Sublime and mysterious! This is the Jing Gorge, one of the cradles of Chinese civilization. The Jing River meanders through a green, undulating massif, surrounded by farmland and small villages. Today, the region is one of the world’s leading producers of fossil fuels: coal, oil and natural gas. And almost half of China’s aerospace industry is located here. I’ve chosen to show you this little river because it carries millennia of history, riches, whispers and drama…
.

On the Iranian side of the Persian Gulf, near the border with Iraq and Kuwait, Musa Bay is home to extraordinary biodiversity, notably in the protected Shadegan marshes.
The dendritic drainage systems we see here are reminiscent of the branches of an aquatic tree surviving in an arid, inhospitable desert. But the water could well evaporate from the region for good, to the detriment of animals, plants and the local population…
.

This tributary of the Amazon is the 6ᵉ longest river in the Americas and has the highest number of bends and meanders. From the Peruvian Andes, it flows 3,283 km towards Brazil, from south to north.
In the heart of the sweltering jungle, it winds slowly and sinuously through a flooded forest – one of the wettest and warmest places on Earth – which is home to an extraordinary biodiversity per square meter…
.

Vesuvius. A name that still strikes fear into the heart. There is a 27% chance of an explosive eruption this century. 15,000 people were victims of the famous eruption in the 1st century A.D., and today 600,000 people live under the threat of this spectacular and imposing presence, in what is known as the “red zone”…
.

For island lovers, here’s Bora Bora, the “first born”. This photo from space hints at her fatal beauty. A pioneer in transition, Bora Bora is aiming for the royal flush: zero carbon, zero waste, zero agricultural pollutants, zero exclusion, zero vulnerability. Can international tourism be reconciled with the preservation of fragile ecosystems? Time will tell.
.

This salt lake is located in Africa’s Great Rift Valley, close to the cradle of humanity, at an altitude of 600m. Once filled with abundant fresh water, it has evaporated over the millennia, and when temperatures rise, millions of pink flamingos come to rest on its red and yellow salt crusts. But falling rainfall and increased evaporation could dry up the lake for good.
.

This is Istanbul, one of the Gates of the World.
Europe on the left, Asia on the right. A mysterious site in which some scientists read the history of the deluge. 7,500 years ago, the Black Sea basin contained only a small freshwater lake.
Then the natural dam broke, and an extraordinary phenomenon occurred: the Mediterranean poured into the Black Sea basin. It’s only a short step to the origin of the myth of Atlantis…
.

This incredible photo shows the city of Santiago de Chile, nestled against its mountain range, the Andes. Natural resources are a fundamental pillar of Chile’s economy. Except that this growth has widened social and economic inequalities and put greater pressure on the environment. Ambitious climate targets have nevertheless been set by the government. The country is evolving. And his destiny will count for the whole of America…
.

According to the World Bank, 40% of Bangkok could be under water by 2030. This magnetic city, a marriage of land and water, offers vibrant contrasts: an amalgam of spices and hydrocarbons, iced teas on scorching pavements. But its hydrological situation has become precarious, aggravated by regular pumping into the water table beneath the estate, causing it to gradually subside. Nevertheless, the Thai authorities are beginning to address the problem…
.

One of the world’s wildest lands begins here, just beyond the last cultivated fields. In the heart of the United States, the sand hills of Nebraska form a unique ecosystem on Earth, covering more than 50,000 km². These icy fields make up one of America’s largest and most complex wetlands, with exceptional flora and fauna between 500 and 1000m altitude, in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. But the region is threatened by invasive species…
.

The olive tree is like no other. Its cultivation is said to have begun six millennia ago, and is now an industrial activity. On the island of Crete, oil was stored in huge jars even before mankind built the Giza Pyramids. It’s true that the tree has some unusual characteristics. In addition to its fruit and bitter oil, the olive tree has an astonishing regenerative capacity…
.

In the heart of the Pacific Ocean, Henderson Island is the most exposed place on Earth to plastic pollution per cubic meter. This exceptional territory belongs to the Pitcairn Islands, the only British possession in the Pacific. The island’s beaches contain millions of pieces of plastic debris. Why? Because the island lies at the center of the South Pacific Ocean Gyre, an immense whirlpool that circulates in the ocean…
.