wonderland

KUALA LUMPUR, April 15 (Bernama) — A striking image titled Electric Roasted Sea Bass, captured in Baise City, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, by photographer Liang Ke, has been selected for inclusion in the WMO 2025 Meteorological Calendar.

Chosen at the 2025 Calendar Photography Contest from tens of thousands of global entries hosted by the United Nations World Meteorological Organization (WMO), it is the only Chinese photograph featured this year.

In this awe-inspiring image, multiple lightning bolts pierce through the clouds, illuminating the night sky, while below, the Youjiang River reflects a dazzling array of neon lights, creating a radiant scene. Widely shared on WMO’s platforms and global social media, the photo has drawn significant attention from domestic and international netizens.

The publicity department of Baise city in a statement highlighted that the city’s ongoing ecological efforts have played a key role in its growing recognition. In 2024, Baise became Guangxi’s only national pilot city for deepening climate-resilient city construction and was listed in China’s second batch of national pilot projects for new pollutant management.

The city also ranked ninth nationwide for surface water quality, with a 100 per cent compliance rate across 25 monitoring sites and an air quality excellence rate of 98.4 per cent.

With the continuous improvement of Baise’s ecological environment, rare wildlife such as leopard cats and Hainan partridges have been frequently spotted in the Chengbi River Nature Reserve, while the Chinese merganser, known as the “panda of birds”, has overwintered there for over a decade.

An associate researcher at China Agricultural University, Dr Wan Rong noted that Baise possesses unique ecological advantages, and the city could focus on industries like health foods and medicinal-edible resources to build a full-chain consumer ecosystem by leveraging its green potential.

— BERNAMA

KUALA LUMPUR, April 2 — The Global Cement and Concrete Association (GCCA) has selected a striking image of a skateboarder at Venice Beach, California, as a Concrete in Life Photo of the Year 2024/25 winner, chosen from over 20,000 entries in the annual global competition.

The winning photograph, captured by Henrik Hagerup at Venice Beach Skate Park, Los Angeles (LA), secured the top prize of US$10,000. The park’s concrete bowls, inspired by LA’s 1970s abandoned swimming pool skating scene, were highlighted in the image. (US$1=RM4.43)

GCCA Chief Executive, Thomas Guillot, who was among the judges, said the competition showcased concrete’s essential role in infrastructure, from bridges and railways to homes, offices, and schools.

“Our competition gives anyone with a smartphone, as well as professional photographers, the chance to show just how essential concrete is to our lives, as well as how beautiful it can be,” he said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Hagerup described his winning shot as a tribute to the way concrete fosters creativity, connection, and opportunity within communities worldwide.

In addition to the grand prize, four other category winners were awarded US$2,500 each. The Urban Concrete category was won by Anvar Sadath TA for his photograph Urban Flow, which features Dubai’s iconic Burj Khalifa.

The Concrete Infrastructure category was awarded to Wentao Guo for an image of a Washington, D.C. subway station titled ‘Structure as Aesthetics’. In the Concrete in Daily Life category, Wellington Kuswanto emerged as the winner with his photograph of Bedok Jetty in Singapore.

Meanwhile, the Beauty and Design category was won by Artemio Layno for Broken Building, taken in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

The People’s Vote Prize, which was determined by public voting and carried a US$5,000 prize, was awarded to Mohamed Rafi for his photograph ‘Fluttering Through Life’, taken in Pondicherry, India.

Entries for the competition came from all continents, showcasing everything from towering skyscrapers to intimate human moments in villages, as well as key infrastructure such as railways, bridges, and sea defences.

— BERNAMA