A school for sentinels

In the village of Aghien-Télégraphe, near Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, a teacher is telling schoolchildren about their future role as sentinels for the protection of natural resources in the area, for the village is located at the edge of a lagoon that supplies more than 10 000 local inhabitants with freshwater. In order to meet the growing need, the Aghien lagoon is also likely to be used as an additional reserve of drinking water for the capital. Particularly vulnerable to human pressure, the reservoir is at risk from eutrophication (excess phosphorus and nitrogen) and therefore from the proliferation of cyanobacteria, which can produce toxins that are potentially dangerous but easily identifiable by the green colour they give to water. To limit their impact on health, the lagoon is being kept under close watch as part of a participatory monitoring project in which the involvement of local populations is key. This image is a winner of the 2021 La preuve par l'image (LPPI) competition.