Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Blaise pretends to drive an old, broken car. Blaise Bedzermitki Leveltson is 12 years old. He has seven brothers and one sister. His father is a soldier. He was deeply traumatized by the 2010 earthquake but he is an active and happy boy. Blaise has many dreams. He'd like to become a driver or a mechanic, but he also admires Michael Jackson and Ronaldo. © Chris de Bode
Kyrgyzstan. Jyldyzkan, 17 years old. "I dream of becoming a doctor. I remember very well that my mother got ill. No one could help her. It made a big impression on me that no one was able to provide medicine, despite her agony. Since that day, I have dreamt of becoming a doctor.
I'm part of the first-aid team at school, so I'm one step closer to living my dream." © Chris de Bode
Kyrgyzstan. Gulzina is 11 years old. "I dream of working as a traffic police officer. That's not really a job for women, but I still want to do it. I love wearing a uniform, and I care for other people's safety. In school I am a crossing guard, so I'm already practicing." © Chris de Bode
Amman, Jordan. "My passion in life is singing. I am often asked to sing at weddings and parties. I don't sing opera there but instead popular Palestinian songs. Although I dream of being an opera singer, I doubt whether I should pursue a career in singing. I don't think it pays much, so maybe I should be a computer engineer. You know what I would really like to do? Audition for Arabic Idols." © Chris de Bode
New Delhi, India. Aniket dreams of flying into space. Aniket, 10, is a bright boy who likes to watch Discovery Channel to learn things. "I saw a program on TV about space. Since I saw this program about astronauts I dream of only one thing: to go to the moon! It looks so beautiful to look down at the earth from space. I wonder whether I would be able to see India—it's quite big, isn't it?" © Chris de Bode
New Delhi, India. Aniket sitting in a tree. 10 year old Aniket lives with his parents and sister in a slum in New Delhi. He wants to become an architect. Behind the house where he lives, a large multi-story building is being built. Aniket would like to live there one day. © Chris de Bode
Amman, Jordan. Sixteen year old Bar'aah, which means "Innocent" in Arabic, daydreaming with a display of artificial roses. Bar'aah says: "I dream of a world filled with flowers. In my dreams I wear a dress made out of pink and red rose petals and I walk through a valley of flowers. The roses smell delicious and make me feel so happy...as long as I have flowers around me, I will be happy." © Chris de Bode
Istanbul, Turkey. Dilan stands on the banks of the Bosphorus wrapped in a blue cloth. Dilan Kaya is 21 years old and lives in Istanbul. Since she was a young girl, she has been dreaming of being free like a bird. Dilan is studying now, and in her spare time she is working to enhance the future of others. "For as long as I can remember I've dreamt of flying...to go wherever I want to." © Chris de Bode
New Delhi, India. Dewi stands in front of her class holding a piece of chalk. Dewi is 12 years old and lives with her parents and sister in one of the slums in Delhi. She's very chatty and very disciplined. She has a lot of friends with whom she likes to play hide and seek. "When I grow up, I want to be a teacher. Then I can teach children to read, write and count. This is very important for them since otherwise they won't get a job. I'll be a strict teacher and the kids will have to listen to me!" © Chris de Bode
Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Djarida, 8 years old, is from a Mayan background. Mayans are one of the indigenous peoples of Mexico, many of whom today are poor and disadvantaged. Djarida's father left the family home and her mother works as a housekeeper in the city. Djarida loves all animals, especially dogs. "Many girls are not allowed to go to school or only for a short time. They are required to help at home, to get married or to work. I'm happy going to school every day. When I grow up I want to be a veterinarian. I have to study hard but I'm sure I will succeed." © Chris de Bode
Tajikistan. Boboeva, 15 years old, lives in the isolated countryside of Tajikistan. Her father is a laborer in Russia and is only occasionally home. During his last visit, he decided that Boboeva, like many of her peers, will no longer be allowed to go to school.
Boboeva: "What I dream about? What else is there for me to dream about when I can't go to school anymore and all I'm involved in is the household and our field. My father has deprived me from my dream. I dreamed about studying in Dushanbe to become a nurse. Now that I can't finish my school, that dream became impossible." © Chris de Bode
Port-au-Prince, Haiti. 16 year old Hamdam climbing on a wall near his home. He hasn't attended school for two years and has had many different jobs—from tailor to working at the farmer's market—as he tries to contribute to his family's costs. He says: "When I didn't go to school, I would create raps with my friends after work. Rap is cool and I want to be cool too... My whole family is educated. I am the only failure. My grades were low, so I thought it was no use to stay in school. There was no future for me. I didn't tell my parents I flunked. I was too ashamed. I just told them that I wouldn't go back to school. So I worked a million jobs and played football. Together with some other friends, we formed a rap group. We gave performances on the street and created our own raps." © Chris de Bode
Amman, Jordan. 17 year old Hiba (left) with her friend Doa, also 17, replicate a fashion shoot near their homes in Amman. Hiba left school at age 11 when her parents separated. Afterwards, she says, she simply stopped going to school and stayed at home with her mother. She says: 'I asked my parents several times to let me go to school as well. They refused. According to my mother, my place in life would be the kitchen. She said I was dumb and it would be a waste to try to educate me." She dreams of being a supermodel: "I want everybody to recognize me as a gorgeous model with beautiful clothes. I want to be seen in the spotlight instead of being hidden in the shade...My parents really don't care what I do. My mother takes pride in my sisters, but ignores me." Hiba says she wants to go to law school. "My teachers say I have a bright future, so I want to become a lawyer. I want to stand up for women's rights. In my heart I dream of being a supermodel, but I know that will never happen. So I keep my dream and I'll become a lawyer in real life." © Chris de Bode
Port-au-Prince, Haiti. 12 year old Peter wants to become an electrician. In the village where he lives there is no electricity. Peter is in 6th grade at school. During school breaks he plays football with his friends. © Chris de Bode
Gulu, Uganda. Sarah practices her interview technique near her home in Gulu in Northen Uganda. She is 12 years old and dreams of becoming a radio news reporter. Radio is the most important means of spreading the news in Northen Uganda. © Chris de Bode
New Delhi, India. Sahid plays on computers in a computer repair shop. Sahid is 7 years old and lives with his parents and sister in a slum in New Delhi. On the main street of the slum there is a shop where PCs are repaired and Sahid likes to come here. Sahid dreams of having his own computer and being able to spend the whole day on it. He wants to become a computer wizard. © Chris de Bode
Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Sony holds an architect's drawing tools, standing in the middle of the cathedral of Port-au-Prince that was destroyed by the 2010 earthquake. Sony is 12 years and lives with his parents, two brothers and two sisters in Port-au-Prince. Haiti was hit by a massive earthquake which killed nearly a quarter million people and left 1.5 million people homeless. Sony's home also collapsed during the earthquake. "My family lost everything in the earthquake, but fortunately all seven of us survived. I dream of becoming an architect. Then I would be able to build a house for my family. I would also rebuild the cathedral of Port-au-Prince." © Chris de Bode
Za'atari Refugee Camp, Jordan. 17 year old Yunes standing with a set of lifting weights. He fled the war in Syria and now lives in Za'atari Refugee Camp. He dreams of being the strongest man on the planet. He thinks this will help him protect his family and be someone special. © Chris de Bode
Kabul, Afghanistan. Maheen is 12 and lives in a small farmhouse near Kabul in Afghanistan. She is going to school. “I really like school, we have very good teachers and I really like them. I want to be a teacher. Because I want to help the poor children, and make them wiser. I really look up to my teachers, they are smart people. I want to be a math teacher, or even a math genius, and solve problems. That is what I want in life: to make sure that families let their daughters go to school, also the poorer girls. It’s just better for society." © Chris de Bode
Afghanistan. Tabaan, 13 years old, lives in Afghanistan. He dreams of becoming a king. "The first thing I would do as a king is to provide security to the people. That is the most important thing in Afghanistan, I think. The second thing I would do as a king is to fight unemployment. That is a bad thing and a big problem. As I come to think of it: a king faces many problems, he has a lot of things to take care of. It must be hard being a king.” © Chris de Bode