Photographer Polly Irungu became the first ‘Kenyan’ to ever work at the office of the Vice President of the United States.
This is after Ms. Irungu who is Kenyan-born was named as the first official Photo Editor for the Office of the Vice President Kamala Harris.
“New chapter. I’m excited to announce that I’m the first official Photo Editor for the Office of the Vice President to the Biden-Harris Administration. Honored and grateful is an understatement,” she said following her appointment.
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Ms. Irungu is also the founder of Black Women Photographers, an organization and directory of over 1,000 Black photographers which she founded in 2020.
Ms. Irungu was born in Nairobi and has lived around the world from Topeka, Kansas, Eugene, Oregon, and New York and is now based in Washington, DC.
She is a celebrated and accomplished photojournalist with more than 15 awards and honours.
Ms. Irungu attended the University of Oregon, where she graduated with a degree in journalism. She worked as a digital editor at New York Public Radio before venturing into self-employment.
She has worked with companies such as Twitter, WeTransfer and the National Press Photographers Association.
Irungu previously teamed with Nikon USA to award selected photographers approximately USD 50,000 in grants and cash prizes to help their businesses and encourage other women.
One of the fortunate participants of the program, Wanjiku Gitau, received USD 5,000 (Sh. 595,050).