Climatelinks Photo Gallery

Ariesta, a member of the Carbonitor HackCorruption team, maps out key forms of climate finance corruption in Indonesia to brainstorm how his team’s tool can curb corruption through increased transparency and access to the right data. As financial commitments to mitigating climate change increase, so do opportunities for corruption. The HackCorruption project, led by Accountability Lab with support from the U.S. Department of State under the USAID Countering Transnational Corruption Grand Challenge for Development, brings together teams of researchers, social scientists, and developers to develop civic-tech tools to address corruption challenges that hamper climate and development goals and exacerbate inequities.

Lukenya University in Kenya partners with the Alliance of Biodiversity International and CIAT to grow forage grasses and legumes that can survive in the country’s water-scarce drylands. In a country that is 85 percent arid or semi-arid, climate change is increasing the frequency and duration of droughts and contributing to increased food insecurity. Pastoralists who traditionally keep large herds of livestock lose many of their animals during the cyclic periods of drought and famine. Growing resilient grasses and legumes will improve livestock nutrition, ultimately enhancing food security.

Dragon 12, the world’s first megawatt-scale tidal kite, is towed to its installation site in the Faroe Islands. The Dragon 12 uses tidal energy, which can be a more reliable clean energy alternative to wind and solar power for large ocean communities with intermittent wind and solar supply. By providing predictable renewable energy to the Faroe Islands, Minesto’s Dragon 12 is helping accelerate the global energy transition by reducing dependence on fossil fuels.

Lukenya University community members plant trees to support ecosystem restoration in Makueni County, Kenya. Increased tree cover will encourage the development of a cool microclimate to convert semi-arid land into land suitable for growing crops and help mitigate climate change. The group, supported by a variety of local and international organizations, plans to scale its efforts to other semi-arid regions of southeastern Kenya.

A member of a community forest patrol in Vietnam explains, “We love the forest. There are so many resources like medicinal plants and bamboo. Now, with the patrols we are able to teach the rest of the community the importance of the forest and how to sustainably harvest resources from them.” The patrol regularly monitors its community forest, which borders the Pu Luong Nature Reserve, for environmentally destructive activities that could harm livelihoods and encroach on the protected area. USAID supports this and other forest-dependent communities to sustainably use and conserve forests as part of the Payment for Forest Environmental Services (PFES) system. PFES works with the Government of Vietnam, companies, and local forest owners to develop a system to enable greenhouse gas-emitting companies to offset their carbon emissions by investing in forest plantation projects that absorb emissions.

A Green Group member co-facilitates an outreach activity with her schoolmates in Kampong Thom province, Cambodia. The outreach is part of the USAID Cambodia Green Future Activity’s #Talk2StopLittering social and behavior change communication. Green Groups, which are groups of youth focused on environmental protection, were developed by the USAID Cambodia Green Future Activity implemented by ECODIT and FHI360.

The Waste Upcycle and Business Mentorship Program in Abuja, Nigeria, empowers women and youth with alternative income skills and opportunities by enabling them to transform waste into valuable products to conserve the environment and combat climate change. Waste pollution, particularly plastic, exacerbates the impact of climate-induced disasters like flooding and erosion. Addressing the climate crisis requires urgent, intentional, sustainable, and community-focused actions. That’s why Development Impact Pathfinders Initiative (Devimpath) launched the Waste Upcycle and Business Mentorship Program in 2023. Upcycling breathes new life into discarded materials by turning them into something new but also reshapes public perceptions of waste. From May to August 2023, 50 Indigenous Gbagyi women, primarily firewood sellers and farmers, participated in a pilot for the program funded by Global Diversity Foundation, UK with support from the Gen SEED Project.

The USAID Cambodia Green Future Activity’s project assistant, Pechpheary Nann (second from the left), speaks on a youth panel at the Cambodia Climate Change Summit 2023 (CCCS23) in Siem Reap. Nann, who is also a Green Group leader, discussed the activity’s social and behavior change communication (SBCC) campaigns around protecting the environment. Green Groups, made up of Cambodian youth focused on environmental protection, were developed by the USAID Cambodia Green Future Activity implemented by ECODIT and FHI360. The activity trained Green Group participants to implement its SBCC campaigns.

Green Group participants join primary school students, teachers, and local community members to collect trash from the street in Banteay Srei district in Cambodia’s Siem Reap province. The USAID Cambodia Green Future Activity, implemented by ECODIT and FHI 360, facilitated the formation of Green Groups, which are groups of motivated youth who spearhead environmental and climate education initiatives, foster community engagement, and serve as environment and climate defenders. This particular group’s cleanup activity was part of a study tour for the activity’s successful #Talk2StopLittering campaign.

Green Group members lead their peers in collecting trash along a beach in Kep Province, Cambodia, to mark World Cleanup Day. The USAID Cambodia Green Future Activity, implemented by ECODIT and FHI 360, facilitated the formation of these Green Groups, which are made up of motivated youth who spearhead environmental and climate education initiatives, foster community engagement, and serve as environment and climate defenders. The 2023 World Cleanup Day event depicted here taught youth about the importance of environmental protection and preserving Cambodia for future generations.

Two young women co-facilitate an environmental outreach activity at a local community tourism site in Kampong Thom province, Cambodia. Their outreach builds on skills they learned from the USAID Cambodia Green Future Activity implemented by ECODIT and FHI 360. The activity provided them with training on how to use social and behavior change communication (SBCC) toolkits to teach their peers to protect the environment and combat climate change with SBCC campaigns like #Talk2ProtectForests, #Talk2ProtectOurWildlife, and #Talk2StopLittering.

A member of a community forest patrol in Vietnam explains, “We love the forest. There are so many resources like medicinal plants and bamboo. Now, with the patrols we are able to teach the rest of the community the importance of the forest and how to sustainably harvest resources from them.” The patrol regularly monitors its community forest, which borders the Pu Luong Nature Reserve, for environmentally destructive activities that could harm livelihoods and encroach on the protected area. USAID supports this and other forest-dependent communities to sustainably use and conserve forests as part of the Payment for Forest Environmental Services (PFES) system. PFES works with the Government of Vietnam, companies, and local forest owners to develop a system to enable greenhouse gas-emitting companies to offset their carbon emissions by investing in forest plantation projects that absorb emissions.

A member of a community forest patrol in Vietnam stops to look at a piece of fruit while on watch. The patrol regularly monitors its community forest, which borders the Pu Luong Nature Reserve, for environmentally destructive activities that could harm livelihoods and encroach on the protected area. USAID supports this and other forest-dependent communities to sustainably use and conserve forests as part of the Payment for Forest Environmental Services (PFES) system. PFES works with the Government of Vietnam, companies, and local forest owners to develop a system to enable greenhouse gas-emitting companies to offset their carbon emissions by investing in forest plantation projects that absorb emissions.

Members of a community forest patrol in Vietnam take a short break during their conservation work. The patrol regularly monitors its community forest, which borders the Pu Luong Nature Reserve, for environmentally destructive activities that could harm their livelihoods and encroach on the protected area. USAID supports this and other forest-dependent communities to sustainably use and conserve forests as part of the Payment for Forest Environmental Services (PFES) system. PFES works with the Government of Vietnam, companies, and local forest owners to develop a system to enable greenhouse gas-emitting companies to offset their carbon emissions by investing in forest plantation projects that absorb emissions.

Members of a community forest patrol in Vietnam regularly monitor their community forest, which borders the Pu Luong Nature Reserve, for environmentally destructive activities that could harm their livelihoods and encroach on the protected area. USAID supports this and other forest-dependent communities to sustainably use and conserve forests as part of the Payment for Forest Environmental Services (PFES) system. PFES works with the Government of Vietnam, companies, and local forest owners to develop a system to enable greenhouse gas-emitting companies to offset their carbon emissions by investing in forest plantation projects that absorb emissions.

Members of a community forest patrol in Vietnam regularly monitor their community forest, which borders the Pu Luong Nature Reserve, for environmentally destructive activities that could harm their livelihoods and encroach on the protected area. USAID supports this and other forest-dependent communities to sustainably use and conserve forests as part of the Payment for Forest Environmental Services (PFES) system. PFES works with the Government of Vietnam, companies, and local forest owners to develop a system to enable greenhouse gas-emitting companies to offset their carbon emissions by investing in forest plantation projects that absorb emissions.