2023 Environmental Photography Award winners

As the photo exhibition for the third edition of its Environmental Photography Award opened on the Promenade du Larvotto on June 1, the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation (FPA2) announced the winners for 2023. 

The 2023 Environmental Photographer of the Year Award went to young Dutch photographer Jasper Doest for his photograph entitled Fight to the Death. Winner in his category (“Humanity versus Nature”), selected as the overall winner by his peers and securing the public vote, he wins a total of €6,500 as well as a trip to Ecuador to visit the SEK International University research base in the Amazon rainforest.

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An ecology graduate and contributor to National Geographic magazine, Jasper Doest’s photographic work “explores the relationship between man and nature, creating real ‘visual stories’,” explains the FPA2.

The story behind the photo

The image shows a distressed elephant fighting for its life after being hit by a train carrying manganese in Gabon’s Lopé National Park, between Moanda and Libreville. The animal’s hip was broken beyond repair. The elephant could not be saved and, after its death, the park manager took the necessary steps to ensure that its meat was distributed to the local community. Despite regular train accidents in the Lopé National Park and the Director’s efforts to identify areas of potential conflict, the railway company has refused to take action and continues to ignore the risks posed by trains travelling through the park at full speed.

“When I recall this macabre scene along the railway line, I am haunted not only by the tragedy that occurred, because the elephant had to be put down after the accident, but above all by the story of human greed that underpins it – the railway line that runs through the national park is used primarily to transport high-value ore,” Jasper Doest said.

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Other awards

“Agents of change, bearers of hope” category

• The photograph shows elephants being transferred from Liwonde National Park to Kasungu National Park, Malawi, under the supervision of conservation specialists. The method used, which may appear shocking, is nevertheless common practice for moving elephants. They are first put to sleep and then lifted into trucks using cranes, prior to being woken up during the journey.

“Marine Worlds” category

• California sea lions enjoy protected status in Espiritu Santo National Park in Mexico. The area is a no-fishing zone, which provides them with an environment that is rich in food, and where reduced human activity helps keep the population stable. One threat remains, however. Climate change.

“In the heart of the forest” category

• The photographer captured a snowstorm in the Himalayas at an altitude of 4,267m, just as a flock of Grandala birds flew across the landscape, providing a superb view of their synchronised flight, or ‘murmuration’.

“Polar Wonders” category

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• The image features a tiny benthic hydromedusa whose bell measures less than a centimetre. This very little-known gelatinous organism lives in deep or polar waters.

Prix des Lycéens 2023

In addition to the 5 categories and the People’s Choice Award, students were able to vote in the Prix des Lycéens (High School Students’ Award) this year, in cooperation with the National Education, Youth and Sports department.

• It was Iceland’s beauty that won over the principality’s high school students. The Mýrdalsjökull glacier, the country’s fourth-largest ice cap, boasts many ephemeral caves as well as seemingly surreal landscapes.