When Polly Irungu founded the Black Women Photographers (BWP) network in July of 2020, she did so with one goal in mind—to get more Black women photographers hired. Two years later, she has accomplished that goal and more. BWP, which provides a directory of over 1,200 Black women and non-binary photographers in 50 different countries, has matched members with a wide range of clients including The New York Times, Nikon, TrackTown USA and Live Nation. And Irungu is just getting started. “There’s still a lot of issues in the photography community,” says Irungu. “I know what I can do is continue to provide black women with resources and opportunities that help them to open the doors that will get them hired.”

Over the past year, Irungu is most proud of the partnerships she has made with sports organizations, and especially sports organizations featuring black women athletes. For example, earlier this year, Irungu reached out to a former colleague at TrackTown USA, where she interned while she was in college at the University of Oregon. That colleague connected her with organizers at the Prefontaine Classic and the World Athletics Championship, who selected a group of BWP photographers to cover the events.

The connection was especially meaningful given how many track and field stars are Black women. In the 2020-21 season of the National Collegiate Athlete Association (NCAA), 23% of women’s track and field athletes were black. Many of the track and field stars in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, including Allyson Felix, Sydney McLaughlin and Elaine Thompson-Herah, were also Black women. It makes sense, Irungu notes, that their accomplishments should be documented by black women as well. “The track and field athletes just loved [our photographers],” Irungu says. “They gave us personality they might not have given other photographers.”

[Read: ‘Black Women Photographers’ Grant Awards $50,000 to 12 Recipients]

Another major accomplishment was having BWP member Allie Jest hired as the team photographer for Atlanta Dream, a WNBA team founded in 2008. Jest, who was hired when she was 32 weeks pregnant, is one of a very small number of black women photographers who serve as team photographers. This despite the fact that 74.5% of players in the WNBA are black women. “The hire was historic,” says Irungu, who arranged it all with her characteristic ingenuity, by reaching out to the Atlanta Dream part-owner Renee Montgomery on Twitter. “I’m hoping that it will continue to open doors in the WNBA so that more black women are hired as team photographers.”

What’s incredible about Irungu is that she does all the work for BWP in her spare time, when she’s not working at her full-time job. And by the way, her full-time job is photo editor for the office of the Vice President in the Biden-Harris administration. Yes, that’s right. She works in the actual White House.

Part of what makes Irungu so successful—beyond that she is an exceptional human being—is that she really believes in the cause that she is promoting. “The work just needs to be done,” she says. “I just need to continue to knock on the doors that have been closed to black women.”

[Read: Decolonizing the Photo Industry: Why, How and Where We Can Begin]

And even though she’s already opened many doors, she plans on knocking further. Earlier this summer, she hosted a portfolio review for BWP members with editors at The New York Times, which led to more than a dozen black women photographers receiving contracts from the publication. She plans on continuing BWP’s partnership with Live Nation, which came about when the organization reached out to her directly in March, and has led to members being hired to officially shoot events around the country, including at an upcoming urban music festival in New Orleans. And later this year, she will distribute another round of funding from Nikon, which will total $50,000, and be given to help black women photographers complete projects and buy equipment. The company is also partnering with BWP to host a giveaway in conjunction with World Photography Day on August 19.

Irungu’s especially grateful that the connections she’s made through the organization have helped her to feel at home in Washington D.C., where she moved in July of 2022 for her job at the White House. This summer, she hosted a brunch with BWP members based in the capital that involved them visiting a museum together. Irungu’s advocacy may not be paid—yet—but it’s certainly led to a series of connections that will hopefully transform not only her own life, but also, the entire photography industry.

Check back on Rangefinder tomorrow, World Photography Day, for our feature on a curated selection of BWP photographers’ images from around the world.