The fifth edition of "L'Œil du Climat" (The Eye of Climate) photography contest, organized by Météo-France and GEO magazine, has attracted numerous photographers, both amateur and professional. The competition showcases the impacts of climate change on French territory through powerful imagery, and voting is now open until October 9 for both the Public Choice Award and the Overseas Territories Award.
After three months of submissions, hundreds of photographs have been received illustrating the warming of France's climate. The images capture floods, droughts, forest fires, glacier retreat, and impacts on biodiversity, flora, crops, and individuals. Participants have mobilized extensively to share their perspectives on climate evolution, extreme weather events, and their impacts on French territory. The jury has selected 10 finalist photos for the Public Choice Award and 5 images for the Overseas Territories Award dedicated to France's overseas regions.
Three prizes will be awarded in this year's competition. The Special Ocean Jury Prize will be decided by experts and journalists from Météo-France and GEO. The Public Choice Award will be elected through public voting among the 10 finalists. The Overseas Territories Award will also be chosen by the public among 5 finalists. Results will be announced on October 17 on geo.fr and meteofrance.com, with the three winning photographs to be published in a GEO magazine issue in the final quarter of 2025.
Among the Public Choice Award finalists, Florian Ambrosino presents "The Lagoon Bleached by the Furnace," an aerial photograph revealing a profound ecological scar. The milky phenomenon spreading across the Thau lagoon is called "malaïgue" - an anoxic crisis caused by oxygen deprivation due to temperatures that suffocated the lagoon during the late June and early July 2025 heat wave. Deprived of oxygen, all marine organisms died, including fish, oysters, and shellfish farmed in the Thau lagoon.
Sébastien Cal's entry "The Forest Sick from Heat" shows a fir forest victimized by global warming. Romain Duriez captures "This Glacier Will Disappear in 50 Years," documenting the Saint-Sorlin d'Arves glacier in the Grandes Rousses massif, which has retreated 300 meters since 2010. With temperatures rising twice as fast in the Alps compared to the global average, glaciers are bearing the full brunt of climate change, serving as the first witnesses of this upheaval.
Jeremy Garamond's "Lost in Translation" provides an aerial view of a historically bourgeois house left abandoned because it's destined to collapse due to inevitable sea level rise on the French coast, coastal erosion, and shoreline retreat. Thousands of houses face similar fates. Bernard Gissinger's "Critical Level" documents increasingly weak precipitation during dry seasons in tropical regions like French Guiana, where the Petit-Saut hydroelectric dam can no longer generate sufficient power due to low water levels.
Théo Guillaume's "Breathless" captures a young green turtle launching toward life in the turquoise waters of Tetiaroa, French Polynesia. Taken during his work as a marine biologist for the Te Mana O Te Moana association, the image shows a fragile moment when newborns discover the ocean. This particular turtle had been trapped for days under coral fragments and emerged with closed nostrils - a rare malformation linked to temperature-dependent embryonic development. When temperatures exceed the normal range of 24°C to 35°C, risks of malformations and mortality increase significantly.
Baptiste Mourcel documents "When Vineyards Settle in Brittany," showing how vine cultivation is gaining ground northward due to global warming. On the banks of the Rance River in Brittany, a wine estate embodies a new reality of a territory reinventing itself. Where vines wouldn't have thrived decades ago, quality vineyards now emerge as proof of ongoing climate upheavals and human adaptation capacity.
Other compelling entries include Alain Pellorce's "La Bérarde, 1 Year After the Catastrophe," showing the village in Oisans, Isère during summer 2025, one year after a disaster. Nicolas Renaud presents "Carp Harvest," captured in a wheat field in Juvigny in July 2021, where heavy rains caused the Marne River to overflow, trapping carp in wheat fields that were later harvested along with the grain after a three-week drying period.
The Overseas Territories selection features equally striking images. Johan Chevalier documents "Marine Erosion on Yalimapo Beach" in French Guiana from December 2021. Eve Delahaut's "Ua Pou, a Paradise Once Tropical" shows the Hakamoui Valley on Ua Pou island, formerly the cradle of the island's last great chief's tribe, now facing drastically reduced precipitation and water rationing limited to two hours at dawn and two hours at dusk.
Patrick De Pauw captures "Chido Devastates Mayotte," showing Cyclone Chido's devastating passage through Mayotte. The overseas selection also includes Bernard Gissinger's "Critical Level" and Théo Guillaume's "Breathless," both selected for multiple categories, highlighting the global nature of climate impacts on French territories.
Public voting continues until October 9, allowing citizens to participate directly in recognizing the most impactful climate photography. The contest serves not only as an artistic competition but as a crucial documentation of climate change effects across France and its overseas territories, from metropolitan forests and glaciers to tropical islands and coastal regions facing unprecedented environmental challenges.
