Founded in 2009, Meet Your Neighbours™ is a worldwide photographic initiative created by Niall Benvie and Clay Bolt. The project is dedicated to reconnecting people with the wildlife on their own doorsteps – and enriching their lives in the process. These creatures and plants are vital to people: they represent the first, and for some, the only contact with wild nature we have. Yet too often they are overlooked, undervalued.

Meet Your Neighbours images have an instantly recognizable look. Each subject is photographed on location in a field studio. A brilliantly-lit white background removes the context, encouraging appreciation of the subject as an individual rather than a species. Their own form constitutes the composition. Seen this way, animals and plants we thought we knew reveal another side of themselves, encourage a second glance, perhaps even renewed interest. The initiative engages photographers from around the world to celebrate these animals and ask people in their communities to “go meet your neighbours”. The project's aim is to build coverage of neighbourhood wildlife, especially overlooked plants and animals, from around the world, all shot to the Meet Your Neighbours standard. Currently, more than 70 photographers contribute to the Meet Your Neighbours collection.

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