The winners of “The Environmental Photographer of the Year 2021” (EPOTY) have been announced! In its 14th year, the competition showcases the most inspirational environmental photography from all around the world.
We are all aware of what climate change is doing to our environment, the land is being ravaged by fire, storms, or floods, there are so many more disasters that might make one think the world is coming to an end. If this continues like this we are not far from this actually happening.
This award is meant to celebrate humanity and its ability to survive. It highlights thought-provoking images and brings to our attention how our actions are impacting the planet.
The competition supports the urgent calls of action made by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and helps to recognize the importance of interconnection of nature’s development with poverty reduction, equality, security, and climate action, and the efforts needed by all sections of society to come together and address the problem of our time.
The winners for this year were revealed at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow, Scotland. Any age group could enter this competition, it was free for all. Registrations started on 21st March 2021 and closed on 14th August 2021.
EPOTY 2021 received over 7000 images from over 120 nations. It was presented by CIWEM, and Waterbear, with Nikon in partnership, and was sponsored by ARUP.
Let’s take a look at the powerful winning photographs from the competition, along with the description given by the photographers.
“A child sleeps inside his house destroyed by coastal erosion on Afiadenyigba beach. Sea levels in West-African countries continue to rise and thousands of people have been forced to leave their homes.”
Location: Togo, West Africa
“A boy takes in air from the plant, with a sand storm brewing in the background. This is an impression of the changes to come.”
Location: Nairobi, Kenya
Also Read: Google Earth’s New Time-Lapse Feature Shows Impact Of 37 Years Of Climate Change
“Flocks of sheep search for grass amongst the cracked soil. Extreme droughts in Bangladesh have created hardships for all living beings.”
Location: Noakhali, Bangladesh
“Dry fish terraces cover vast areas of the Sirajganj district. Dry fish production is the primary source of employment for many rural families near the Chalan Beel, which is under threat due to anthropogenic environmental impacts.”
Location: Sirajganj, Bangladesh
“Workers sit surrounded by bundles of incense sticks in Quang Phu Cau village in Hanoi, Vietnam. Incense has been made using traditional methods here for hundreds of years and plays an important role in the spiritual lives of Vietnamese people.”
Location: Hanoi, Vietnam
“A busy polluted waterway on Buriganga River is filled with boats and their passengers on the morning work commute to the densely populated city of Dhaka, home to an estimated 21 million people.”
Location: Dhaka, Bangladesh
“A child sits on a ladder in a plastic bottle recycling factory in Bangladesh. PET recycling in Bangladesh is a growing industry, however, collection and sorting are predominantly manual.”
Location: Chittagong, Bangladesh
“Irregular monsoon seasons and droughts cause algal bloom on the Damodar river. Algal blooms prevent light from penetrating the surface and prevent oxygen absorption by the organisms beneath, impacting human health and habitats in the area.”
Location: West Bengal, India
“Fisherman cast their nets in the algae near Sontola Bridge. Algae accumulates in the rivers of Bangladesh during the dry season.”
Location: Sirajganj, Bangladesh
“Women search for water in Shora-9 of Gabura union in Satkhira. Over a decade after cyclone Aila, freshwater ponds and wells have become increasingly saline. Women are traditionally responsible for collecting water and make multiple trips over long distances to supply their families.”
Location: Khulna, Bangladesh
“A boy fighting surface fires in a forest near his home in Yamuna Ghat, New Delhi, India. According to locals, forest fires caused by human activity in the area are a common occurrence due to adverse living conditions.”
Location: New Delhi, India
“A working mother in an open-air fish drying rack provides for her family with her baby cradled in the rack nearby.”
Location: Chattogram, Bangladesh
“Jute is grown in the Ganges Delta. Jute is a sustainable alternative to plastic with a low cost of production. The government in India is supporting the development of the jute sector.”
Location: West Bengal, India
“A boy with plastic items to sell to a local factory in Chittagong. Children risk dangerous conditions collecting plastic, metal and other dumped waste to earn a living.”
Location: Chittagong, Bangladesh
“Nemo’s Garden represents an alternative system of agriculture. This self-sustainable project aims at making underwater farming a viable eco-friendly solution to counteract the increasing climate change pressures.”
Location: Noli, Italy
Prizes for the competition include £10,000 in cash, a certificate, coverage from several publications for the overall winner, that’s not all the winner also gets a Nikon Z camera and 3 lenses.
Image Sources: Google Images
Sources: x99News, CIWEM, Talent House, +More
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This post is tagged under: The Environmental Photographer Of The Year 2021, best pictures, winners, competition, climate change, inspirational, environmental, photography, disasters, humanity, thought-provoking, United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, poverty reduction, equality, security, climate action, society, CIWEM, Waterbear, Nikon, ARUP, UN Climate Change Conference, Glasgow, Scotland, certificate, Nikon Z camera, cash, prize, urgent calls
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