Merit Prize Winner: “A Well Earned Rest in the Sahara”. This photo of Moussa Macher, our Tuareg guide, was taken at the summit of Tin-Merzouga, the largest dune (or erg) in the Tadrat region of the Sahara desert in southern Algeria. Moussa rested while waiting for us to finish our 45-minute struggle to the top. It only took ten minutes of rolling, running, and jumping to get back down. The Tadrat is part of the Tassili N'Ajjer National Park World Heritage area, famous for its red sand and engravings and rock paintings of cattle, elephants, giraffes, and rhinos that lived there when the climate was milder. Photo location: Summit of Tin-Merzouga, Tadrat, Tassili N'Ajjer National Park, Algeria. (Photo and caption by Evan Cole/National Geographic Photo Contest)

In this January 12, 2016 photo, an abandoned boat lies on the dried up lake bed of Lake Poopo, on the outskirts of Untavi, Bolivia. Drought caused by the recurrent El Nino meteorological phenomenon is considered the main driver of the lake's demise. Along with glacial melting, authorities say another factor is the diversion of water from Poopo's tributaries, mostly for mining but also for agriculture. (Photo by Juan Karita/AP Photo)

Inside Gucci and Madonna's Oscars 2025 afterparty – guest portraits on March 02, 2025 in Beverly Hills, California. Pictured: American actress Olivia Wilde wearing Chloé. (Photo by JR)

Brazilian tattoo artist Michel Praddo, also known as Diabao or Human Satan, and his wife Carol Praddo, known as Mulher Demonia or Demon Woman, take a picture with a fan at the beach shore in Praia Grande, Brazil on August 18, 2021. (Photo by Carla Carniel/Reuters)

Photographer Pol Kurucz’s vivid collection of photos explores issues faced by black Brazilian women, from political misrepresentation to unrealistic beauty standards. Kolor Collective is a Rio de Janeiro-based creative group that challenges the struggle faced by black women in Brazil through theatrical and provocative art. It was founded in 2015 by Franco-Hungarian photographer Pol Kurucz, who often touches on his own experiences of discrimination to call out sensitive social problems. (Photo by Kolor Art Collective/The Guardian)

Veteran cholita wrestler Jennifer dos Caras, 45, holds a cement block over teen wrestler Lucero la Bonita in the ring in El Alto, Bolivia, Monday, January 21, 2019. Trainees of cholita wrestling are still a year away from their full professional debuts while competing in matches against established athletes. (Photo by Juan Karita/AP Photo)

A model presents the Flesby, a one-seater mobility concept car, during a media preview of the 45th Tokyo Motor Show in Tokyo, Japan on October 25, 2017. Japan's flagship automakers present their futuristic visions for the post-fossil fuel era at the Tokyo Motor Show that kicks off Wednesday. (Photo by Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters)