ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the process of using photography with eight formerly street-connected boys residing at a long-term transitional centre and accessing primary school education in Kenya. It provides an introduction to street-connectedness and explores the use of auto-photography and photo-elicitation in interviews, to foster conversation and develop rich narratives of their experiences of moving to stay at the centre and attending school. The erosion of extended family traditions, urban migration, globalisation, economic structural adjustment, population growth, HIV/AIDs, post-election violence and other conflicts are some of the reasons suggested for the rise in the number of street-connected children in Kenya. Interdisciplinary and participatory methodologies have been developed by researchers to increase understanding of the multi-dimensional experiences of street-connectedness; and visual methods using the children drawing became important instruments in understanding their situations. The use of auto-photography identified different aspects of the boys transitions, some of which featured in all sets of photographs and therefore highlight a collective experience.
