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Hotel is giving away 10 all-expense-paid trips to help rebuild Patagonia hiking trail

Post your video entry by March 15 for a chance to do some good while exploring one of the world's most stunning ecosystems.

Las Torres Patagonia

Torres del Paine National Park

In the far southern reaches of South America, Patagonia beckons adventurers with its striking landscape. Rugged mountain peaks, deep valley vistas, pristine lakes, virgin forests, coastal cliffs and more combine to make this semi-arid land a paradise for nature lovers and photographers alike.

If you've ever seen a photo like this…

hiking trail next to a lake in patagonia Hiking trail at Torres del Paine National Park in PatagoniaLas Torres Patagonia

…and thought, "I have to go see that turquoise water for myself," now's your chance. Las Torres Patagonia is offering an all-expense-paid trip (including airfare) for 10 lucky winners to travel to Torres del Paine National Park in Chile and stay at the all-inclusive Las Torres Patagonia hotel for five days.

Las Torres Patagonia's "10 Volunteers for 10 Days" contest isn't just a chance to travel to Patagonia for free. It's also a "voluntourism" opportunity to do some good while you enjoy the scenery by helping rebuild the trail leading to Base Torres in Torres del Paine National Park. Rehabilitating this trail, which has been badly damaged and eroded, will help people experience the park safely while protecting the ecosystem.

“Las Torres Patagonia has a generational commitment to the regeneration and longevity of this beautiful Chilean region,” said Josian Yaksic, CEO of Las Torres Patagonia. “More than ever, it is prudent to acknowledge the changing landscape and take action for its survival. We are thrilled to welcome passionate travelers to not only contribute to the future of one of the most beautiful destinations in the world, but also experience it firsthand through voluntourism.”

HOW TO ENTER THE "10 VOLUNTEERS FOR 10 DAYS" CONTEST:

Before midnight Pacific time on Mar 15th, 2024, share a video (less than two minutes) on Instagram or Facebook describing what sustainability and ecotourism mean to you, or why you believe it is important.

- All video entries must tag @lastorres.patagonia and include the hashtag #PatagoniaVoluntourism.

- The Instagram account or Facebook post must be set to "public."

- Must be 21 years or older, live in the U.S. or Canada, and be in apt condition to carry out strenuous, hands-on activity.

- Entrants must enter their contact information on the Las Torres website in order to be contacted with a winning announcement.

After March 15th, an expert panel of judges will choose the 10 lucky winners to join the trip, which will be hosted over two sets of dates -- five volunteers between April 6 to 11, and five volunteers between April 14 and 19. Las Torres Patagonia will arrange airfare and travel—all the winner has to do is pack!

See on Instagram

What exactly will the trip entail? After arriving at Chile's Puerto Natales Airport, volunteers will begin their journey at Hotel Las Torres, an upscale all-inclusive hotel at the entrance of Torres del Paine National Park. During their five-day trip, travelers will combine trail work, rest and exploration in one of the world’s most impressive environments. Torres del Paine is a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, aiming to reconcile the conservation of biodiversity with its sustainable use.

With ecotourism and voluntourism on the rise, people have more opportunities than ever to combine their love for exploring our incredible Earth with helping sustain its natural wonders for generations to come. At Torres del Paine, this 10-day volunteer project will contribute to a new era of gentle-grade trails, which will allow more people to enjoy the iconic "three towers" for which the park is named and maintain the ecosystem’s legacy.

Get those videos posted for this once-in-a-lifetime experience. See the Las Torres website for full contest details.

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Thrilling penguin news! Chile is killing an iron mine that would harm the waddly birds.

Ah, Chile. While not typically top of mind for the average American, the unassuming coastal strip has quietly become a sort of ... yang to our yin. The delicate floral sucking candy to our taste-bud-annihilating chocolate-caramel-peanut butter-sour-red-hot mouth bomb.

And, increasingly, they are the #RESIST window sticker to America's MAGA hat.

While the Trump administration rolls back LGBTQ protections, Chile's president is touting a marriage equality bill. While dozens of U.S. states are trying to regulate out as many Planned Parenthood clinics as the law will allow, Chilean lawmakers recently relaxed the country's abortion ban, which was one of the world's strictest (though their new law carves out several exceptions, the procedure is still largely banned in Chile, but still — progress!).

Now, the skinny South American nation is once again playing the U.S.'s bizarro world doppelganger — by siding with a bunch of penguins in a dispute with a mining company.

Photo by Martin Bernetti/Getty Images.

According to an AFP report, Chile recently killed a $2.5-billion iron-mining project to save the health (and, potentially, lives) of thousands of the waddly little birds.

The project was slated to be built just south of three islands where over 80% of the world's Humboldt penguins live and would include a port to ship iron all over the world. A review by 14 agencies found that the plan failed to sufficiently guarantee that the animals would not be affected.

"We are not against economic development or projects that are necessary for the country's growth, but they must offer adequate solutions for the impact they will have," Environment Minister Marcelo Mena told the AFP.

That's not just the polar opposite of what the U.S. would do. It's the polar opposite of what the U.S. government actually is doing.

Blowing up this mountain in Virginia to get at the coal underneath seems fine. Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

In August, the Interior Department outlined a plan to prioritize oil extraction over efforts to protect the greater sage-grouse, a grassland bird that looks like the result of an unforgettable evening between a peacock, a porcupine, and a tarantula.

Earlier this year, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, under President Trump, canceled an Obama-era rule designed to protect whales and sea turtles from fishing nets.

Meanwhile, the Trump administration wants to blow up mountaintops so badly they've stopped studying whether doing so is detrimental to the health and safety of animals — and human beings — that live nearby.

It's not just Chile stepping up either, at least where safeguarding the natural world we all share is concerned.

Just ask the 195 other countries that signed the Paris Climate Accord — which commits parties to holding the Earth's temperature rise below two degrees Celsius — that President Trump announced the U.S. would soon be leaving.

It all adds up to a pretty clear message: The rest of the world is getting with the program, while the U.S. government is sitting here, arms folded, hoping rare birds can adjust to a coal dust and jagged pebble diet.

Photo by Martin Bernetti/Getty Images.

Want the U.S. to get back on the bandwagon? You can let your elected representatives know how you feel and help out groups, like the Environmental Defense Fund, that are pushing back against regulation rollback.

In the meantime, thanks to their friends in Chile, a few thousand penguins are getting to celebrate the news of a lifetime. It may not be happening in the U-S-of-A, but it's a Hollywood ending all the same. (Anyone know how to say "Morgan Freeman" in Spanish?)

These photos won a National Geographic contest, and they're breathtaking.

For over 120 years, National Geographic has brought the world to your doorstep.

The iconic magazine, TV channel, and brand has built their name showcasing the planet's most beautiful and exotic places in writing and photography.

Every single month, the glossy, high-resolution pages of National Geographic are filled with some of the best photography in the world.

They also hold an annual photography contest, open to amateurs and people outside of Nat Geo's employ. It's a chance for photographers all over the world to showcase their work.

The 2016 winners of the National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year contest were announced in July.

As you can imagine, they are breathtaking:

"Winter Horseman" by Anthony Lau (Mongolia)

Grand prize winner. All images courtesy of National Geographic.

"The winter in Inner Mongolia is very unforgiving," writes photographer Anthony Lau. "At a freezing temperature of minus twenty and lower, with a constant breeze of snow from all direction, it was pretty hard to convince myself to get out of the car and take photos."

"Wherever You Go, I Will Follow" by Hiroki Inoue (Japan)

"Nature" first place winner.

"It was the time of day immediately following sunset. I heard a voice. 'Wherever you go, I will follow you' the voice says." — Photographer Hiroki Inoue.

"Ben Youssef" by Takashi Nakagawa (Morocco)

"Cities" first place winner.

"Even though there were a lot of people in Ben Youssef, still here was more quiet and relaxing compare to the street outside in Marrakesh," wrote Takashi Nakagawa. "I was waiting for the perfect timing to photograph for long time."

"Rooftop Dreams, Varanasi" by Yasmin Mund (India)

"People" second place winner.

"I arrived at my guest house in Varanasi at 5:30am," wrote Yasmin Mund. "I instinctively climbed the 7 sets of stairs to the rooftop (which happened to be the highest in the vicinity) to see the sunrise over the famous Ganges River. As the sun was rising I looked over the right hand side of the balcony and my jaw dropped with disbelief."

"Double Trapping" by Massimiliano Bencivenni (Brazil)

"Nature" second place winner.

"I was in the Brazilian Pantanal along the Rio Negrinho," wrote Massimiliano Bencivenni. "I realized that the river, at certain points of the loops, created places where there were many yacare caimans. I saw a yacare sink suddenly, and I immediately looked for the best location to photograph when it resurfaced. The whole thing lasted only a fraction of a moment."

"Silenced" by Wing Ka H. (China)

"Cities" second place winner.

"This photo was taken on my last trip to Guangzhou, China," wrote Wing Ka H. "This place is the school dormitories of South China Normal University. When I was hanging around, most of them were taking a break. After lunchtime, they needed to go back to study."

"Remote Life" by Mattia Passarini (India)

"People" third place winner.

This woman is carrying a log to warm up her home in the remote village of Himachal Pradesh.

"Lagunas Baltinache" by Victor Lima (Chile)

"Nature" third place winner.

"I embarked alone on this adventure to find images not yet published of the most arid desert in the world and its contrasts," wrote photographer Victor Lima. "Despite the Atacama Desert being one of the best places on the planet to do night photography, in my prior research I discovered that there were not many night photos in the main tourist destinations there."

"Celestial Reverie" by Jeremy Tan (Malaysia)

"Cities" third place winner.

"Lightning seemingly strikes Komtar Tower, the most iconic landmark of George Town, capital of Penang state in Malaysia, during a thunderstorm. It is symbolic of the rejuvenation that the city, famous for a unique blend of centuries-old buildings and modern structures, has enjoyed in recent years." — Photographer Jeremy Tan.

"Muscle Beach Gym" by Dotan Saguy (USA)

"People" honorable mention.

The iconic Muscle Beach Gym in Venice Beach, California.

"Bears on a Berg" by John Rollins (Canadian Arctic)

"Nature" honorable mention.

"To me, the relative smallness of these large creatures when compared to the immensity of the iceberg in the photo represents the precariousness of the polar bear's reliance on the sea and sea ice for its existence," wrote John Rollins.

"Divide" by Kathleen Dolmatch (USA)

"Cities" honorable mention.

"From a doorless helicopter looking south on Central Park West, dividing the architecture and Central Park," wrote Kathleen Dolmatch. "The flight was my birthday gift."

It probably seems like there's a lot of ugliness in the world lately.

Terrorist attacks, shootings, political drama — it's exhausting.

But it's nice to be reminded that there's always beauty in the world, and sometimes it takes a keen, highly trained eye to find it.

Photographers often have to wait around for hours or days to capture images like these. They have to climb on roofs or get in helicopters or put themselves in dangerous spots just to grab a single moment of the world's intense and fleeting beauty.

When they do, it's so worth it. Because we all get to enjoy it.

From Your Site Articles

Nat Geo's best photos of 2021 - Upworthy ›

Heroes

For nearly 4 months, people in Chile powered their homes for free. Here's what happened.

Chile is amazing at producing and implementing solar energy.

The coastal South American country recently breezed past its competition by becoming the first in Latin America to surpass a full gigawatt of installed solar energy, which can power around 750,000 homes.

The country also has plans to use 70% renewable energy by 2050, with solar at the forefront.

A solar plant in Pozo Almonte, Chile. Photo by Martin Bernetti/AFP/Getty Images.

Which is good. Really good. As a matter of fact, it might be ... too good.

Chile's solar industry has expanded so quickly that for 113 days this year, solar energy in many parts of the country was free.

That's right.

Chile is generating so much solar energy, for 113 days they literally had to give it away for free.

Photo by Martin Bernetti/AFP/Getty Images.

It's a huge win for consumers who, for nearly four months, got to rake in some free clean energy.

However, it's also a potential problem for business owners in Chile who are struggling with the fall of one industry and the blazing-fast rise of another.

If you go way back, the story all starts with copper. Yes, copper.

Chile is a huge exporter of copper, which contributes to the country's 6% annual economic growth. But lately, there's been a worldwide slowdown in the copper trade, and Chilean copper producers have been feeling the impact.

A copper mine in Calama, Chile. Photo by Martin Bernetti/AFP/Getty Images.

Copper mining in Chile has ground to a near-halt, and copper mines everywhere are shutting down. As these mines shut down, the country as a whole requires less power than it did before. But all the solar farms are still producing, resulting in a solar surplus.

Energy companies can't just give away energy forever, though.

If they do, the companies will have to fold, and then Chileans won't have solar energy at all.

“Investors are losing money,” said Rafael Mateo, whose energy firm is investing $343 million in Chilean solar energy projects. "Growth was disordered. You can’t have so many developers in the same place.”

Even when they're not giving it away for free, from a business standpoint, Chile's solar energy is still problematically cheap.

The Atacama region, for example, clocked about $60 per megawatt-hour for most of March, according to Bloomberg. That's $10 less than the minimums set by the companies that won bids to sell their solar energy there.

Photo by Vladimir Rodas/AFP/Getty Images.

So while Chilean energy consumers are probably pretty happy about their tiny and/or nonexistent electric bills, energy companies aren't as thrilled .

Let's look at the bright side here, though. (That's where the sun is, after all.)

Realistically, Chile is demonstrating how successful a clean energy product can be if you truly commit to investing in it.

In fact, we've seen things like this happen before in other countries: Portugal managed to go 107 hours without using fossil fuels by investing serious cash-money into multiple clean energy projects, and Germany managed to bump up clean energy production so much that it had to pay its citizens to use it for seven hours.

Photo by Pablo Blazquez Dominguez/Getty Images.

All over the world, people are investing in renewable energy and finding out just how wildly successful it can be.

We may still need to recalibrate the settings so energy companies can stay alive while consumers get fair energy prices. But we'll get there.

For now, let's keep building.

15 photos that prove Earth is far stranger than any science fiction.

Did you know that when scientists wanted to test the Mars rover, they went to Chile? It turns out there are a lot of places on Earth that are totally out of this world.

True

1. The Atacama Desert in South America is so dry, NASA has used it to test Mars rovers.

It even has a reddish surface. Image from ESO/Wikimedia Commons.

2. The Red Beach of Panjin in China looks like it's covered in the red weed that gave Mars its red color in H.G. Wells' "War of the Worlds."

Image from Kashif Pathan/Flickr..

3. Jakku? Tatooine? Nope, this isn't a planet from "Star Wars." It's an ancient Chinese watchtower along the Silk Road.

Image from The Real Bear/Wikimedia Commons.

4. These Waitomo glowworm caves in New Zealand look like they could be a wormhole to another dimension.

DO YOU SEE WHAT I DID THERE? Image from 2il org/Flickr.

5. And the Naica Mine in Mexico looks like a wormhole to another dimension made entirely out of GIANT DIAMONDS.

There is a person at the bottom of this picture for scale, and that scale is bonkers.

Yes, that's a person at the bottom. Image from Alexander Van Driessche/Wikimedia Commons.

6. These ice-blue pools in Pamukkale, Turkey, look more like the icy surface of Hoth from "Star Wars" or Delta Vega from "Star Trek."

Image from Pvasiliadis/Wikimedia Commons.

7. Speaking of ice blue, I'm pretty sure caves aren't supposed to come in this color on Earth. Get with the program, Marble Caves of Chile Chico in Patagonia!

Marble Caves of Chile Chico, Patagonia. Image from Javier Vieras/Flickr.

8. Alaska, what did I just say?

Ice caves under Mendenhall Glacier, Alaska. Image from Andrew E. Russell/Flickr.

9. Don't think I don't see you too, Lake Retba in Senegal! I know your pinkish hue comes from salt production, but that's no excuse for this weirdness!

Image from iStock.

10. The Salar de Uyuni in Bolivia is normally a stark, white salt flat, but when it rains, it looks like where you might end up if you entered a black hole.

The Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia. Image from Chechevere/Wikimedia Commons.

11. Captain Kirk and a shimmering alien entity would look right at home having a conversation at Ethiopia's Dallol volcano, where sulfur and iron deposits create otherworldly colors.

Image from Hervé Sthioul/Wikimedia Commons .

12. The island of Socotra is a place where even plants look like aliens...

A forest on the island of Socotra. Image from Valerian Guillot/Flickr.

13. ...including this flower-haired land-slug!

(Also known as a bottle tree, but I like my name for it better).

Image from iStock.

14. Alien tentacles?! Nope, these are snow-covered trees in Riisitunturi National Park, Finland.

Image from Tero Laakso/Flickr.

15. Lastly, this might look like Mars, with the red sand and little space-house, but it's actually the Mars Society's training ground in Utah, right here in the U.S. of A.

The Mars Society's training ground in Utah. Image from Bandgirl807/Wikimedia Commons.

Sometimes, all we need is a change in perspective to remind ourselves how weird and spectacular the Earth is.

Though we usually are surrounded by normal stuff, you don't have to go too far to see just how strange the Earth — and the planets and solar systems around us — can be.

Now get your solution of high-temperature water and caffeine, pet your favorite tame mammal companion goodbye, get in your metal vehicle powered by the remains of ancient plants, listen to pleasant and high-pitched air vibrations encoded by powerful electromagnetic waves, and get ready to orbit that giant glowing ball of plasma we call "sun."

It's a great day to be alive.

Heroes

17 chilling photos of glaciers that could melt even the hardest politician's heart.

It's time to save the world. Literally.

Did you know there are glaciers in South America?

There are, and they're beautiful! The Patagonian ice fields, located in the southern Patagonia Andes of Chile and Argentina, are the largest ice mass in the Southern Hemisphere with the exception of Antarctica, and the third largest freshwater reserve in the world.

While ice, snow, and glaciers might not be what comes to mind when you think of South America, near the southernmost part of the continent, that's exactly what you'll find.

All photos by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

Photojournalist Mario Tama recently visited the ice field, capturing the beauty of the ice formations alongside the signs of the toll climate change has taken on the area.

The southern ice field is roughly five times the size of Rhode Island.

The southern ice field is made up of roughly 50 glaciers and runs across parts of Argentina and Chile.

Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

In 1937, Argentina established Los Glaciares National Park to preserve a vast region of Patagonia.

It's unique ecosystem combines things like waterfalls, rivers, forests, and, yes, glaciers.

Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

People walking across the Perito Moreno Glacier in Santa Cruz Province, Argentina. Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

UNESCO inscribed Los Glaciares National Park as a "World Heritage" in 1981.

UNESCO describes the park as "an area of exceptional natural beauty, with rugged, towering mountains and numerous glacial lakes."

Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

Glaciers sometimes look bluish in color because of light refraction.

Part of a glacier breaks off as the result of melting. Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

The U.S. National Parks Service explains this phenomenon (and how you can experience it for yourself):

"Because the red (long wavelengths) part of white light is absorbed by ice and the blue (short wavelengths) light is transmitted and scattered. The longer the path light travels in ice, the more blue it appears. So... why is snow white? Light does not penetrate into snow very far before being scattered back to the viewer. However, the next time you are in an igloo, notice that it is blue inside. You can also poke a stick into some snow, shade the area around the hole, and look deep into the snow pack. The light that has traveled some distance through the snow will be enhanced in blue."

Between 2000 and 2012, these glaciers melted at a rate roughly 1.5 times faster than ever previously recorded.

Melting occurs throughout the glacier, and while it may not be completely uniform in pattern, recent studies suggest it's becoming more normalized throughout. Which means the whole glacier is starting to melt at roughly the same rate.

Melted glacial ice floats in Los Glaciares National Park. Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

The rapidly melting glaciers are leading to rising sea levels.

Melting of glaciers and ice caps are the biggest contributors to rising sea levels around the world. As glaciers melt, the freshwater stored within gets dumped into surrounding bodies of water. If unchecked, this could pose disastrous consequences for people around the world.

Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

As is the case for other glaciers around the world, it's climate change that's driving the melt-off.

Glaciers and other ice structures are some of the most impressive natural storers of climate information. As glaciers have been around for a very long time, they've existed through warming and cooling periods. Recent data extracted from glaciers, however, shows that the modern melt-off is different from naturally occurring fluctuations.

This is Lake Argentino, which holds runoff water from the Southern Patagonian Ice Field. Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

Horses run outside Los Glaciares National Park. Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

Some say it's too late to stop the melting, but that doesn't mean we should give up.

Dr. Ian Joughin of the University of Washington explained to the New York Times that climate change has destabilized glacier-covered areas, and without a stabilization mechanism, we'll continue to see glaciers melting.

Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

Climate change is very real, and in addition to wiping glaciers from the earth, there are other dire consequences.

Rising sea levels may make some currently populated places totally uninhabitable. Additionally, due to climate change, the world can expect to see an increase in unseasonable and unpredictable storms, more droughts, and more heat waves.

But there are things we can (and should) do to help stop it. Like urging politicians to take action.

Over the next two weeks, 150 world leaders are meeting in Paris to discuss what we, as human beings, can do to preserve our planet and fight climate change. Some individuals don't believe we should take action, and some even doubt the reality of climate change (although 97% of the world's climate scientists assure humanity that yes, it is very real).

But meaningful change starts with letting our elected officials know that yes, this is an issue worth prioritizing for the sake of our world and generations to come.

So before the glaciers say their final "goodbye," let's do something about it!

Heroes

17 photos of people who know just how high the stakes of climate change are.

While world leaders were traveling to Paris to attempt to finally agree on what to do about climate change, people all over the world got together to hold their feet to the fire.

The ostensible goal of the COP21 conference in France is to produce a legally binding agreement that will help reduce emissions and slow down global warming. But climate change is already here, and the usual conference scenario — lots of important people talking a lot while getting little done — ain't gonna cut it anymore.

That's why this weekend, hundreds of thousands of people around the world gathered to send a message to their leaders:

Less talking, more doing.

1. Bogota, Colombia

A protestor holds up a heart-shaped sign that asks world leaders, "Are you ready for extinction?"

Photo by Guillermo Legaria/Getty Images.

Hopefully, she's exaggerating for rhetorical effect.

Hopefully.

2. New York

Everyone's favorite Science Guy, the one and only Bill Nye joined the crowd.

Bill! Bill! Bill! Bill! Bill! Bill Nye the Science Guy. Photo by Kena Betancur/Getty Images.

"The climate is changing. It's our fault, and we have to get to work on this now," Nye reportedly said at the rally, according to the New York Daily News. When even the best-case scenarios include scary outcomes like more flooding, bigger and badder droughts, and massive crop die-offs, it's hard to disagree with the (science) guy.

3. Sao Paulo

Photo by Nelson Almeida/Getty Images.

Hulk would very much like to smash climate change.

If only, Hulk. If only.

4. Oslo, Norway

Though Norwegian glaciers bravely held on until the late-1990s, they're now retreating just like in most of the rest of the world.

Photo by AFP/Getty Images.

Unless a comprehensive, binding climate agreement with teeth gets signed in Paris this year, the glaciers of Norway will likely be forever remembered as having peaked right around the time Smash Mouth did.

5. Santiago, Chile

Her sign reads: "People in charge: This is my Earth, and it's also yours and your children's. Don't destroy it."

Photo by Martin Bernetti/Getty Images.

Good — if dire — advice, Chile.

6. London

At the London rally, Welsh singer Charlotte Church performed a new song she wrote about confronting Earth's impending climate crisis.

Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images.

The song is still untitled as of publication, but might I suggest, "Wake Up and Do Something, You Dolts?"

Has a nice ring to it, is all I'm saying.

7. Amsterdam

A Dutch man with a killer beard carries a sign that reads, "This road is a dead end" — and not only because it appears he's about to smash into a giant scale replica of the Eiffel Tower.

Photo by Bart Maat/Getty Images.

He's referring to this road. The one the Earth appears to be on. Turn around much, Team Paris?

8. Frankfurt, Germany

Frank Rumpenhorst/Getty Images.

Should the worst-case climate scenario come to pass (a temperature increase in excess of two degrees Celsius, a world-altering mega-sea level rise of 20 feet or more, and millions of displaced people around the globe) figuring out how to fit bugs with World War I-era gas masks will be the least of our problems.

9. Mexico City

Photo by Yuri Cortez/Getty Images.

This mask: precisely 150% less scary than the effects of a sea level rise that conforms to even the most conservative estimates.

10. Nantes, France

A few days before the climate talks were set to begin, folks all across France got together to protest a ban on large gatherings that was imposed after the Paris attacks.

Photo by Jean-Sebastien Evrard/Getty Images.

Though some of the marches devolved into clashes with police, this one manifested as a nice, chill circle.

11. Johannesburg

In South Africa, thousands marched to draw attention to the connection between climate change and worsening poverty.

Photo by Mujahid Safodien/Getty Images.

According to a World Bank report, rising global temperatures could help lead 100 million more people down the path to extreme poverty, unable to afford even the most basic spooky skeleton mask.

12. Dhaka, Bangladesh

Photo by Munir Uz Zaman/Getty Images.

World leaders planning to bulls*** their way through the climate meetings should think twice before messing with these women or their brighly-colored flowers.

13. Montevideo, Uruguay

As a result of climate change, Uruguay has been contending with increased rainfall and more intense storms.

Photo by Miguel Rojo/Getty Images.

Thankfully, these protestors chose one of the decreasing number of bright, near-perfect sunny days to send a message over to France.

14. Ottawa, Ontario

Photo by Patrick Doyle/Getty Images.

A protester on Canada's Parliament Hill, modeling what many in coastal cities around the world will be forced to wear just to say afloat if too many glaciers melt.

15. Vienna

Photo by Joe Klamar/Getty Images.

According to a 2014 study published in Nature Climate Change, climate change could reduce the Antarctic penguin population by up to one-fifth, rendering it no longer possible to make it through "March of the Penguins," without bursting into tears for the wrong reasons instead of the right reasons.

16. Madrid

Photo by Gerard Julien/Getty Images.

Estimates released by the UN in 2011 clearly demonstrate that, if we really wanted to, we could be using renewable energy to meet 80% of the world's power needs within the next 40 years — and that still wouldn't be enough for these Spanish marchers demanding 100% renewable energy with their delightful yellow sun placards.

17. Geneva

"Hey world leaders, what's good?" — this polar bear. Photo by Fabrice Coffrini/Getty Images.

If arctic sea ice continues to melt at current rates — up to 9% per decade — polar bears may be forced to move to major cities around the globe and march defiantly in parades. Which is why the world needs to act — now.

'Cause let's be honest, leaving aside all the grave consequences drastic climate change might wreak, that would be super weird.