Extraordinary tales of everyday heroism have been illustrated beautifully by renowned US photographer Steve McCurry in the new 2015 Lavazza Calendar. The calendar which has been created in collaboration with the Slow Food movement, features twelve breathtaking pictures, capturing the spirit, strength and humanity of the Earth Defenders – women and men who protect their land and projects in Africa with passion and bravery. The proceeds from sales of the calendar and all donations will be contributed entirely to create 10,000 food gardens in African schools and villages by the end of 2016. (Photo by Steve McCurry/2015 Lavazza Calendar)

“The saguaro (scientific name Carnegiea gigantea) is a large, tree-sized cactus species in the monotypic genus Carnegiea. It is native to the Sonoran Desert in the U.S. state of Arizona, the Mexican state of Sonora, a small part of Baja California in the San Felipe Desert and an extremely small area of California, U.S. The saguaro blossom is the State Wildflower of Arizona”. – Wikipedia

Photo: Daniel Appel (L), a firefighter with Engine 84 from the Lassen National Forest in California and Mike Hallen, (R), Arizona representative of the National Register of Big Trees, measure the circumference of this Saguaro cactus called the "Grand One," in the Tonto National Forest on July 1, 2005 35 miles north of Phoenix, near Carefree, Arizona. The cactus, estimated to be more than 200 years old, measures a circumference of 7 feet, 10 inches (2.4 meters) and stands 46 feet high (14 meters). The cactus was burned in the Cave Creek Complex fire and may not survive. It was once the largest Saguaro in the world, two others have been found recently that have tied it's measurements. The fire has burned more than 214,000 acres of the Sonoran desert. (Photo by Jeff Topping/Getty Images)

“Microscope images forge an extraordinary bond between science and art, said Hidenao Tsuchiya, Olympus America's Vice President and General Manager for the Scientific Equipment Group. We founded this competition to focus on the fascinating stories coming out of today's life science research laboratories. The thousands of images that people have shared with the competition over the years reflect some of the most exciting work going on in research today – work that can help shed light on the living universe and ultimately save lives. We look at BioScapes and these beautiful images as sources of education and inspiration to us and the world”. – OlympusBioScapes

Photo: Pretarsus of the third leg of a female drone fly (Eristalis tenax), ventral view, by Dr. Jan Michels, Institute of Zoology, Christian-Albrechts-University of Kiel, Germany. (Photo by Olympus BioScapes)

An endangered baby turtle hatched from its egg in its nest on the Belek coast, is trying to reach the open sea by walking along the beach in Antalya, Turkiye on August 05, 2025. In the Belek and Kizilot region, one of the largest nesting areas in the Mediterranean, many baby turtles continue to meet the sea. (Photo by Tahsin Ceylan/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Burning candles illuminate graves as a Bangladeshi man observes a contemplative moment on All Souls' Day at the Dhaka Christian Cemetery at Wari in Dhaka, Bangladesh, 02 November 2021. People on All Saints Day and All Souls Day pay respect to deceased relatives and loved ones by placing flowers on their tombs or maintaining their graves and lighting candles. (Photo by Monirul Alam/EPA/EFE)

Yawalapiti children play during the preparations for the celebration of “quarup”, a ritual held to honor in death a person of great importance to them, in the Xingu National Park, Mato Grosso State, May 7, 2012. (Photo by Ueslei Marcelino/Reuters)

A row of abandoned oil tanks is filled with creepers on the riverside of Liyun River in Huai 'an, East China's Jiangsu Province, May 9, 2023. (Photo credit should read CFOTO/Future Publishing via Getty Images)

In this photo taken Saturday, September 23, 2017, a mouse is cooked on a fire after being caught in a cornfield in Chidza, Masvingo Province, Zimbabwe. Considered a delicacy, the field mice are hunted in cornfields where they have grown plump on the grains, grass and wild fruits. (Photo by Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi/AP Photo)