Despite learning a modest, bare bones schoolhouse, the gratitude and wonder captured on the faces of these Togolese students is palpable. I've never experienced such a hunger and passion to learn regardless of circumstances. A newly drilled well now allows these students to focus on education as opposed to basic survival. The organization I was working with, ILAD, aims to bring sustainable education to isolated areas. I sought to capture these students in a way that humanizes them and cultivates a shared sense of humanity. These intimate, up-close portraits of eager students reminds us that it's within the people, not the physical place, that learning thrives.