Climatelinks Photo Gallery

Anjali, an activist and network coordinator with Nepalese Youth for Climate Action, participates in a demonstration on the International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies in Lalitpur, Nepal. Youth are an important part of climate activism in Nepal. USAID Clean Air is partnering with young climate activists and youth-led organizations to raise awareness of air pollution issues and advocate for clean air for all. 

A woman in Nepal's remote Kailali district reuses wastewater from her kitchen to grow vegetables and beans, something she would not be able to do without access to water at home. To improve living conditions, the USAID Karnali Water Activity collaborated with the community to ensure each of the 13 families has a tap in their home. This initiative not only eases the burden of water collection, but also supports sustainable agricultural practices. As climate change exacerbates water scarcity through more frequent droughts and unpredictable weather patterns, practices that conserve water will be crucial to building climate resilience.

This 26-year-old resident of Achham district in Nepal is now able to access safe drinking water right at her doorstep, thanks to support from the USAID Karnali Water Activity. The activity provided 39 families with convenient access to water for the first time, ensuring better health and hygiene for the entire community. The project also enhances the community's resilience to the impacts of climate change, such as droughts and unpredictable weather patterns, which can disrupt traditional water sources.

Youth play chess in the dark at Thapathali Chess Park during load-shedding hours during the dry summer months in Kathmandu, Nepal.

Chinu Tamata serves as the treasurer of a water users and sanitation committee in Bamkada, Mugu district, Nepal. As a member of the Dalit community, which frequently encounters social exclusion and discrimination, Chinu's leadership role is significant. She takes pride in her position and actively encourages the 37 families in her community to diligently participate in ongoing construction activities. Their collective effort aims to complete the water supply scheme on schedule, addressing longstanding water scarcity issues in their area.

These pack mules are transporting essential non-local water equipment, such as cement, pipes, and pipe fittings, to remote communities in Nepal's Mugu district. The USAID Karnali Water Activity is working to establish new drinking water systems in the district to provide safe water access to 1,300 individuals. Establishing reliable drinking water systems in remote areas enhances the climate resilience of these communities, as climate change can exacerbate water scarcity through altered precipitation patterns and more frequent droughts.

An elderly resident in Barahatal, Surkhet, Nepal, is overjoyed to have a water tap at his doorstep thanks to the USAID Karnali Water Activity. Previously, he and his wife had to fetch water in a bamboo basket from a well a half-hour walk from their home. This initiative has provided access to safe drinking water to 59 other families in their community. Having access to clean water at home can help communities use water more efficiently, which is crucial in the face of changing climate patterns that are increasing water scarcity.

Water scarcity and unpredictable rainfall limited farmer Jag Narayan Ahir to growing just one crop, rice, on a small plot of land. To help him and other farmers adapt to the impacts of climate change, the USAID Feed the Future Knowledge-based Integrated Sustainable Agriculture and Nutrition II project provided reliable irrigation systems to nearly 36,000 farming households in Nepal and conducted training in modern farming techniques to boost farmers' resilience—transforming their harvests. He doubled his vegetable production area and quadrupled his vegetable sales, increasing his income by 67 percent and allowing him to comfortably support his family, ensure his children's education, and even increase his savings. Equipped with climate-resilient technologies and a secure financial future, Jag Narayan looks forward to continued growth and prosperity, starting with venturing into winter maize cultivation.

A farmer in Nepal cultivates drought-tolerant maize. Scorching summer heat waves have devastated traditional farming in many parts of the country, forcing farmers to abandon their fields. In response, the USAID Feed the Future Nepal Agricultural Inputs Activity collaborated with a private sector partner to show farmers how to grow a drought-tolerant maize variety and improve their access to essential farming supplies. With the activity's support, this farmer harvested one metric ton of maize from just 0.1 hectares during the spring season, and now plans to expand her crop. USAID's support empowers farmers like her to boost their climate resilience and their communities' food security.

Farmers in Nepal are adopting climate-smart agriculture practices to adapt to water scarcity caused by unpredictable rainfall patterns and other climate change impacts. The USAID Feed the Future Knowledge-based Integrated Sustainable Agriculture and Nutrition II project provided reliable irrigation systems to nearly 36,000 farming households in Nepal and conducted training in modern farming techniques to boost farmers' resilience. Now, more than 113,000 farmers are applying these methods on nearly 59,000 hectares of land, increasing their production and sales despite the changing climate.

Chanchala Bhujel charges her car at a fast EV charging station in Dhulikhel, a small town at the start of the BP Highway, which connects Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu, with the eastern part of the country. Bhujel was thrilled to see the fast chargers installed at this strategic location, enabling her to plan long-distance travel without range anxiety. This station is one of the 23 fast EV chargers that USAID/Nepal has deployed across seven strategic locations in the country in partnership with private companies. This initiative aims to address the lack of publicly accessible charging infrastructure, a significant obstacle to widespread EV adoption. To achieve its 2045 net-zero goal, Nepal requires private sector participation, innovation, and capital to accelerate the deployment of EV charging networks nationwide.

Ila Shrestha, a charger engineer at Yatri Design Studio in Nepal, assembles an electrical safety component of a fast electric vehicle (EV) charger before final tests. USAID has partnered with Nepal's private sector to deploy 23 fast EV chargers across seven strategic locations. This initiative aims to address the lack of publicly accessible charging infrastructure, a significant obstacle to widespread EV adoption in the country. To achieve its 2045 net-zero emissions goal, Nepal requires private sector participation, innovation, and capital to accelerate the deployment of EV charging networks nationwide. This initiative with USAID also ensures that women and minorities are not left behind in the clean-tech revolution by providing them with job opportunities in the sector.

Najma Basnet teaches her community about the dangers of air pollution and how to avoid them as part of a social and behavior change communication campaign under the USAID Clean Air project in Chandragiri, Nepal. During the program, participants—primarily women—learned about the health effects of air pollution and behavior changes they can adopt to protect their families. As a result, many of the women began recycling and stopped burning waste to prevent carbon emissions. Community-led solutions are key in the fight to slow climate change, and community education efforts like this can affect behavioral changes that help mitigate climate change. Furthermore, women who are traditionally in household roles have the power to change how their families approach waste management and carbon emissions in the home, which can have a ripple effect throughout the community.

Aaita Sing Pakhrin, a trained mason, is photographed at work on a newly constructed house belonging to Jit Bahadur Thing, a USAID ReCoVER project participant. The house is located in Bakaiya-2 Makwanpur District of the Bagmati Province, Nepal and is built by the USAID ReCoVER project under the full construction house activity implemented by Catholic Relief Services.

Children are delighted to drink water from the newly constructed tap in their house. The tap was built as part of the USAID RECoVER project in Bakaiya-6, Khopilte, Nepal, implemented in partnership with SAPPROSH Nepal and Catholic Relief Services since 2021. Before construction of this and similar taps in the area, people were used to fetching water from ponds and rivers for daily use. With the completion of this water project, the community now has access to clean drinking water, with taps in each household, benefiting the community by saving them time, improving their health conditions, and allowing them to utilize the wastewater in kitchen gardens. Simultaneously, this drinking water project supported them to grow vegetables and preserve the surrounding greenery. 

 

A modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) bag at a local produce collection point in Chitwan, Nepal. This packaging helps reduce food spoilage and increases the quality of food making it to market. Less food waste means higher profits for farmers, traders, and cooperatives as well as a reduction in carbon emissions. The bags are provided by Mandala Agrifresh, an innovator supported by the Water and Energy for Food Grand Challenge South and Southeast Asia Regional Innovation Hub (S/SEA RIH). Mandala Agrifresh also provides solar-powered cold storage in Kathmandu, Nepal and trainings to farmer cooperatives on post-harvest technologies, crop diversification, and organic farming practices.