The Year of Virtual Activism
Atmos & Vice, 2021. Remote

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Overview:

In an attempt to look forward to COP26—and look backward to the year we’ve spent in lockdown—photographer and youth climate activist Pamela Elizarrarás Acitores uses images to tell a story of young people from around the world trying to save the planet for The Frontline.

03.22.2021

It’s been one year since lockdown. Since the pandemic put the world on pause, youth climate activists have been gathering online. However, internet access is a privilege. In acknowledgement of that, I sought to collaborate with 21 youth activists worldwide who represent numerous organizations and movements. We spoke about how their activism in 2020 shifted—and what they want to see achieved in November at COP26, the global climate change conference hosted annually by the United Nations. A virtual photoshoot followed each conversation.

We created this project to urge leaders to make 2021 the year we truly take climate action and hold the fossil fuel industry accountable.

Each portrait has been paired with an environmental image that connects with the organizer’s work. Take Daniela Balaguera, for example, an environmental defender of La Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta mountain range in Colombia. She asked to be represented with a forest image. On the other hand, Finlay Pringle, a shark ambassador in Ullapool, Scotland, wanted his photograph surrounded by water.

By projecting visuals of nature over the digital portraits I took during the interviews, I intended to convey what this past year has looked like for youth climate organizers: a confinement to our screens where we have been networking, organizing, and learning mostly online. Some of us may have been tucked safely inside during lockdown, but that does not mean the climate crisis has gone away. It is more present now than ever. Just look at all that occurred in 2020: record wildfires, record storms, and record ice loss.

The project’s backdrops of ecoscapes represent the beautiful places that are alive today and at risk of disappearing within our lifetime. Further damage to these ecosystems—from rainforests to oceans—will worsen existing injustices that are disproportionately experienced by the most vulnerable people and communities.

Despite our grief, we are still optimistic. Our voices are more powerful than before. COP26 is an opportunity to come together inclusively to commit to reducing our emissions and building resilience through green recoveries. So far, only 18 percent of the global economic response to the pandemic is going toward environmentally friendly initiatives. The conference is an opportunity to unite around the need for bold climate action.

The words the youth shared with me for this project reflect their optimism and agency. We need more of that at this moment.

Read the complete story at Atmos.

© 2026 Pamela EA