All aboard... let's fly!

These satellite photos were collected by Benjamin Grant in a study to illustrate the impact humans have on nature, seen from an unusual viewpoint. We're going to take a breathtaking tour around the world:

1. Valparaiso, Chile

2. Tulip fields, Netherlands

3. Melrose Park, Fort Lauderdale, Florida

 4. Complicated road system, just outside Madrid, Spain

5. Snails Pass, in the Andes, on the Chilean side of the border with Argentina

6. Blue evaporation ponds at a potash mine in Moab, Utah

7. Makati City, one of the 16 cities that constitute Manilla, capital of The Philippines 

8. Bourtange is a star shaped fort in the Netherlands 

9. The Grande Dixence dam in Switzerland is the highest gravity dam in the world, at 935 feet

10. Agricultural development in Austria

11. New data reveals that China burns 17% more coal each year

12. L'Eixample district of Valencia, in Spain

13. Victoria Falls, on the Zambezi river, between Zambia and Zimbabwe

14. The village of Espel in the Netherlands is home to 774 inhabitants

 15. Oil field service ships sit off the coast of Borneo

16. Nishinoshima is a volcanic island 940km south of Tokyo, Japan

17. We finish our tour in Bondi Beach, Sydney, Australia

Silent Evolution

These sculptures underwater, called Silent Evolution, were created by British sculptor Jason deCaires Taylor. The exhibit sits on the floor of the Mexican Caribbean Sea, off the coast of Cancun and it serves a very specific purpose, as well as being very beautiful. The Cancun Marine Park attracts over 750,000 tourists every year, placing enormous pressure on the natural coral reefs, so these sculptures were designed to encourage coral growth. This unique project combines art and environmental conservation and the result is eerily beautiful.

Activist quilts

These exquisite quilts are part of an exhibition by Florida artists aimed at exploring and highlighting the impact of climate change on the environment. There are further details about this effort and a slideshow of the beautiful exhibits HERE.

"You've Got Brains" by Maya Schonenberger

"Wings" by Melanie K Brewer

"Denial" by Gabrielle Ditota 

 "Tide: We Have Been Warned" by Suzanne Evenson 

"Pink Ladies" by Melanie K Brewer