Gymnast Ahmad al-Sawas performs gymnastic moves near damaged buildings in the rebel-held Bustan al-Qasr neighbourhood of Aleppo, Syria March 26, 2016. As Syrian gymnast Ahmad al-Sawas watched his country fall apart, his Olympic dream collapsed too. The last national champion before the fighting began, he knew that supporting the anti-government side in the five-year-old civil war would prevent him from being selected for the Rio Games. (Photo by Abdalrhman Ismail/Reuters)

Servicemen of “Kiev 12” military defence battalion react as they take part in a welcoming ceremony in central Ukrainian capital Kiev December 6, 2014. Servicemen of the battalion returned to Kiev after taking part in fighting in eastern Ukraine. (Photo by Gleb Garanich/Reuters)

Contestants in the Miss International Queen, a transgender beauty pageant, in Pattaya, Thailand, on Saturday, August 24, 2024. (Photo by Andre Malerba/ZUMA Press Wire/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

U.S. Marine Lt. Ben Reid from 1/2 Charlie Company of Task Force Tarawa waits to be medivaced after being hit with shrapnel and a machine gun round, in the southern Iraqi city of Nasiriyah, on March 23, 2003. The Marines suffered a number of deaths and casualties during gun battles throughout the city. (Photo by Joe Raedle via The Atlantic)

Turkana boys play with rifles in a village inside the Turkana region of the Ilemi Triangle, northwest Kenya December 21, 2014. The Ilemi Triangle is a disputed region in East Africa, claimed by South Sudan and Kenya, bordering also Ethiopia. The dispute arose from unclear wording of a 1914 treaty which tried to allow free movement of the Turkana people, nomadic herders who had traditionally grazed the area. (Photo by Goran Tomasevic/Reuters)

Government officials in protective suits carry a mock coffin as they walk around a busy intersection during a coronavirus awareness campaign to remind people of the risk of contracting COVID-19 and to always obey health protocols to curb the spread of the outbreak in Jakarta, Indonesia, Friday, August 28, 2020. (Photo by Dita Alangkara/AP Photo)

Elderly people attend an aquatic exercise at a private pool in Bangkok, Thailand, April 28, 2016. Many Thai families look after elderly relatives at a cost that countrywide adds up to just under a third of household income. The number of families facing this issue will balloon as the population ages at a rate among the fastest in Southeast Asia. (Photo by Athit Perawongmetha/Reuters)

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)