Hani Al Moulia is a legally blind photographer and Syrian refugee, based in

Regina, Saskatchewan Regina () is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The city is the second-largest in the province, after Saskatoon, and is a commercial centre for southern Saskatchewan. As of the 2021 C ...

Early life

Hani Al Moulia was born in Syria, and his father is Mohammad Al Moulia. Al Moulia has

nystagmus Nystagmus is a condition of involuntary (or voluntary, in some cases) eye movement. Infants can be born with it but more commonly acquire it in infancy or later in life. In many cases it may result in reduced or limited vision. Due to the invol ...

and cannot see many colours, nor see through a camera viewfinder. He can only focus on things that are within 10 centimeters of his face. In 2012, he fled violence and persecution in

Homs Homs ( , , , ; ar, حِمْص / ALA-LC: ; Levantine Arabic: / ''Ḥomṣ'' ), known in pre-Islamic Syria as Emesa ( ; grc, Ἔμεσα, Émesa), is a city in western Syria and the capital of the Homs Governorate. It is Metres above sea level ...

, Syria and moved as a refugee to the

Bekaa Valley The Beqaa Valley ( ar, links=no, وادي البقاع, ', Lebanese ), also transliterated as Bekaa, Biqâ, and Becaa and known in classical antiquity as Coele-Syria, is a fertile valley in eastern Lebanon. It is Lebanon's most important ...

, Lebanon where he taught himself English. While in the Bekka Valley, Al Moulia was taught photography at a workshop run by the

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is a United Nations agency mandated to aid and protect refugees, forcibly displaced communities, and stateless people, and to assist in their voluntary repatriation, local integrati ...

Life in Canada

The Al Moulia family arrived in Canada in 2015. The same year, Hani Al Moulia displayed his work at the

Canadian Journalists for Free Expression Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE) is a Canadian non-governmental organization supported by Canadian journalists and advocates of freedom of expression. The purpose of the organization is to defend the rights of journalists and co ...

's gala - it is unusual for amateur photographers to be able to display their work, but an exception was made for Al Moulia. In 2017, his photography was featured in West Vancouver Museum's exhibit ''Home/Shelter/Belonging'' and in the Harmony Arts Festival. The Halifax Festival of Photography, also exhibited his ''It’s Not Impossible'' exhibition. Al Moulia served on the Canadian

Prime Minister's Youth Council The Prime Minister's Youth Council (french: Conseil jeunesse du premier ministre) is an advisory board created by the Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau in 2016. Currently, 10 Canadian youth aged 16 to 24 comprise the non-partisan board. Mem ...

and was a speaker at

WE Day We Day (stylized as WE Day) was an annual series of stadium-sized youth empowerment events organized by We Charity (formerly known as Free The Children), a Canadian charity founded by brothers Marc and Craig Kielburger. WE Day events host tens ...

events.

Education

Al Moulia did not complete high school in order to help his parents with farming sheep. He is advancing his English at the

University of Regina The University of Regina is a public research university located in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. Founded in 1911 as a private denominational high school of the Methodist Church of Canada, it began an association with the University of Saskatchew ...

. Al Moulia received a scholarship from Toronto's

Ryerson University Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU or Toronto Met) is a public university, public research university located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The university's core campus is situated within the Garden District, Toronto, Garden District, although i ...

where he studies computer engineering.

Family

Hani Al Moulia is the oldest of six siblings.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Moulia, Hani Syrian refugees Youth activists Blind photographers Syrian emigrants to Canada Canadian photographers Syrian photographers Living people Year of birth missing (living people)