Thought-provoking photo of insects as food wins Environmental Photographer of the Year 2023

The Environmental Photographer of the Year contest has announced its 2023 winners. Like every year, it recognizes and rewards environmental photography to inspire change and climate action. This year’s winner is Maurizio di Pietro, an Italy-based professional photographer. His photo of an insect food experiment caught the jury’s eye and has raised questions about our future.

About the Environmental Photographer of the Year contest

The 2023 Environmental Photographer of the Year competition is now in its 16th year. As always it attracted a wide range of participants: from 17 to 70 years old; amateurs and professionals. Notably, many contestants came from countries highly affected by climate change, such as Bangladesh, India, and Argentina.

CIWEM and WaterBear organized the contest, and Nikon presented it with support from MPB and Arup. This year’s event saw thousands of entries from over 159 countries, most highlighting the urgent environmental issues facing our planet.

Winners, especially from the most climate-affected regions, used their photos to promote climate action and raise awareness. The contest included two major titles and four additional award categories, each recognizing photographers’ work in specific environmental themes.

Overall winners – adult and youth categories

Italy-based photographer Maurizio di Pietro is the 2023 Grand Title Winner. His photo shows an innovative insect food experiment at the University of Turin. This photo is part of his Zero Hunger series, focusing on global food insecurity and the potential solution. And some of these solutions may hide in insects.

Di Pietro’s work highlights the frightening reality of food insecurity in Italy. But it also gives hope that we have the potential for new food sources as a way forward in the face of climate change.

The contest also awards the Young Environmental Photographer of the Year (21 and under). This year, the winner is 18-year-old Solayman Hossain. His photo shows a farmer and his cows wading through floodwater in Bangladesh. His work aims to inspire environmental action by showcasing the importance of nature and raising awareness about environmental issues.

Category winners

As I mentioned, there are four special categories of the Environmental Photographer of the Year.

“MPB Vision of the Future” Category Winner is Jahid Apu, a professional photographer from Bangladesh. He captured a bridge surrounded by a sea of plastic waste, symbolizing the urgent need to address plastic pollution and its impact on communities.

“Recovering Nature” Category Winner is Nicolas Marin, an Argentinean National Geographic underwater explorer and environmental activist. He won for his photo of a rare luminescent coral, emphasizing the wonder and fragility of marine life.

This year’s “Adapting for Tomorrow” Category Winner is Anirban Dutta, a photographer and high-school teacher from West Bengal. His multi-exposure image shows a drongo catching termites, highlighting how species are adapting to a changing world.

Last but not least, there’s the “Keeping 1.5 Alive” Category Winner. Shafiul Islam from Bangladesh used photography to raise awareness about climate change in his winning photo. He showcased the impact of drought on buffaloes and herders.

The 2023 Environmental Photographer of the Year competition not only showcased breathtaking and impactful photography but also served as a clarion call for environmental action and change. Other than the overall and category winners, the 2023 Environmental Photographer of the Year also shares shortlisted images. They are all thought-provoking, and some of them pretty heavy, so proceed with caution. We bring you the selection below, and make sure to visit the contest website for more photos and information. You’ll also find the winners from previous years below.

• Winning photos of 2019 Environmental Photographer of the Year show devastating impact of climate change
• This year’s Environmental Photographer of the Year winners paint a bleak future for our planet
• Grim photo of dead flamingos wins 2022 Environmental Photographer of the Year
• Thought-provoking photo of insects as food wins Environmental Photographer of the Year 2023
• Unseen Heroes of the Ocean Floor Take the Spotlight in Environmental Photographer of the Year 2025
• This Glowing Sea Turtle Is a Crime Scene, and It Won Environmental Photographer of the Year 2026

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