From stuffed elephants to picnics under power lines, Leipzig-born photographer Frank Herfort coaxes magical, colour-saturated tableaux from intriguing slices of everyday Russian life. Here: A lonely dog watches the mailboxes in a typical Moscow residential block. (Photo by by Frank Herfort/The Guardian)

People who live in nearby villages make their yearly pilgrimage as they walk up the slopes of the Popocatepetl volcano in Mexico, Wednesday, March 12, 2014. Every year on March 12, residents make their way up the volcano celebrate the day of Don Gregorio Chino Popocatepetl, as the volcano is known to them, with food, music, dance and fireworks. When the sun rises, hundreds of pilgrims head out from the towns of Santiago Xalintzintla, Tlamacas and San Nicolas de Los Ranchos in van and trucks to drive, then walk up the 17,886-foot (5,450-meter) volcano for their daylong celebration. (Photo by Eduardo Verdugo/AP Photo)

A little red flying fox dips a toe in a lake at the mouth of Katherine gorge in the Northern Territory, Nitmiluk national park, Australia on September 20, 2017. (Photo by Glenn Campbell/AAP)

A meerkat stands guard as her pups cuddle at Mountain Zebra National Park, South Africa early November 2025. (Photo by Nadine Leonard/Two Point O Media)

In a north London hospital, scientists are growing noses, ears and blood vessels in the laboratory in a bold attempt to make body parts using stem cells. It is among several labs around the world, including in the U.S., that are working on the futuristic idea of growing custom-made organs in the lab. (Photo by Matt Dunham/AP Photo)

Nosy neighbour by Sam Hobson, UK. Sam knew exactly who to expect when he set his camera on the wall one summer’s evening in a suburban street in Bristol, the UK’s famous fox city. He wanted to capture the inquisitive nature of the urban red fox in a way that would pique the curiosity of its human neighbours about the wildlife around them. (Photo by Sam Hobson/2016 Wildlife Photographer of the Year)

Kale grows at Kajodlingen farm in Gothenburg, Sweden, September 28, 2016. They are doing it on the rooftops, on tower block balconies and even on a disused railway: Swedes have discovered a passion for urban gardening as a way of growing fresh food and getting back in touch with nature. Part of a global movement, an increasing number of Swedish city-dwellers are growing their own in window boxes and allotments or are visiting public gardens built in or on industrial or office spaces. (Photo by Maxim Shemetov/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)