Nigerian documentary photographer Oyewole Lawal has won the Global Focus Award at the Global Focus Project, representing Africa alongside Egyptian photographer Aminat Kadous, for his long-term documentary project, Earth Frontline Guardians of Gaia: The Unseen Eco-Warriors.
According to a statement on Tuesday, Lawal’s project grew from a deeply personal engagement with landfill communities in Nigeria. Initially seeking shelter, he soon found himself compelled to document the lives of people working on the margins of society under hazardous conditions, often without recognition of their essential role in maintaining urban life.
Earth Frontline Guardians of Gaia focuses on waste miners and informal environmental workers, highlighting how their bodies and health bear the cost of urban consumption. Lawal reframes these workers not as victims but as frontline environmental guardians whose labour quietly sustains modern cities.
“This work came from listening and witnessing,” Lawal said. “At the landfill, I met people who carry the burden of our consumption for all of us. This award belongs to them.”
The Global Focus Award, presented in Sharjah, recognises photographers who bring critical and underreported stories to global audiences. Lawal’s recognition alongside Kadous underscores the importance of African-led visual narratives in global conversations on environmental justice, labour, and climate responsibility.
Oyewole is a Nigerian photojournalist and visual storyteller whose work explores labour, migration, identity, and environmental inequality across West Africa. His practice is rooted in long-term engagement and lived experience, using photography as a tool for visibility and accountability.
Through Earth Frontline Guardians of Gaia, Lawal shines a spotlight on the often-unseen workers whose daily efforts maintain urban environments, offering a compelling narrative on resilience, survival, and environmental stewardship in Africa.
