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The idea for The World in Fargo-Moorhead project came into being on a sunny Sunday afternoon at a picnic during Welcoming Week. Fargo natives sat interspersed with newcomers to the area to share a meal and chats assisted by cards with little conversation starters.

“I was sitting there and went ‘Oh my gosh, if there was a way to gather all of the stories here, wouldn’t that be amazing?'” Meg Lindholm, a local writer and journalist, said.

Lindholm initiated the project, which consists entirely of volunteer photographers — both professionals and amateur aficionados — who take photos and gather the stories of people from all over the world who have immigrated to Fargo.

“It isn’t supposed to be a political statement,” Lindholm noted. “I see it as more of a documentary project. It’s about the group of us, it’s about all of the people we get to photograph. They’re the stars, and their stories are wonderful.”

The project officially launched with an exhibit at the Fargo Public Library in September of 2016, and has an upcoming exhibit at the Moorhead Public Library during the entire month of February.

In addition to exhibits, The World in Fargo-Moorhead has an ongoing presence on social media with posts three times weekly on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, #theworldinfm. The number of followers of the project continues to growonline.

“I really am in love with this project, which helps with getting through the parts that can be aggravating, since we are all busy people trying to take the time to make this work,” Lindholm said.

“The project is currently entirely volunteer-run,” Lindholm commented, “but we hope to do a crowdfunding campaign in the spring to hire someone to run the project, which would give it more stability.”

Photographers or individuals interested in getting involved with the group are encouraged to reach out through Facebook, or attend one of the group’s meetings at 7:00 p.m. on the third Wednesday of every month at the Fargo Public Library.

Thank you to The World in Fargo-Moorhead project for the included photographs and stories.