This Is What Climate Change Looks Like: 50 Photos From Our #ClimateChange2020 Competition

Location: Hoa Binh Village, Quang Ngai, Vietnam

"When looking at the picture, anyone will immediately recognize that it is the image of a working person. But the difference is that he's working not only to make a living but also to protect the environment by reusing waste and creating useful products. I was deeply moved when I saw the sweat rolling down his cheeks, to me, he looked like a hero fighting against climate change. This job may be considered trivial, but is very noble in Vietnam."

@trungbui (Vietnam)

Location: Namib Desert, Namibia

"In order to take this photo, I had to climb a dune of 150 meters high! I wanted to show the end of the cycle of life in a desertified area. Only the beautiful colors of the surroundings make this photo a little bit less sad."

@marcotagliarino (Italy)

Location: Svalbard, Norway

"The spot where the polar bear is sleeping used to be a glacier. The ice has now disappeared completely, leaving the rocks uncovered."

@uglefisk (Norway)

Location: Nam Phuong Tien, Hanoi, Vietnam

"A road flooded in Nam Phuong Tien, a commune near Hanoi, Vietnam. The photo was taken in the middle of the historic flood in 2018, which isolated this commune for more than three weeks. You can see that people are swimming: although in a difficult opportunity, they've still found a way to have a bit of fun."

@trantuanviet (Vietnam)

Location: Iceland

@vasadivisuals (UK)

Location: Kon Tum, Vietnam

@thaibana.vn (Vietnam)

Location: Chittagong, Bangladesh

"Bangladesh is one of the most vulnerable continental countries to climate change. The consequences of this global crisis are disastrous for the country: tropical cyclones, river erosion, floods, landslides, and severe droughts. Having a clear picture of future risks is essential to spur action on a scale that matches the problem. Bangladesh already has a hot climate, with summer temperatures that can hit 45°C. Heat waves will break new records in a 4°C hotter world, with 7 out of 10 summers being abnormally hot. Northern Bangladesh will shift to a new climatic regime, with temperatures above any levels seen during the past 100 years."

@kazijewel (Bangladesh)

Location: Jökulsárlón, Iceland.

"The main subject is a huge iceberg that has broken off from the surrounding Breiðamerkurjökull Glacier, part of larger Vatnajökull Glacier. Next to the Iceberg, you can spot a couple of Kyaks for scale. I wanted to show the size of the Icebergs that break off every day due to climate change."

@globetrottingtimo (Germany)

Location: Wonosobo, Central Java, Indonesia

"I was walking by the river when I saw a fish pond full of plastic debris, where a little fish had been trapped inside a plastic bag. I took a few shots with my underwater camera before releasing the fish in the river. The chemical structure of most plastics renders them resistant to many natural processes of degradation, and as a result, they are slow to degrade."

@yogayogreat (Indonesia)

Location: Bangladesh

@rozelkazi (Bangladesh)

Location: Mont-Blanc glacier, France

"Because of global warming, the Mont-Blanc glacier is melting more and more, losing several meters of thickness every year."

@syode (France)

Location: Dili, East Timor

"We can see the muddy river on the left side of the photo, and the ocean on the right side. Though the division line is still clear, some river sediments started already to mix with the ocean water. The first rains of the year have recently joined the Comoro River taking with them all sorts of trash, dirt, and debris. The trash coming with the river is an enemy to the corals and other marine life forms that live on the Timorese coast. Though Timor-Leste's waters are still part of the Coral Triangle, Timor is still an (almost) tourist-free country. This won't last long if people realize that Timorese waters have the most biodiverse waters anywhere in the world (surpassing the previous record of Papua New Guinea)."

@joao.galamba (Portugal)

Location: Denver, United States

@josephrrouse (USA)

Location: Bao Loc, Lam Dong Province, Vietnam

"The monk was praying for the rain to come and revitalize this arid land."

@tuan1368 (Vietnam)

Location: Quang Ngai province, Vietnam

"Impoverished coastal communities in Vietnam are impacted by frequent flooding and storms. Through the Green Climate Fund and United Nations Development Program in Quang Ngai, more than 4,000 hectares of mangroves will be planted and rehabilitated, creating sustainable ecosystem resources to support coastal livelihoods."

@alexcao (Vietnam)

Location: Narayanganj, Bangladesh

"Brick kilns are polluting the environment, pouring harmful black smoke into Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. The authorities are unable to efficiently prevent the kilns from emitting black smoke and violating other environmental rules. Despite the existing environmental laws, many of the 11,100 brick plants across the country are still operating with unconventional methods. In 2019, Dhaka was ranked the worst in the world by the Air Quality Index (AQI)."

@momin21a (Bangladesh)

Location: H. Yên Dũng, Vietnam

"The drought caused many forest fires: thousands of hectares just burnt down."

@tuantvt (Vietnam)

Location: Sacramento, California, USA

"I was extremely lucky to be at the right time in the right place when this supercell storm suddenly formed. The rotation of the storm and the way it was lit at sunset was breathtaking. Luckily, the storm did not touch down, and no one got hurt. Over the past few years, California has experienced severe droughts, intense wildfires, and storms, all due to climate change. It was a challenge for me to photograph it using the long exposure while holding down the tripod due to high wind, but it was all worth the effort to capture a rare moment. Mother nature is always unpredictable."

@bachir01 (USA)

Location: Hong Kong

@jackyy_wch (Hong Kong)

Location: Viareggio Carnival Festival, Italy

"The photo shows one of the huge allegorical floats made of papier-mache, which competed this year during the carnival in Viareggio. Actually my favorite one! That's also the one who finally won the contest, ranking first in the main category. I was there with some friends and we sneaked into an apartment building, up to the second floor, from which we were able to attend the parade. None of us knew the hosts, but they were really hospitable. It was really impressive to see such big animated papier mache carnival carts! Some of them were even higher than the balcony in which we stood. Along the way, a crowd of thousands of masked people attended the parade. I like this picture cause it encloses the allegory of the crowd who helplessly witnesses the Earth heading towards the point of no return. Fortunately, few little heroes like Greta Thunberg, our Dorothy, are following the brain, the courage and the heart, just like new scarecrows, lions and tin men, on this journey towards a new awareness."

@superiaia (Italy)