Covid, Adani, Global Climate Catastrophe … CNN and Me …
… great to be part of a massive Covid-19 story of global importance just published on CNN.
The story entitled ‘The One Chance We Have’ delves into the story of how … during the Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent confusion and devastation of the global economy … fossil fuel producing countries are injecting taxpayer money into propping up polluting industries that are hastening an earlier climate catastrophe.
The story uses vignettes from four fossil fuel producing countries … Canada, Poland, Australia and India … to substantiate the premise that ‘The pandemic gave the world a golden opportunity to fix the climate crisis. We’re about to waste it.’
My work appears in the ‘India’ segment … and comprises six of the images I made just on a year ago in Chhattisgarh … set amongst a lengthy story (somewhat based on my original words but ‘updated’) on the destruction of the Hasdeo Arand forest and the Gond tribal population by Indian mining giant Adani hand in hand with Modi’s government.
My images and words from Chhattisgarh have previously been published in The Guardian (here and here), in Italian newspaper Corriere Della Sera (here) and elsewhere. Very gratifying to see the work picked up again.
I must stress that this current story on CNN is a great and incredibly important piece of journalism and is well worth a look (at the images) and a good long read. Please do … there is far too much in the story to go into here and the implications for the future of the planet are chilling.
I’m joined pictorially in the piece (in the ‘Australian’ section of the story) by Aussie based colleagues David Maurice Smith and Matthew Abbott. Hi Guys !
Thanks CNN for the important story and for using my work to help illustrate it. Thanks yet again to my fixer/friend Srienivas Akella from Mumbai … brilliant travelling with you.
Below … images (3 of my 6) © Brian Cassey … from the CNN story ‘The One Chance We Have’.
Covid-19 & Cairns … Economy in Freefall …
Reliant for a large part on the regular influx of now non-existent International tourists, the year long pandemic has seen Cairns suffering economically disproportionately compared with other parts of Australia.
As the Australian Government initiated JobKeeper support scheme comes to an end this month, Cairns immediate future looks bleak despite a Federal attempt at assistance via subsidised airfares and loans.
It isn’t a ‘pretty’ story for my long term home town … the current situation is dire … but it did mean a nice gig for the Sydney Morning Herald, The Age and Brisbane Times.
Many of my images made last week were used to illustrate the effects and hardships of the current desperate financial situation in Cairns and district as a result of the total loss of International tourism.
A pic gallery of thirteen of my images ran online (the SMH link is here … https://www.smh.com.au/…/cairns-tourism-on-the-ropes…) … whilst the main story variously in print and online (by Brisbane Times journalist Matt Dennien) was accompanied by more of my pics … here … https://www.smh.com.au/national/queensland/trouble-in-paradise-covid-leaves-a-cloud-hanging-over-the-tropics-20210312-p57a3g
It seems it is going to be a long, long time till Cairns recovers from the body blow caused by the loss of International tourists during the current pandemic and Matt’s story is well worth a read.
Below are just a few of my images the former Fairfax (now ‘Nine’) publications used … from top … a lone swimmer at the Cairns Esplanade Lagoon once crowded with International and Australian tourists … owner of Traveller Oasis backpackers Gabriel Thallon cleans his pool as lone International ‘guest’ Rina Yamauchi takes the sun … the locked and deserted Cairns International Terminal at Cairns Airport … crew of Passions of Paradise reef vessel Phoebe and Kirsty wash the boat down after a day on the GBR with few paying customers … and one of numerous closed businesses in Cairns CBD
Images © Brian Cassey