The mangrove forest of the Sundarbans, which straddles the border between India and Bangladesh, was damaged by a huge oil spill in December 2014. CREDIT: Arati Kumar-Rao
The mangrove forest of the Sundarbans, which straddles the border between India and Bangladesh, was damaged by a huge oil spill in December 2014. CREDIT: Arati Kumar-Rao

Instagram Take-Over #7: Arati Kumar-Rao, Climate Change and South Asian Ecosystem

Jun 6, 2016

For its seventh Instagram take-over by photographers from around the world, Carnegie Council presents Arati Kumar-Rao's photos from the Sundarbans on the India-Bangladesh border, taken over the last two and a half years.

In December 2014, a cargo ship rammed an oil tanker in the Bangladeshi Sundarbans, spilling over 300,000 liters of oil into the largest remaining unbroken stand of mangroves in the world. This exacerbated an already-difficult situation for the fisherfolk living in the region, who were already contending with the effects of climate change and piracy.

Arati Kumar-Rao is an independent environmental photographer and journalist documenting the slow violence of climate change and ecological degradation on communities and livelihoods in South Asia. She is based in Bangalore, India.

Kumar-Rao's work has appeared in The Guardian, BBC Outside Source, National Geographic Traveler India, Quartz, Yahoo! Media, and many other websites and publications.

To see more of Kumar-Rao's work, follow her on Instagram @aratikumarrao and visit her website at www.ficusmedia.com.

Carnegie Council hosts a new Instagram take-over every month. Check out the previous photographers and look for the next one in early July: https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/ccthrumyeyes/.

You may also like

AUG 7, 2025 News

Carnegie Council Unveils New Ethics-Based Tool to Accelerate the Implementation of Climate Action in Cities

Carnegie Council has released a new free-to-access tool for professionals working to address or limit climate change impacts in cities.

Scot Sagan

SEP 14, 2026 News

Carnegie Council & The Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation Announce Scott Sagan as its Inaugural Fellow for Nuclear Ethics and Security

Professor Sagan will launch a new research, community building, and education initiative addressing today’s rapidly evolving nuclear strategic environment.

MAY 21, 2026 News

Global Ethics Day 2026 will take place on October 21, with the new theme of “Re-centering Ethics.”

Join a global community of individuals and organizations working to ensure that ethics plays a central role in our personal and professional lives.