the particular person on the market who has their very own artistic concept? How do they bring about it to life?
Hawatmeh:
No matter you are doing in life, it’s essential to dive proper into it. You may’t simply sort of give a bit bit. I really feel like that is an injustice to the world, in order that’s the place the issues are. However when you have an concept, it’s best to begin the thought earlier than you really get a possibility. I began this nearly 9 months earlier than we obtained a possibility with Harper Collins. Simply getting ready your self for that, the universe has an unbelievable manner of providing you with what you need.
I believe 2020 was essentially the most outstanding 12 months for human beings’ evolution. We realized who we’re. We realized what we do not need to be. We noticed what we’re as a society. We seemed deep inside ourselves, and all of the noises round us subsided. We had time to truly cease and assume, after which society and the surroundings essentially modified. And once you say issues like, “I can not do that, or that is too onerous for me” and also you look right here and also you see all of the issues individuals have been going by — that issue, that grit — that is actually what human resilience is all about.
Supply: Entrepreneur