Research has suggested that teaching that incorporates students' funds of knowledge can offer an authentic connection to students' lives outside the classroom (Moje et al., 2004) and should aim to enhance active participation of the learners using methods that reduce the unfamiliarity with science felt by some students. In the following description, the process of photovoice is showcased as a platform for undergraduate students to connect to their local community through science while beginning to develop an inquiry project on environmental sustainability. Here, photovoice was essential for the bridging of students' background and interests with the environmental science topics of importance to the community. As well, because photovoice enabled the students to communicate with those in a position of knowledge and in some cases control over the issue in a way that democratized the dialogue, it inspired a deepened sense of care and interest in the community of science. Photovoice's multilayered approach to enabling students to voice their perspectives about issues that impact them made inquiry projects on which they were about to embark meaningful and relevant.