V2V PHOTO OF THE WEEK 2026

V2V Photo of the Week: February 18, 2026

This photograph depicts women engaged in fish sorting and drying in Dadanpatrabar, a coastal village in Purba Medinipur, West Bengal, India. Women fishworkers play a vital role in small-scale fisheries, especially in post- harvest activities likefish sorting, cleaning and drying. However, despite their crucial contributions, the livelihood of women fishworkersengaged in fish drying is threatened due to compounding factors of depleting fish stock, coastal grabbing, and climatechange-induced variabilities. For example, overfishing caused by destructive gear like trawl nets has resulted in declining catch per effort for small-scale family-based fishing enterprises. This, in turn, has reduced the availability of fish for fish drying, which is an important livelihood of women fishworkers. Secondly, escalation of coastal infrastructure development in the form of tourism, maritime trade, defence etc. for a viable blue economy, continues to threaten the access to traditional fish drying spaces used by women fishworkers. Thirdly, climate variabilities characterised by inclement weather is resulting in not only loss of fishing days, but days of fish drying as well. Amidst such concerns, the women fishworkers continue to secure the food and nutritional needs of the community at large, while defending their customary rights over coastal and marine spaces.

Photo credit and contributor: Amitrajit Chakraborty, 2026

V2V Photo of the Week: February 11, 2026

This photo was taken in the wetland area of Mangalajodi, Chilika Lagoon, on the east coast of Indiaand it tells the story of fishermen weighing their fresh catch using a simple, handmade scale. After returning from fishing, they gather collectively to measure the harvest before selling it directly to buyers. The improvised weighing tool reflects both resourcefulness and resilience, showing that material limitations do not prevent these communities from sustaining their livelihoods.

Beyond the act of selling fish, this scene illustrates the value of cooperation and shared trust among small-scale fishers. Simplicity in tools does not diminish the dignity of labour; instead, it highlights how communities mobilize available resources to maintain economic survival. In this way, resilience is not only found in advanced technology or infrastructure, but also in the collective strength and ingenuity of people adapting to uncertainty.

Photo credit and contributor: Jubakti Anggoro, 2025

V2V Photo of the Week: February 4, 2026

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This photo was taken in the Old Podampeta village in the south coast of Odisha state in India, and it tells the stories of climate change, displacement, and a community slowly losing its roots. On the edge of the Bay of Bengal lie an empty and deserted village what once used to be a close-knit and vibrant fishing community. Here, fisher families once lived and worked together, but what remains now are broken walls and scattered bricks that stand as silent witnesses to the power of the sea.

Each passing wave erodes the land a little bit more, forcing families to abandon their homes and move further inland. This coastline, once known for the nesting of endangered sea turtles - Olive Ridley - now tells a different story; a story that paints images of loss and uncertainty. The beauty of the blue sky and the endless ocean hides a quiet tragedy, where nature nurtures and destroys at the same time.

Photo credit and contributor: Hirak jyoti Sarmah, 2025

V2V Photo of the Week: January 28, 2026

This photo was taken in Kumirmari, a remote village in the Sundarbans, during the Winter Field School in January 2026. This picture depicts a pond near a household in Kumirmari, Sundarbans, highlighting its role as a source of daily sustenance and resilience for the village community. The village mainly depends on farming and fishing for its livelihood, and people cultivate small plots of land near their homes, growing several varieties of vegetables. The land has experienced several instances of natural disasters and other calamities over the years. However, most of the people of the village that we interacted with during our stay emphasised how much they love their village and that they would not want to move away from this place, despite everything. This pond is a testament to the resilience that the people have in this place; the resilience that helps them to come back and set their lives up again even after the adversities they face in this precarious place. The pond also becomes a lifeline for the people here, providing them with their daily sustenance.

Photo credit and contributor: Angelina Thomas, 2026

V2V Photo of the Week: January 21, 2026

The Sundarbans Winter Field School on Transboundary, Transdisciplinarity, and Transformation through Transitions (4T) took place in Kumirmari, Gosaba, in the Indian Sundarbans from January 16 to 22, 2026. This year’s theme was centred on “Creative Ethnographies and Knowledge Co-Creation for Viable Social-Ecologies”, in collaboration with the SOR4D-funded ENGAGE4Sundarbans project, the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, and the University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB).

The field school explored ethnography as a creative and collaborative research approach, combining qualitative methods with visual and sensorial practices such as photography, collage, illustrative storytelling, collaborative mapping, and the co-creation of augmented artefacts. These more-than-textual methods highlighted alternative ways of producing and sharing knowledge to address the complex challenges faced by vulnerable social-ecological systems like the Sundarbans. Artists, practitioners, community members, grassroots mobilizers, academic researchers, and students participated in the programme. The field school was hosted at Sundarban Bari in Kumirmari by Tapas Mondal and fellow community mobilizers from the Sundarban Paryatan Pariseba Samabay Samiti Ltd.

Mentorship was provided by Prof. Prateep Kumar Nayak (University of Waterloo), Prof. Jenia Mukherjee (IIT Kharagpur), Prof. Sekhar Mukherjee (Anant National University), and noted artist and filmmaker Sarbajit Sen. Participants were divided into four groups and undertook field visits across different parts of Kumirmari village, using diverse sensorial approaches to explore local vulnerabilities and viabilities. Through transdisciplinary engagement, the groups worked toward identifying pathways for co-created solutions and transformative transitions within the Sundarbans’ social-ecological systems.

Photo credit and contributor: Souradip Pathak, 2026

V2V Photo of the Week: January 14, 2026

This photo was taken in Kampung Salang, Tioman Island, Malaysia, and it tells the story of contrast—between thriving tourism and quiet abandonment. The image shows an abandoned bar in a kampung that otherwise booms with visitors, where most locals own and profit from chalets, restaurants, and dive shops. Yet this space stands still, left behind. It creates a striking contrast between sustained viability and neglect. Across Tioman Island, and on many islands throughout Malaysia, failed development projects and closed shops are left desolate, with no clear responsibility for who should clean up what remains. Locals and tourists pass by this bar on their way to dinner, barely noticing it anymore—abandonment has become part of the everyday landscape.

This scene mirrors the realities of many small-scale fishing and coastal communities, where uneven development brings short-term growth but leaves long-term scars. It reflects how livelihoods tied to tourism and coastal resources can be fragile, shaping spaces where resilience and vulnerability exist side by side.

Photo credit and contributor: Chuah Yi Ying Jenelle, 2025

V2V Photo of the Week: January 7, 2026

This photo was taken in Mangalajodi Bird Sanctuary in the Chilika Lagoon and represents both hope and transformation. Once known as a site of bird hunting, the community has since shifted toward conservation, recognizing the ecological and cultural value of protecting wildlife. The eggs become a symbol of continuity and regeneration—life that will sustain not only the species but also the broader ecosystem.

The wetlands are thus more than a source of livelihood; they serve as a home for diverse ecological processes. By safeguarding these fragile forms of life, local communities demonstrate how human well-being and environmental sustainability are deeply interconnected. The protection of bird habitats reflects a broader vision of resilience, where conservation and livelihoods coexist in mutual reinforcement.