Award of Excellence for Jonathan Funk.
The student has been recognised in the ‘Portrait’ category of the long-established College Photographer of the Year – for an image from north-eastern Syria.
Ahmed in the ruins of his home in Ali-Shar near the Turkish border, north-eastern Syria, July 2026. A Turkish drone strike destroyed the house.
Jonathan Funk, a student on the ‘Visual Journalism and Documentary Photography’ programme at Hochschule Hannover, has won an Award of Excellence at the 81st College Photographer of the Year (CPOY). The jury honoured his picture ‘Ahmed’ in the ‘Portrait’ category. It shows a man standing in what is left of his home in Ali-Shar, a village on the Turkish border. The house was destroyed in a Turkish drone strike. ‘People are still being shot here at the wall. We had to move to the city,’ says Ahmed.
CPOY is regarded as the largest photojournalism competition for students worldwide. Cliff and Vi Edom founded it in 1945, and the Missouri School of Journalism still runs it today. Every year, around 600 students from more than 160 universities in almost 50 countries submit their work. Entry is free, and the judging is streamed live.
The picture was taken in July 2026 in north-eastern Syria. The region is also at the heart of Funk’s ongoing project ‘Ji Reh û Ewran – Of Roots and Clouds’, which explores the future of Rojava after the change of power in Syria. Earlier this year, the project won him the VGH Sponsorship Award, which supports its continuation with 2,000 euros and mentoring.
Funk has been studying in Hannover since 2023 and works mainly on long-term documentary projects. He also has professional experience in social work. His project ‘Ortskontrollfahrt’ on Germany’s shift to the right has been exhibited internationally and published in SPIEGEL Wissen. In 2026, he was also shortlisted for the World Report Award in the student category. Find out more on his author page.
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