Just a few hours’ drive from the Belarus capital of Minsk, many villagers still live off the land. Nearly 80% of the country’s 9.5 million citizens live in urban areas, but for the rest, being close to nature can outweigh the hardships of country life. Here: Boys play in the Stviga River on a hot summer day near the village of Pogost, Belarus, August 16, 2017. (Photo by Vasily Fedosenko/Reuters)

Kourtney Roy makes eerie self-portraits in desolate yet dramatic locations – with wigs and wardrobe straight out of 1950s melodrama. In these shots, from her “Enter as Fiction – California” series, she plays characters caught in desolate, often abandoned settings. (Photo by Kourtney Roy/Galerie Catherine et André Hug/The Guardian)

Pamukkale, Turkey, is home to these terrace pools, formed by the build-up of carbonate mineral from the warm water flowing from the thermal springs above. (Photo by Image Courtesy of Jennifer Hayes/Getty Images)

A dancer sanitizes the pole before performing on the outside patio at Cheerleaders Gentlemen's Club in Gloucester City, New Jersey, U.S. July 17, 2020. (Photo by Rachel Wisniewski/Reuters)

In this photo taken Saturday, June 20, 2015, Mahmoud Abdulnabi tries out an oud, an Arabic instrument related to the lute, at his workshop in Baghdad, Iraq. “The oud is different than other musical instruments”, said Abdulnabi, who has crafted ouds played by some of Iraq's best known musicians, many of whom look down from headshots on the walls. “If you feel joyful, it can play your joy. If the circumstances are sad it can play your sorrow and... help to empty whatever is in your chest”. (Photo by Hadi Mizban/AP Photo)

An Afghan girl carries water on her back as she climbs a hill in Kabul, Afghanistan February 20, 2017. A growing population is straining water supplies in Afghanistan's capital, forcing those who can afford it to dig unregulated wells ever deeper to tap a falling water table. Finding water in arid Afghanistan is virtually always a challenge, but a drop in the groundwater level in Kabul caused by overuse and drought is making it even more difficult for residents, especially the poor. (Photo by Omar Sobhani/Reuters)

Over the years a large population of grey herons have made an unlikely home in urban Amsterdam. Julie Hrudova documents how the birds integrate into city life. Here: Hundreds of herons come to the city during winter to find food and shelter. (Photo by by Julie Hrudova/The Guardian)

India’s classic Ambassador taxis and juddery auto rickshaws are iconic sights in the cities of the subcontinent. In Mumbai, one project has been using them as canvases for Indian graphic designers, giving them the opportunity to design new interiors for the vehicles. (Photo by Taxi Fabric/The Guardian)