Climatelinks Photo Gallery

Across Liberia, people rely on the country's lush forests to survive. They hunt animals for meat. They clear trees to grow rice and other crops. Slowly, they're destroying what remains of the Upper Guinean forest region and its rich biodiversity. And life isn't easy for Liberia's forest communities. Many struggle to feed their children. Their livelihoods are anything but stable. Pact is addressing both problems with its signature WORTH program, which reduces poverty and empowers women through village banking and entrepreneurship. In Liberia, Pact is implementing WORTH with funding from USAID as part of the FIFES project. Through WORTH, Liberian forest communities are developing new, reliable livelihoods that don’t harm forests. In groups of about 20, WORTH brings women together to save money, access credit and generate income. They make small savings deposits at weekly meetings, and when groups’ funds grow large enough, members may begin taking loans to start small businesses. Groups receive literacy, numeracy and business training. For these women – and for their families, communities and forests – WORTH is making all the difference. In this photo, WORTH members proudly hold up their program guide books. Photo taken Feb. 2017 in Nimba, Liberia.

To help with climate change mitigaion through the reduction of forest degradation and biodiversity loss in key forest landscapes in West Africa, the USAID-funded West Africa Biodiversity and Climate Change (WA BiCC) Program has supported many livelihood initiatives in the Gola forest landscape to balance the conservation of the forest and wellbeing of forest-edge communities. Foremost among these initiatives is teaching farmers and those interested in farming how to grow rice more sustainably without impacting forest resources. The introduction of lowland rice farming to women in Gola has given them the opportunity to better feed both their own families and the communities they call home.

The training was led by Vainga Agriculture Development and Management Consultancy (VADEMCO) and funded by the Society for the Conservation of Nature, Liberia (SCNL), a WA BiCC grantee.

USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA - ex FFP) is supporting Malawi (through WFP) to change lives of rural communities through of a range of various interventions. These includes productive asset creation for smallholder farmers and afforestation. After raising tree seedlings, US-supported Food for Assets participants give some seedlings to the neighbouring schools to be planted for live fencing. Teachers use this as an opportunity to raise children's awareness on environmental protection.

Picture taken in Zomba District, December 2018

Akwalu Lupata, 54, married with 4 children suffered gastric ulcers for 10 years.

“For 10 years I could not eat any solid food. I was living on fluids only. But since I started growing moringa trees which also has medicinal/healing properties, I’ve been taking the moringa powder, and the ulcers have cleared off. I can now eat normally without any pains Now that I’m healed, I work hard on my crop field.”

USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA - ex FFP) is supporting Malawi (through WFP) to change lives of rural communities through of a range of various interventions. These includes productive asset creation for smallholder farmers and afforestation. Amongst other trees that are planted by participants, moringa trees are promoted for its wide range of benefits.

USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA - ex FFP) is supporting Malawi (through WFP) to change lives of rural communities through of a range of various interventions. These includes restoring degraded lands for smallholder farmers and afforestation to prevent soil erosion. Since the beginning of WFP’resilience programme in Malawi over 31,000 hectares of land have been rehabilitated

Picture taken in Zomba District, December 2018

USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA - ex FFP) is supporting Malawi through WFP carrying out activities in seven districts, supporting 84,000 households. Participants build assets to improve their livelihoods, creating healthier natural environments, reducing risks and impacts of shocks, increasing food productivity, and strengthening resilience to natural disasters. Thanks to the asset creating activities, some communities, typically affected by climate-related shocks, reported low to no impact from the Cyclone Idai floods. In 2019 alone, over 3 million trees were planted along river banks, woodlots, household dwellings and community structures.

Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD) will significantly contribute to the 8% target on emissions reduction committed by the country under the Paris Agreement, adopted in December 2015 to address climate change. In order to support this, the USAID Green Annamites Project supported Quang Nam and Thua Thien Hue provinces to reduce their carbon emissions and advance towards their green growth goals. The Project supported the preparation of the provincial REDD+ action plans (PRAP) in Quang Nam with a participatory approach and is currently advancing discussions with buyers interested in the REDD+ carbon credits. The Project helped to improve capacity of 11 governmental agencies in Quang Nam and Thua Thien Hue to effectively implement the PRAP, with activities like strengthening the forest monitoring system, delivering training on low emission land use, supporting sustainable livelihood activities for community forest groups, training on REDD+ orientation as well as a technical support to analyze drivers of deforestation, forest degradation and hindrances to increasing carbon stocks.

Photo taken in  April 2019 at Xa A Xan, Tay Giang district, Quang Nam Province, Vietnam.

The photo was taken near Perowal,Punjab,Pakistan on 27th July,2020. In picture, A local farmer is planting an Azadirachta indica Tree (locally know as Neem). The plantations on local levels not only help reduce the pollution level in community but also keep the climate fresh & clean by reducing the CO² levels. This program/activity doesn't receive any fundings from USAID nor is linked with any partner organisation

Tay Giang district, Quang Nam province, Vietnam. May 2020. Forest ecosystems, along with their fauna and flora, can only be protected and coexist sustainably when local communities living near forests and / or dependent on forests improve their livelihoods and income in a sustainable and environmental-friendly direction. The USAID Green Annamites project has been successful in supporting rural communities and small private sector companies to join the One Community One Product (OCOP) program promoted by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, MARD, particularly in the Quang Nam province, where the Project has worked with ethnic minorities living in and around forested areas to develop value chains for non-timber forest Products (NTFP). This merge between the OCOP program and USAID conservation-friendly Value chains created the “Green OCOP”, as value a chain approach that contributes to sustainable natural resource management and biodiversity conservation, while improving rural income and helping to achieve three key Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) such as SDG1 (poverty), SDG8 (comprehensive and sustainable economic growth) and SDG 15 (sustainable use of terrestrial resources and prevention of biodiversity loss).

A group of students takes part in a plantation campaign organized by WWF Pakistan to encourage young minds for a green planet. This campaign had no support from USAID nor was linked to any other organization. This picture was shot on 2nd May 2019 in a local village near Vehari, Punjab, Pakistan.

This picture was shot in the Chichawatni Forest Range,Punjab,Pakistan.
Frame shows a small pathway crossing through the dense & cool shades of forest.
Chichawatni Forest is a man handled range which not only helps in cleaning the environment but also act as a potential housing of local flora and fauna, plus the planting nurseries also provides the trees to other areas of Punjab for the sake of plantations.

In the dry western highlands of Huehuetenango, Guatemala, Project Concern International, a Global Communities Partner, is fighting climate change through on-the-ground work with local families. Thanks to a Climate Smart Commitment Grant from Rick Steves’ Europe, 10,000 trees have been planted since October 2019 as part of reforestation efforts in the region. We are also working through local women leaders to promote the use of clean, efficient cookstoves to lower carbon emissions and replace dangerous open fires traditionally used for cooking. These ongoing efforts will dramatically reduce firewood-related deforestations and smoke-related health problems while also improving air and soil quality in the region. This photo was taken in May 2020.

In the dry western highlands of Huehuetenango, Guatemala, Project Concern International, a Global Communities Partner, is fighting climate change through on-the-ground work with local families. Thanks to a Climate Smart Commitment Grant from Rick Steves’ Europe, 10,000 trees have been planted since October 2019 as part of reforestation efforts in the region. We are also working through local women leaders to promote the use of clean, efficient cookstoves to lower carbon emissions and replace dangerous open fires traditionally used for cooking. These ongoing efforts will dramatically reduce firewood-related deforestations and smoke-related health problems while also improving air and soil quality in the region. This photo was taken in May 2020.

Ho Chi Minh’s comment that “forests are gold” clearly made an impression on Chu Ly Ha Giang. The head of one of 36 households in Lieng Bon hamlet that have been tasked with patrolling and protecting a little over 850 acres, Giang echoes the father of modern Vietnam when asked about the importance of forests. “For us, forests are precious, and they are precious to the state as well,” he says. “Forests are gold and we manage them very closely.” For his work ensuring no illegal logging or farming encroaches on the 23-plus hectares he is directly responsible for, Giang receives about 3.8 million Vietnamese Dong (about $164 dollars) each quarter. It’s money that makes a big difference to Giang, who has eight children and six grandchildren. Along with income from farming, the PFES payments cover living expenses and – most important to Giang – the cost of education. “The state has now supported [us] with schools and roads and our children have sufficient schooling,” he says. “Income from coffee, persimmons, and other short-term crops helps with children’s schooling, which is our top priority.”

Ka Lũy literally wears her reverence for the natural world on her skin. A member of the K’Ho tribe, a once-nomadic ethnic minority group in Vietnam’s Central Highlands, Lũy’s hand-woven dress is adorned with patterns and symbols representing mountains and trees. Lũy and many of her fellow K’Ho earn a significant portion of their income by patrolling the forests near the village of Kalatangu as part of Vietnam’s Payment for Forest Environmental Services (PFES) program. The money makes a big difference in Lũy’s daily life, but also in laying a foundation for her children’s future. “Since we mostly do farming and we only earn a living from coffee and rice, an additional source of income from the forest for the remaining months is really necessary,” she says. As critical as the income from PFES is on a personal level, Lũy’s conviction about the importance of forests transcends her own circumstances. When asked if she has a message for those living far from the hills of Lam Dong Province, Lũy’s response is simple. “Let us join hands to protect our forest,” she says. “If we have forest, we will have a green, clean, and beautiful earth, as well.

Members of Malatgao United Riverside Farmers Association in Quezon municipality, Palawan province received their high-quality durian seedlings from the USAID-funded Protect Wildlife project in the Philippines. They are among the 600 local and indigenous farmers who were trained and engaged by USAID Protect Wildlife in 2019 to plant 44,000 durian seedlings in approximately 400 hectares of forestland in southern Palawan. This agroforestry and conservation agriculture initiative is a way for USAID to provide incentives to farmers who agree to plant high-value fruit trees in forestlands and buffer zones classified as production areas. When successful, this can contribute to increased tree cover in their area, enhanced climate resiliency through healthier forests, and improved conservation of local biodiversity.