Viviane Rakotoarivony Wins 2024 High Note Global Prize in Photography

Award-Winning Image Captures the Human Toll of Cyclone Freddy in Madagascar

(New York, NY — December 10, 2024) — Photography 4 Humanity, the photography pillar of the High Note Global Initiative, proudly announces Viviane Rakotoarivony as the winner of the 2024 High Note Global Prize in Photography. Her arresting photograph, Ambalakondro, Devastated by Cyclone Freddy — taken in Mananjary, Madagascar — provides a powerful visual testament to the human cost of climate disasters and the urgent need for global climate justice.

The announcement, made today on United Nations Human Rights Day, underscores that climate change is not only an environmental issue but a profound human rights crisis. The winning photograph portrays children sheltering beneath the remnants of their roof after Cyclone Freddy destroyed 90 percent of homes in their village. Rakotoarivony’s image is accompanied by the description: “In the village of Ambalakondro, Cyclone Freddy devastated 90 percent of the homes, leaving these residents to take refuge beneath a fragment of their roof.”

Cyclone Freddy, one of the longest-lasting and most intense tropical storms ever recorded, devastated southeastern Africa across more than five weeks in 2023, leaving widespread destruction and displacement in its wake. Madagascar — where most communities have contributed nothing to the climate crisis but bear among its sharpest edges — was among the hardest hit. Rakotoarivony’s image is the human face of that asymmetry.

“Viviane Rakotoarivony’s photograph captures not only a moment of immense hardship but the strength and resilience of communities on the frontlines of climate change. Announcing this year’s winner on UN Human Rights Day is a powerful reminder that climate change is a human rights crisis, and we must act decisively to protect those most vulnerable.” — David Clark, founder, High Note Global

In official partnership with United Nations Human Rights, Photography 4 Humanity invites amateur and professional photographers from around the world to bear witness to the human dimension of our most urgent challenges. As one of the two founding pillars of the High Note Global Initiative — alongside High Note Music — the program stands for the conviction that a single image can move the conscience of the world.

This year, Photography 4 Humanity received thousands of submissions from across the globe, showcasing the creativity and passion of photographers committed to illuminating the stories of those most impacted by the climate crisis. Rakotoarivony’s winning image and other top entries were featured at the United Nations headquarters on UN Human Rights Day, and viewed globally on UN.org.

For more information, visit www.photography4humanity.com.