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A Nubian Royal Starship hovers over the Malaysian rice fields. (Photo by Zahir Batin/Mercury Press)

A “Star Wars” superfan has brought the universe to his backyard. Amateur photographer Zahir Batin, from Selangor in Malaysia, added stormtroopers, X-wings and other famous sights to his native Tanjong Karang rice fields. The Malaysian snapper decided to combine his love for his hometown with his passion for the out-of-this-world space opera and, in particular, the toys. The amazing shots show TIE fighters on fire flying overhead and AT-AT walking tanks towering over tiny children, as well as Dark Side forces marching through the countryside. Here: a Nubian Royal Starship hovers over the Malaysian rice fields. (Photo by Zahir Batin/Mercury Press)
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30 Jun 2015 12:41:00
“The sustainable development goals cannot be met unless waste management is addressed as a priority”, says UK waste management charity Waste Aid. “E-waste is one of the fastest growing categories of the 7-10bn tonnes of waste produced globally every year”, adds director Mike Webster. “In our view, decent waste management is a basic right and we want governments around the world take this issue much more seriously – in 2012 only 0.2% of international aid went on improving solid waste management – it’s just not enough”. (Photo by Kai Loeffelbein/laif Agentur)

Sustainable development goal target 12.5 is to reduce waste. But with a planet increasingly dependent on technology, is that even possible? As of today, over 30m tonnes of electronic waste has been thrown out so far this year, according to the World Counts. Most e-waste is sent to landfills in Asia and Africa where it is recycled by hand, exposing the people who do it to environmental hazards. Kai Loeffelbein’s photographs of e-waste recycling in Guiyu, southern China show what happens to discarded computers. (Photo by Kai Loeffelbein/laif Agentur)
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19 Oct 2016 12:14:00
In this March 21, 2015 photo, 15-year-old Guerline Augustin carries river water on her head, back to a borderland encampment outside the southeast Haitian town of Anse-a-Pitres, Haiti. (Photo by David McFadden/AP Photo)

In this March 21, 2015 photo, 15-year-old Guerline Augustin carries river water on her head, back to a borderland encampment outside the southeast Haitian town of Anse-a-Pitres, Haiti. The encampment is filled with people who either fled or were forcibly removed from the neighboring Dominican Republic amid an immigration crackdown. Within the next month, authorities hope to move nearly 2,400 people out of six encampments by providing subsidies for them to rent homes for a year in southeastern Haiti. The International Organization for Migration is coordinating the effort with $2 million from a U.N. emergency fund. (Photo by David McFadden/AP Photo)
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31 Mar 2016 11:20:00
Make Your Franklin By Martin Joubert Part 1

Having $100 in your pocket would be so much cooler if it was designed by Martin Joubert. He went all out and created a number of different designs for the 100 USD banknotes, ranging from silly to witty. We especially liked the one with “That’s right. This is real money” written on it, showing just how many cups of coffee, basketballs, and guns you can buy with 100 dollars. All in all, even the currency that we have today is nothing but paper, even though it looks official and strict. There is nothing backing it up except for our noble military that ensures that Gulf States sell their oil using only the “green” kind of currency. (Photo by Martin Joubert)
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17 Dec 2014 11:19:00
Origami By Ross Symons

As kids we have the natural desire to explore and to create. Whenever our parents would make for us a paper plane, we would become overjoyed seeing it fly across the room. However, planes are not the only thing that can be made from paper, and not only kids are fascinated by it. Some people master the art of origami and are able to create pretty much anything. You never know what’s going to come out when the artist twists and turns a piece of paper in meticulous ways. Finally, the figurine is complete, and you immediately see the striking resemblance of this piece of paper with an animal or some other creature. Ross Symons is one of those artists. He creates his figurines simply for the joy it brings him. Maybe, he uses this as a medium to enter his childhood, or maybe he has other motifs – we will never know. (Photo by Ross Symons)
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31 Oct 2014 12:12:00
Crater Lake In Oregon

As you look at the majestic Crater Lake, located in south-central Oregon, United States, it is hard to imagine that thousands of years ago this place was one giant crater with scorching hot lava spilling over the sides. Those were the times of turmoil. Now, however, this place is the essence of tranquility. The lake that was formed, after the volcano died down, is amazingly clear due to the fact that the water isn’t moving at all. No rivers go in or out of the Crater Lake, and the water lost through evaporation is compensated by the rain and snowfall. This lake is also frighteningly deep – 1,943 feet (592 m) at its deepest point – making it the deepest lake in the United States. If you love nature and if you ever come to Oregon, this is truly a sight to behold.
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19 Nov 2014 14:14:00
The Blind Owl With Stars Eyes

When you gaze into the eyes of this beautiful creature, you can almost make out constellations forming deep within. The name of this magnificent bird is Zeus, named after the Greek god of the sky for her one-of-a-kind eyes. The reason why she has such eyes is because she is blind. She was saved by a family in Southern California, when they found her injured on their front porch. After realizing that this poor creature is blind and unable to take care of itself, they took her to an animal hospital. After she healed up, everyone agreed that she should be sent to the Wildlife Learning Center. From that point on, Zeus has been happily living in the center. And though she cannot see, you can bet that her other senses are ten times as sharp. (Photo by Wildlife Learning Center)
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24 Nov 2014 13:31:00
“A very delicate person, beneath the flamboyance”. Jasper, Ladbroke Grove, 1977. “In the 1970s, Australia was rather cut off. I’d always wanted to live abroad, so I moved to Rome and then London. I was an art historian, but started studying photography part-time. I was interested in the demi-monde culture and began mixing in all sorts of circles. Jasper was a rather wonderful character. He was from Sydney, but he was living downstairs from me in Ladbroke Grove, in a flat rented to some gay friends. It was fairly eclectic. Jasper was always playing around with clothes and makeup. If he was looking particularly wonderful, I might get out my lights and take a shot. Or he might put makeup on me. He wasn’t always in drag, but he was permanently in diva mode, dependably louche, funny and naughty. I think all that comes across in the image. He was actually a very delicate person, though, beneath the wit and flamboyance. Jasper floated through London all too briefly. His real name was Peter MacMahon, but to us he was only ever Jasper Havoc, an alter ego he’d created while part of a transvestite troupe called Sylvia and the Synthetics. They were legendary in Sydney gay culture. On this day, we’d been taking some pictures inside and had gone out into the streets to fool around some more. Jasper was wearing a corset and fishnets ensemble, with other bits and pieces, and we joked about him being trashy as he lay in the skip. We just took the shot for ourselves. It wasn’t done with any publication in mind, or anything else. This was way before the internet and people didn’t share images. If you dressed up, it was just for that moment”. (Photo by Jane England)

“A very delicate person, beneath the flamboyance”. Jasper, Ladbroke Grove, 1977. “In the 1970s, Australia was rather cut off. I’d always wanted to live abroad, so I moved to Rome and then London. I was an art historian, but started studying photography part-time. I was interested in the demi-monde culture and began mixing in all sorts of circles. Jasper was a rather wonderful character...”. (Photo by Jane England)
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26 Jun 2017 09:04:00