11 a.m., July 27, 2025
Join us this Sunday, either in person or online, as we welcome Chris Cassell to tell us about Pro Bono Photo, which serves the photo needs of social action and environmental organizations in the Bay Area.
PBP (https://www.probonophoto.org/) is a clearinghouse that matches worthy organizations that need photographic and videographic services with volunteer photographers and videographers who wish to donate their time and expertise. PBP was founded in early 2017 by Jack Owicki; the first Women’s March was the initial large event that we covered. Chris Cassell has been a photographer for PBP since that beginning.
In the years since then, and as PBP has become increasingly known to social and environmental non-profit organizations, two different roles of PBP have become increasingly separate and sometimes in tension with each other in terms of their ground rules. Those roles are (1) covering protests, and (2) helping non-profits document their meetings, conferences, etc. The protest coverage role had receded somewhat during the Biden administration, but, needless to say, has exploded in activity since the start of 2025.
Chris will describe the evolution of Pro Bono Photo and those roles over the years, highlighted by photos (taken mostly by Chris) from events that PBP has covered. He will also explore the aspirational notion that the effect of PBP’s activities has been “necessary, though not sufficient”. That is, through documenting protests, PBP multiplies the effectiveness of those actions so that protest becomes more than just a bunch of left-coast people waving signs in each other’s faces. Helping to demonstrate that a critical mass of Americans share their anger with the current direction of politics is a necessary step. But that step plus several others, may be needed to effectively change the direction that American society is headed.
Chris is a retired aerospace engineer; Lockheed Martin brought him to the Bay Area in 1997, but in 2012, he transitioned to being a co-founder and the astrodynamics lead of Deep Space Industries, Inc. DSI had the long-term goal of near-Earth asteroid mining, but failed as a business in 2018. Chris’ education includes a B.A. in Physics from the University of Chicago and a Ph.D. in Engineering Sciences from UC, San Diego.
He is a member of two “religious humanist” organizations: the Ethical Culture Society of Silicon Valley (past Treasurer), and the Unitarian Universalist Church of Palo Alto, where he is currently a member of the Action Council (for social action).
Chris has been a serious amateur photographer since the late ’70s. Currently, in addition to Pro Bono Photo, Chris is active with the Los Gatos-Saratoga Camera Club, where he is Judge VP, responsible for arranging judges for the club’s monthly photo competitions. He also regularly judges photo competitions at other camera clubs around the Bay Area.
07/27/2025 Pro Bono Photo: Serving the photo needs of organizations in the Bay Area – Chris Cassell from Humanist Community-SiliconValley on Vimeo.
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