IN PHOTOS: The faces of climate change

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IN PHOTOS: The faces of climate change

VEEJAY VILLAFRANCA

In the faces of Yolanda's victims and heroes, we see, reflected, the experiences of all others who face typhoons and other calamities

MANILA, Philippines – Haiyan or Yolanda has become the storm of all storms.

In the faces of its victims and heroes, we see, reflected, the experiences of all others who face typhoons.

But Haiyan has also become a symbol of what a disrupted climate means for humanity.

Science shows that a warmer climate could mean stronger storms. Haiyan was the storm that drew that connection.

The Philippines, the country passed through by 20 storms a year, is on the frontline of the climate crisis.

This crisis is more than a story about nature’s disrupted patterns. It’s a story about human lives.

To commemorate Haiyan’s 2nd year anniversary, Rappler has been given special rights to publish these photos of Haiyan and other storms by photojournalist Veejay Villafranca.

LIFE AFTER DEATH. A mother of 6 who lost her husband to Haiyan works part time in a farm on the outskirts of Leyte province.
COUNTING CORPSES. Philippine Navy soldiers load cadavers recovered inside Provident village in Marikina City in September 2009 when Tropical Storm Ondoy (Typhoon Ketsana) wreaked havoc in Luzon.
 
THE WAIT. Residents of Candaba, Pampanga, wait for food packs distributed by the World Food Program days after 2010 Tropical Storm Pepeng (Parma).     
HOLD ON. Residents living near Tullahan River battle flood waters brought about by torrential rains.
 
PALMS. Women, elderly, and children open their hands for relief goods following their evacuation due to 2012 monsoon rains.
NOWHERE ELSE. Children sleep under pews of the Santo Domingo church after heavy monsoon rains pour over Quezon City and Manila in 2012.
NO SHELTER. A girl who was sexually assaulted while in a temporary shelter prepares to speak to journalists.
 
NIGHT WATCH. Volunteers inspect bunkhouses in Tacloban City, Leyte, to prevent violence against women and children that reportedly takes place in some temporary shelters.
 
THE MARCH. A year after Haiyan, farmers and civil society groups march through San Juanico bridge to protest the allegedly slow response and rehabilitation efforts by government.
WAITING FOR WATER. Women and children of the Bantayan group of islands in Cebu endure limited access to water due to Haiyan damage to water infrastructure.
 
SCHOOL BLUES. Students attend classes in their typhoon-struck classroom after Haiyan in Tanauan, Leyte.
 
TABLEAU OF THE DISPLACED. A run-down cola factory serves as a temporary shelter for displaced residents of Santa Rosa, Laguna, after the 2012 monsoon rains.
STORM’S PATH. Volunteers clear up roads in Tanauan, Leyte, after Yolanda (Haiyan).
 
ESCAPE. Eastern Visayas residents wait to board the maw-like cargo hold of a Japanese military plane.
FIELD OF CORPSES. A woman searches for her fallen loved ones among corpses left by Yolanda (Haiyan).  – Text by Pia Ranada/Rappler.com
 

 

 

Veejay Villafranca is the first Asian recipient of the Ian Parry Scholarship grant in 2008, for his project on the lives of former gang members in Manila which also garnered him a residency at the Visa Pour l’image photojournalism festival.
 

 

He was also the first Filipino to be selected in the 2013 Joop Swart Masterclass program.

 

 

 

Currently based in Manila, Veejay does editorial assignments apart from working on his long-term projects tackling issues such as changing Filipino culture and religious practices, displacement due to the drastic change in climate and weather patterns, and his current exploration of the Filipino diaspora through different landscapes across the Philippines.

 

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