Climatelinks Photo Gallery

This forgotten wilderness has been isolated for years due to an armed conflict that has kept tourists and Colombian settlers away from the park’s buffer zone. Sadly, the buffer zones around and land inside Chiribiquete have been affected by rising rates of deforestation. In 2020, the region contained five of 12 deforestation hotspots in Colombia and was home to over 50% of the total national deforested area. 



Now, the USAID-funded Land for Prosperity program in Colombia  is supporting government efforts to halt deforestation by improving land and environment governance tools and supporting government entities involved in land, conservation, and security. In fact, USAID has strategically aligned its environment and rural economic development/land portfolios in order to address deforestation and approach the issues of illicit crops being cultivated in hard-to-reach environmentally protected areas.

This photo was taken on June 30th, 2021 in the Afro Colombian community council of Curvaradó.

In the photo appear three leaders of community councils: Apartadó, Curvaradó, and Bocas del Chicao. These are people from the community as well as people of Paramos and Forest Activity of USAID.

They have created a forestal company to harvest sustainable wood inside their REDD+ project for the next 20 years.

REDD+ is one of the initiatives to mitigate climate change through the protection of forests and emitting carbon offsets for the carbon market.

These REDD+ Projects are supported by USAID through the Paramos and Forests Activity in Colombia.

The REDD+ Projects have been implemented for 18 Afro Colombian community councils and one Indigenous organization.

USAID and their partners are targeting thousands of farmers, mostly landless women with families, and providing each person with long-term land contracts and incorporating them into Novo Madal’s supply chain as growers of coconuts and other agroforestry commodities. 

By practicing responsible agroforestry, mixing tree crops with annuals, farmers are increasing their resilience to climate change. Once established, coconut trees have the ability to survive varying rainfall levels that occur from year to year. Farmers intercrop these trees with beans, which improves soil health, provides a source of protein, and is a good cash crop.

Tapumuluka Irrigation scheme, Nsanje District, Malawi, November 2020. Anne Moyo, a smallholder farmer, was affected by floods in 2015 and 2019 and drought in 2016 and 2018, resulting in her crop being destroyed four times in the last six years. She was really desperate at the time, skipping meals and having her grandchildren drop out of school to help the family. Initially, Anne was receiving food or cash from WFP to be able to feed her family. As she was getting back on her feet, Anne and her neighbors started working to plant trees, grow veggie gardens with organic compost, dig wells, and anything that can benefit her and her community, and help equip them to better resist climate change. In March 2021, Anne was producing enough (and diverse) food thanks to a solar-powered irrigation scheme. She engaged in other money-making businesses and was able to rebuild her house (destroyed from previous floods) and keep her children in secondary school. USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) is supporting Anne and 85,000 other families in Malawi (through WFP) through a range of various climate change mitigation interventions.

Namilongo School, Zomba District, Malawi, April 2021 - Matilda Chikondo and Standard 8 students. WFP is working with smallholder farmers to improve crop yield and protect their environment from the effects of climate change. These communities also partner with surrounding schools, re-greening the area and setting up veggie gardens. Matilda Chikondo believes it is important to support the school as a community member. She has two children in this school and together with the neighbours, they have planted over 4,000 trees. This protects the school from natural disasters which have become more intense and frequent because of climate change. The veggie gardens are used to teach children about climate-smart agriculture and money from the sales are used to help kids in need to buy school supplies and uniforms. USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) is supporting Matilda and 85,000 other families (through WFP) to change lives of rural communities through of a range of various climate change mitigation intervention.

Balaka District, Malawi, August 2020 - Idrissa Dyless has been involved in a climate action integrated program since 2017 and has learned many improved techniques of farming but also alternative livelihoods. In the context of climate change, it is crucial to encourage income generating activities apart from farming (which is mostly reliant on rains in Malawi). From 2017 to 2020, he has started protecting woodlots and neighboring forests. With the new trees planted and the natural regeneration, it became favorable to start the honey making process since the trees were providing enough shade for beehives. Idrossa learned apiculture and in his first harvest in August 2020, he got 22kg of honey which he managed to sell. USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) is supporting Malawi (through WFP) to change lives of rural communities through a range of various climate change mitigation interventions. These include productive asset creation for smallholder farmers to be better equipped against climate change.

Kalanje Village, Mangochi District, March 2021, Malawi. The vertical garden method combines permaculture and bio-intensive agriculture to create a highly productive home garden using a small amount of land and 50% less water (only the top under the cover has to be watered, then the water trickles down). It utilizes sustainable agriculture practices and local materials making it used in increasingly dry environments due to climate change. USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) is supporting Malawi (through WFP) to change lives of rural communities through a range of various climate change mitigation interventions. These includes productive asset creation for smallholder farmers to be better equipped against climate change.

This photo, taken in Mutatá, Antioquia, Colombia, shows three Embera women who are going to travel to France to be trained in high-quality chocolate prep. 

Embera Indigenous Cabildo from Mutatá, Antioquia, in Colombia, who are part of the REDD+ Project supported by the Program Paramos and Forests of USAID, have made an alliance with the Company La Finca Brava to promote high-quality cocoa produced in their lands. The alliance going to train three women in the prep of delicious products based on cocoa. The origin of cocoa and the knowledge of women will be part of the marketing strategy to export high-quality cocoa to Europe.

Kalasha Rawal is from Sisnari, Surkhet District; she depends on her small farm and community forest. Climate change has made drought and pests worse in Sisnari causing outmigration. Kalasha belongs to a Multiple Use Water System (MUS) developed by iDE through the Anukulan project (2015-19), funded by the UKAID BRACED Climate program. The MUS provides water to 20 disadvantaged families for domestic needs and agriculture from a spring source in the community forest. MUS provides environmental services, and user fees pay a manager to run the system and protect the water source with fencing, plantings, and a recharge pond. Kalasha uses drip, a bamboo greenhouse, and safe Integrated Pest Management (IPM) including yellow sticky traps purchased from a last mile agent trained by Anukulan. The IPM was developed by the USAID IPM Innovation Lab (2016-21). Kalasha, who is from a disadvantaged ethnic group, produced vegetables using MUS water to improve family nutrition and earn $700/year. These earnings enabled her husband to return from India to work with Kalasha and be with their daughter. iDE Nepal developed over 500 MUS for 80,000 people. iDE works with the government to integrate MUS in adaptation plans shifting farmers from risky rainfed agriculture to piped irrigation.

Kalasha Rawal is from Sisnari, Surkhet District; she depends on her small farm and community forest. Climate change has made drought and pests worse in Sisnari causing outmigration. Kalasha belongs to a Multiple Use Water System (MUS) developed by iDE through the Anukulan project (2015-19), funded by the UKAID BRACED Climate program. The MUS provides water to 20 disadvantaged families for domestic needs and agriculture from a spring source in the community forest. MUS provide environmental services, user fees pay a manager to run the system and protect the water source with fencing, plantings, and a recharge pond. Kalasha uses drip, a bamboo greenhouse, and safe Integrated Pest Management (IPM) including yellow sticky traps purchased from a last mile agent trained by Anukulan. The IPM was developed by the USAID IPM Innovation Lab (2016-21). Kalasha, who is from a disadvantaged ethnic group, produced vegetables using MUS water to improve family nutrition while earning $700/year. These earnings enabled her husband to return from India to work with Kalasha and be with their daughter. iDE Nepal developed over 500 MUS for 80,000 people. iDE works with the government to integrate MUS in adaptation plans shifting farmers from risky rainfed agriculture to piped irrigation.

Maya Rana is a small farmer in B-Gaun, Banke district, trained to utilize safe Integrated Pest Management (IPM) developed by the USAID IPM Innovation Lab (IPM-IL, 2015-21), led by Virginia Tech and iDE managed in Nepal. Climate change has made disease and pest problems worse. Nepal has been impacted by invasive pests including the Tuta Absoluta and Fall Armyworm. Tuta is a devastating tomato pest that arrived in Nepal in 2016. The IPM-IL developed an effective, safe IPM based Tuta package with the agricultural research system. Maya is checking a Wota-T trap to monitor for Tuta moths and uses safe bio-pesticides (Neem and BT) to control outbreaks. Maya also demonstrated a bamboo net house to grow tomatoes designed by the IPM-IL to exclude Tuta. In the last year, Maya earned over $8,000, including $1,800 from tomatoes using the IPM technologies. Maya uses many IPM-IL verified technologies including Trichoderma, pheromone traps, bio-pesticides, coco peat clean medium for nurseries, drip (for resilience), insect netting, and more. The IPM-IL is working with USAID Nepal FTF projects, the private sector, and the government’s agricultural research and extension system to scale adoption of IPM based crop packages to cope with climate impacts.

Maya Rana is a small farmer in B-Gaun, Banke district, trained to utilize safe Integrated Pest Management (IPM) developed by the USAID IPM Innovation Lab (IPM-IL, 2015-21), led by Virginia Tech and iDE managed in Nepal. Climate change has made disease and pest problems worse. Nepal has been impacted by invasive pests including the Tuta Absoluta and Fall Armyworm. Tuta is a devastating tomato pest that arrived in Nepal in 2016. The IPM-IL developed an effective, safe IPM based Tuta package with the agricultural research system. Maya is checking a Wota-T trap to monitor for Tuta moths and uses safe bio-pesticides (Neem and BT) to control outbreaks. Maya also demonstrated a bamboo net house to grow tomatoes designed by the IPM-IL to exclude Tuta. In the last year, Maya earned over $8,000, including $1,800 from tomatoes using the IPM technologies. Maya uses many IPM-IL verified technologies including Trichoderma, pheromone traps, bio-pesticides, coco peat clean medium for nurseries, drip (for resilience), insect netting, and more. The IPM-IL is working with USAID Nepal FTF projects, the private sector, and the government’s agricultural research and extension system to scale adoption of IPM based crop packages to cope with climate impacts.

Pabitra Sharma is a Community Business Facilitator (CBF) and Plant Doctor in B-Gaun, Banke District Nepal. As a CBF, Pabitra earns a commission on agro sales, including safe bio-products for plant protection and providing training to 585 smallholder customers (mainly women). Climate change is making pest and disease problems worse. Pabitra was trained by the USAID Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Innovation Lab (IPM-IL, 2015-19), led globally by Virginia Tech and in Nepal by iDE. Pabitra markets IPM technologies developed by IPM-IL working with government. Pabitra earns $1,400/year and her 585 customers earn on average $430/year selling vegetables, in aggregate over $208,000/year, greatly benefiting the community. The IPM-IL in partnership with the global CABI Plantwise program trained Pabitra and 43 other CBFs to become Plant Doctors. Plant Doctors receive intensive training, have access to online databases, and are backstopped by Nepal’s plant protection services. Pabitra as a Plant Doctor conducts regular Plant Clinics in her community diagnosing samples. In this photo, Pabitra is observing a customer’s pheromone funnel trap with Spodo-lure for the tobacco caterpillar that attacks tomatoes. There is also a bamboo net house designed by IPM-IL to exclude the invasive Tuta Absoluta Tomato pest and other insect pests.

This photo was taken in Totoró, Cauca, Colombia.

Technicians and scientists of the Paramos and Forests of USAID Activity explain to indigenous Guambianos matters about soil and carbon, with the aim to understand the Carbon Cycle and climate changes occurring because of human activities.

Indigenous authorities of the Guambia Resguardo participate in the training process that Paramos and Forests of USAID Activity are implementing among a project to protect paramos and mitigate climate change.

Paramos and Forests Activity of USAID is designing an incentive for carbon capture in the Paramos Ecosystem, which will benefit inhabitants of the high mountains and aims to mitigate climate change.

A scooper opens bags of wheat from the Joint Emergency Operation Program (JEOP) at a distribution point in Hawzen district, in Misraqawi Zone of the Tigray Region, Ethiopia, on February 6, 2019.

When recurrent droughts lead to crop failures in Ethiopia, it can leave families with little or nothing to eat. The Joint Emergency Operation Program (JEOP) distributes wheat, yellow split peas and cooking oil to targeted beneficiaries. The project’s scope includes more than 250 distribution points across five regions of Ethiopia. This massive scope in combination with the country’s challenging environment, meant there was potential for significant loss of food aid. Success meant getting as much of the food as possible to families facing starvation during the drought. CRS funded and designed a commodity risk-management system to minimize loss and maximize success which led to a mere 0.0024% of food aid unaccounted for over the course of one year. In 2018 alone, funding from USAID helped CRS and its partners provide emergency food assistance to more than 1.5 million food insecure people, plus another 506,000 people displaced in southwestern Ethiopia due to ongoing security issues.

Akai Akiru, 40, walks across these dusty plains a few hours outside of the capital of Turkana County, Lodwar in May 2017. She fetches water somewhere beyond the distant horizon. It takes her three hours to walk there, and three hours to get back, carrying the full 5-gallon jug on her head. This sums up her entire day. She is too tired to do anything else. She, her husband and three children survive on each day's water she brings and wild doum palm fruit, she said.

Turkana, in northern Kenya, has been hit by a massive drought for over a year, triggered and worsened by the effects of El Nino. Under a program called Kenya Resilient Arid Lands Partnership for Integrated Development (Kenya-RAPID), funded by USAID and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), CRS is the lead NGO in Isiolo and Turkana Counties working with Catholic Church dioceses to support the county governments as they develop their capacities to sustainably tap and exploit precious water reserves in Kenya's Arid and Semi-Arid Lands, or ASALs. Substantial water supplies lie below ground, so using them responsibly and maintaining them at the county level is key to the economic development of these traditionally marginalized lands. In the ASALs, crop farming is possible only along riverbeds and/or with irrigation, so livestock is a mainstay of the economy. Ensuring access to water for livestock and people is a major pillar of the program.