2023 Winners
We were wowed and moved by so many of your photos and stories. We are so thankful to each and every one of you who took the time to submit this year.
It was an incredibly difficult task for the judges to narrow down on the winners. Congratulations to the winners for each category:-
Faces of the Bold
Nicola "Ókin" Frioli, 43
Photo Journalist, Mexico
Osvaldo, an indigenous man from the Kofan community of Sinangoe with his visor to navigate drones during a training day for the use of drones and GPS locators. On October 22, 2018, the Kofan people of Sinangoe in the Ecuadorian Amazon won a historic legal battle to protect the headwaters of the Aguarico River, one of Ecuador's largest and most important rivers, and overturn 52 mining concessions that had been granted by the government in violation of the Kofan's right to consent, freeing more than 32,000 hectares of primary rainforest from the devastating environmental and cultural impact of gold mining.
Faces of the Brave
Abir Abdullah, 51
Independent Photographer, Bangladesh
The natural setting of Bangladesh makes it prone to flooding, cyclones and tornadoes and at times subject to droughts. These natural calamities are increasing in frequency, most likely due to climate change. Time and time again people are losing their shelters, belongings, land and livelihood.
This burden is borne by women, the home makers, becoming migrants in their own country. With nearly 150 million inhabitants, Bangladesh is also the most densely populated country on earth. As warnings about climate change grow in intensity, Bangladesh is forecast as the scene of increasing numbers of climate migrants.
Faces of the Past, Present and Future
Adam Sébire, 52
Artist, Norway
Roatasi helps her sister to pack dried seaweed for export in their extended family's home. The two Micronesian girls sort dried seaweed in the lower level of their small thatched hut that is also used for eating and sleeping. Their brother then compacts it into sacks for export, with a pole. Indeed the whole family is involved in seaweed processing; the children are home-schooled since there is no school on the island and petrol prices have made transportation to nearby Wagina unaffordable.
These seaweed farming families of Beniamina in the Solomon Islands cling to a precarious existence atop a vanishing sandbar. The Solomons are a sea level rise hotspot, with Pacific Ocean waters rising three times the global average here: 7-10mm per year. The farmers fast-growing Kappaphycus seaweed crop absorbs large amounts of CO₂ in the 6 weeks it takes to mature: it's a carbon sink. But increasingly intense storm systems can rip whole lines of seaweed from the underwater tethered stakes. The multitude of seaweed varieties are reduced to one predominant colour by rising ocean temperatures and acidity. And warmer waters decrease the quality and maturation rate of the algae
Faces of the Unheard
Damilola Fowosire, 24
Photographer / Climate Change Activist, Nigeria
Nestled between the highbrow community of Victoria Island and the murky waters of the Lagos Lagoon lies a hidden world. It is a place where the sound of laughter and the sight of bright smiles contrast starkly with the suffocating poverty and squalor that surround them.
This is Makoko - a struggling community where life is a constant battle against the elements. Here, the children live in unimaginable conditions - huts on stilts that teeter above the water, with no running water or sanitation. Yet, despite the daily hardships they face, their big, bright eyes sparkle with life, and their laughter echoes across the water.
Their parents, fishermen and women with no formal education, eke out a living from the lagoon, a fragile existence constantly threatened by the harsh realities of climate change. Rising water levels, unpredictable weather patterns, and dwindling fish stocks make every day a struggle for survival. But in the midst of this struggle, the children's smiles shine like beacons of hope. They splash and play in the water, completely unfazed by the challenges that surround them.
As we bear witness to the beauty and resilience of these children, we are also confronted with the harsh reality of the devastating impact that climate change is having on communities around the world. This image serves as a powerful call to action, a plea for us to do all that we can to protect our planet and secure a brighter future for generations to come.
