This photo essay brings together images from across the year that trace how the climate crisis is being lived, endured, and confronted in different places. The photographs do not attempt to document every moment, but they offer a visual record of a year marked by environmental strain.
Cars destroyed by the Eaton Fire sit in the parking area of a burned auto shop on January 08, 2025 in Altadena, California. Multiple wildfires fueled by intense Santa Ana Winds are burning across Los Angeles County. Two people have been killed, over 25,000 acres have burned, and 30,000 people have been evacuated. (Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
In this aerial view fields remain underwater after the Bridgewater Canal embankment collapsed during heavy rain near Little Bollington on January 02, 2025 in Manchester, England. A major incident was declared on New Year's Day as roads were closed, homes evacuated and power was down due to heavy rain. (Photo: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images) A woman carries a child as Mount Ibu spews volcanic material up to the sky in the background during the eruption in West Halmahera, North Maluku province, Indonesia, 15 January 2025. Indonesia's Vulcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation Center (PVMBG) raised the alert level of the volcano to the highest following the eruption. (Photo: EPA/STR) Firefighters fight the flames from the Palisades Fire burning the Theatre Palisades during a powerful windstorm on January 8, 2025 in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. The fast-moving wildfire is threatening homes in the coastal neighborhood amid intense Santa Ana Winds and dry conditions in Southern California. (Photo: Apu Gomes/Getty Images) Firefighters spray flames from the Palisades Fire burning a business on January 8, 2025 in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Multiple wildfires fueled by intense Santa Ana Winds are burning across Los Angeles County. Five people have been killed, over 25,000 acres have burned, and 30,000 people have been evacuated. (Photo: Eric Thayer/Getty Images) A firefighting helicopter drops water on the Palisades Fire on January 11, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. The Palisades fire had grown to over 22,000 acres and has destroyed thousands of homes. The fire is currently 11 percent contained. (Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) An aerial view of repair vehicles near beachside homes that burned in the Palisades Fire as wildfires cause damage and loss through the LA region on January 15, 2025 in Malibu, California. Multiple wildfires fueled by intense Santa Ana Winds are still burning across Los Angeles County, with at least 25 dead, more than 12,000 structures destroyed or damaged, and 40,000 acres burned. More than 88,000 people remain under evacuation orders as high winds are forecast. (Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images) Candles burn in tribute to the flood victims during a ceremony held in the Plaza de la Iglesia square in Pincanya, Valencia, Spain, 15 February 2025. Floods triggered by the DANA (high-altitude isolated depression) weather phenomenon hit the east of the country on 29 October 2024, devastating Valencia and neighboring provinces and leaving at least 229 people dead. (Photo: EPA/MANUEL BRUQUE) A resident walks on a flooded Edmonstone Street in the suburb of Newmarket on March 09, 2025 in Brisbane, Australia. Australia's east coast is experiencing severe weather as ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred moves south. While downgraded from cyclone status, the weather system continues to bring damaging winds, heavy rainfall, and flash flooding, particularly in the Gold Coast and northern NSW regions. Authorities have issued severe weather warnings, and coastal areas remain at risk of significant erosion and hazardous surf conditions. Residents are urged to stay updated on local warnings, avoid floodwaters, and prepare for ongoing disruptions. (Photo: Albert Perez/Getty Images) Thai rescue teams provide aid at a construction building collapse in Bangkok's Chatuchak area on March 28, 2025 in Bangkok, Thailand. A powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck Myanmar on March 28, 2025, causing strong tremors that were felt in Bangkok, where buildings swayed and hundreds of people evacuated onto the streets. (Photo: Lauren DeCicca/Getty Images) Rescue workers conduct a search and rescue operation for the people who are trapped within the rubbles of a collapsed under-construction skyscraper in the Chatuchak area during the night on March 29, 2025, in Bangkok, Thailand. A powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck Myanmar on March 29, 2025, causing strong tremors that were felt in Bangkok, where buildings swayed and hundreds of people evacuated onto the streets. Some 43 people were said to be trapped in the collapsed remnants of a building under construction. (Photo: Sirachai Arunrugstichai/Getty Images) In an aerial view, water covers roadways following extreme flooding that has caused significant damage throughout the area on April 04, 2025 in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. A state of emergency has be declared in response to rising waters and the hazardous conditions they have created across the community. (Photo: Jason Davis/Getty Images) John Clayton, 56, carries his cat in a kayak as the Kentucky River begins to flood his house on April 6, 2025 in Frankfort, Kentucky. Frankfort, Kentucky is expected to experience record flooding as the Kentucky River continues to rise. (Photo: Michael Swensen/Getty Images) In an aerial view, floodwaters surround a car on April 06, 2025 in Poplar Bluff, Missouri. Thunderstorms, heavy rains, high winds, and tornadoes have plagued the regions for several days, causing widespread damage. (Photo: Scott Olson/Getty Images) Cracked soil due to lack of rain is shown as Big Cypress National Preserve and the Florida Everglades experience a severe drought on May 19, 2025 in Everglades, Florida. Florida is experiencing its worst drought in 13 years, with parts of the Everglades drying up completely. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) A zookeeper sprays an Indian elephant with water during a heatwave at the National Zoological Park in New Delhi, India, 11 June 2025. The National Zoological Park has installed sprinklers inside animals' enclosures and sprays water on animals and birds to combat the effects of the heatwave. According to the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), Delhi registered 45-degree Celsius temperatures, and the prevailing heatwave is set to continue through 12 June. (Photo: EPA/RAJAT GUPTA) People cool off in a fountain during a heatwave, in Rome, Italy, 28 June 2025. (Photo: EPA/ANGELO CARCONI) Ayzlin Garcia stands in her aunt Audrey's home after it was flooded on July 06, 2025 in Center Point, Texas. "We've lost pretty much everything in our house, but we're blessed because we still have our lives, there are people who didn't make it," said her uncle Nathan. Heavy rainfall caused severe flooding along the Guadalupe River in central Texas, leaving more than 70 people reported dead. (Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images) Children's belongings are grouped together at Camp Mystic on July 07, 2025 in Hunt, Texas. Heavy rainfall early Friday caused severe flash flooding along the Guadalupe River in central Texas, leaving more than 100 people reported dead, including children attending the camp. (Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images) Children play in the water fountains during a heat wave on July 25, 2025 in Seoul, South Korea. The Korean Peninsula has been covered by a double layer of high pressure, pushing up the maximum daily temperatures to 37 C in Seoul, Daejeon and other parts of the country Friday, the state weather service said. (Photo: Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images) An aerial view shows lava emerging from a volcano eruption near Grindavik, Reykjanes, Iceland, 17 July 2025. According to the Icelandic Meteorological Office, a magma flow has begun at the Sundhnuk crater range on 16 July. (Photo: EPA / JAKOB VEGERFORS) Smoke and lava rise from a volcano eruption near Grindavik, Reykjanes, Iceland, 18 July 2025. According to the Icelandic Meteorological Office, a magma flow has begun at the Sundhnuk crater range on 16 July. (Photo: EPA / JAKOB VEGERFORS) Firefighters battle flames from the Canyon Fire on August 7, 2025 in Castaic, California. Evacuation warnings have been issued from the L.A. County line to the northwest of Lake Piru. According to the National Weather Service, temperatures in the area reached between 90 to 100 degrees with 15% to 20% humidity. (Photo: Eric Thayer/Getty Images) A man battles the flames during a forest fire in the municiplaity of A Pobra de Trives, Ourense province, Spain, 13 August 2025. Multiple blazes continue to affect several provinces in Spain, after burning thousands of hectares across the country. (Photo: EPA/BRAIS LORENZO) Rainwater rushes down a stairway in Kennedy Town district during heavy rainfall in Hong Kong, China, on Thursday, Aug. 14, 2025. The Hong Kong Observatory issued the black rainstorm signal on Thursday as Tropical Storm Podul passed to the northeast of the city, the fifth time this year that the observatory has had to raise its most severe rainstorm warning. (Photo: Justin Chin/Bloomberg via Getty Images) Sunseekers crowd the beach at San Cristobal de Almunacar, in Granada, Spain, 16 August 2025. The heatwave, which began on the 3rd, will bring some of the hottest days on Saturday and Sunday, with temperatures above 35 degrees in most of the country while reaching 44 degrees in Seville's countryside. (Photo: EPA/Alba Feixas) A hiker looks out at the Aletsch Glacier on September 14, 2025 near Bettmeralp, Switzerland. Scientists from Glacier Monitoring in Switzerland (GLAMOS) have recorded 4.6 meters in diminished vertical thickness since last year at the glacier's upper section, which corresponds to a large net loss of mass. According to GLAMOS data, the Aletsch has lost mass every year since 1987. The European Alps have warmed twice as much as the global average, disproportionately affecting their glaciers and leading to a sharp acceleration of ice loss over recent decades. With a tongue approximately 15km long, the Aletsch, in German called the Grosser Aletschgletscher, is Switzerland's biggest glacier. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images) A statue rests in front of a home destroyed in the Eaton Fire amid recovery efforts on September 19, 2025 in Altadena, California. Southern California Edison, accused of causing the deadly fire, has unveiled a wildfire compensation program for victims who agree to not sue the utility company. The January 7 Eaton and Palisades fires left more than 16,000 structures destroyed and claimed the lives of 31 people. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images) Residents begin the clean up from flash floods in La Rà pita on October 13, 2025 in Tarragona, Spain. Regional authorities had declared the highest "red alert" in this coastal province within Spain's Catalonia region. (Photo: James Breeden/Getty Images) An aerial view taken with a drone shows a highway destroyed by storm surges brought about by Super Typhoon Fung-wong on November 10, 2025 in Dipaculao, Aurora province, Philippines. Super Typhoon Fung-wong made landfall the previous evening in the Philippines, prompting the evacuation of nearly one million people and causing severe flooding, power outages, and disruptions across Luzon just days after the devastation of Typhoon Kalmaegi. (Photo: Ezra Acayan/Getty Images) This Handout image was provided by a third-party organization and may not adhere to Getty Images' editorial policy.) In this handout satellite image provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Hurricane Melissa churns northwest through the Caribbean Sea captured at 17:00Z on October 27, 2025. Hurricane Melissa has intensified into a Category 5 storm as it approaches Jamaica, according to the National Hurricane Center. (Photo by NOAA via Getty Images). A dead swan lies in the Leeds and Liverpool canal near Altham on November 13, 2025 in Accrington, England. Up to 15 dead birds have been found by locals on the stretch of the canal. DEFRA have recently warned of an increase in findings of the highly pathogenic avian influenza in Lancashire. The deaths of these birds has been reported to the agency by residents but the carcasses have been left for several days. The public have been urged to report any dead birds to Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images) Suega Apelu stands in the lagoon on November 28, 2019 in Funafuti, Tuvalu. The low-lying South Pacific island nation of about 11,000 people has been classified as ‘extremely vulnerable’ to climate change by the United Nations Development Programme. The world’s fourth-smallest country is struggling to cope with climate change related impacts including five millimeter per year sea level rise (above the global average), tidal and wave driven flooding, storm surges, rising temperatures, saltwater intrusion and coastal erosion on its nine coral atolls and islands, the highest of which rises about 15 feet above sea level. In addition, the severity of cyclones and droughts in the Pacific Island region are forecast to increase due to global warming. Some scientists have predicted that Tuvalu could become inundated and uninhabitable in 50 to 100 years or less if sea level rise continues. The country is working toward a goal of 100 percent renewable power generation by 2025 in an effort to curb pollution and set an example for larger nations. Tuvalu is also exploring a plan to build an artificial island. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images) A man on a motor boat break up foam covering on the waters of Yamuna River on a hazy, morning on December 03, 2025 in New Delhi, India. The capital's Air Quality Index reached 376—classified as "very poor" to "severe"—with PM2.5 levels recorded at more than 20 times the World Health Organization's safe limits, prompting health experts to declare conditions "extreme and life-threatening" as 30 million residents contend with persistent headaches, eye irritation, and respiratory distress from a toxic cocktail of vehicular emissions, industrial pollution, and construction dust trapped under stagnant winter air. (Photo by Anindito Mukherjee/Getty Images). DM