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19 August: what is celebrated today
Every date in the calendar holds commemorations that invite us to reflect, and 19 August is no exception. On this day, three international celebrations come together to remind us of the importance of visual memory, solidarity and preserving life in all its forms: World Photography Day, World Humanitarian Day and World Orangutan Day.
World Photography Day
In 1839, Louis Daguerre presented the daguerreotype to the Academy of Sciences of France, a revolutionary invention that marked the beginning of modern photography. That same day, the patent was released, allowing the technique to spread rapidly around the world.
More than a century later, Australian photographer Korske Ara promoted the idea of dedicating a global day to photography. What began in 2007 as a charity contest became a worldwide celebration that today involves millions of people.
Photography, with professional, digital or mobile cameras, has changed in form but not in essence: it remains a means of telling stories, stirring emotions and, at times, even transforming reality.
World Humanitarian Assistance Day
19 August is also a tribute to those who risk their lives for others. The UN declared this date in memory of the 2003 attack on its headquarters in Baghdad, in which 22 people died, including diplomat Sergio Vieira de Mello.
A motto is set each year. The 2024 one, «Act for Humanity», underscores the urgency of protecting humanitarian workers and ensuring that they can continue helping amid wars, climate crises and health disasters. It is a reminder that, although international laws exist, they continue to be violated every day, leaving millions of civilians unprotected.
World Orangutan Day
The third observance takes us to the forests of Borneo and Sumatra, home to orangutans. Their name, of Malay origin, means «person of the forest», and rightly so: they share 97% of their DNA with human beings and possess great intelligence.
Today they are critically endangered due to deforestation, illegal trafficking and mistreatment. Stories such as that of Pony, an orangutan exploited in Indonesia and later rescued, remind us of the urgency of protecting them and reflecting on the relationship between humanity and nature.