"In the thick of the monsoon this June, I found myself squinting at the smallest of orchids and rarest of impatiens (a flowering plant) inside an enclave of lush rainforest in Kerala, southern India. With Laly Joseph, 56, at the helm, dozens of women from the local neighbourhood were in charge of preserving and cultivating more than 2,000 species of native plants either ignored or forgotten by the rest of the world."
"Together, they are more popularly known as rainforest gardeners. Joseph started working in conservation when she was 19, learning the ropes from her mentor Wolfgang Theuerkauf, a self-taught German conservationist. Her deep knowledge and excitement was palpable as she showed me around the Gurukula botanical sanctuary, explaining the intricacies of caring for numerous varieties of rare and sensitive flora needing very specific conditions to thrive and propagate."
"For some, death only magnifies their courage. Hanadi Dawood, the young Sudanese nurse who stood up to her country's genocidal paramilitaries, is among those whose legend has deepened over time, a symbol of the fortitude of Sudan's women but also the savagery of its spiralling war. A screen shot from a video of Hanadi Dawood at Zamzam refugee camp, Sudan, in April 2025. Photograph: Handout Those fortunate to have known her describe a diminutive, grinning nurse whose enthusiasm powered the small health clinic she ran in"
During the monsoon in Kerala, observers encountered tiny orchids and rare impatiens within an enclave of lush rainforest. Laly Joseph, 56, leads dozens of local women who preserve and cultivate more than 2,000 native plant species at the Gurukula botanical sanctuary. Joseph began conservation work at 19 under mentor Wolfgang Theuerkauf and demonstrates deep knowledge of the specific conditions required to propagate sensitive flora. The group's careful cultivation shows how small preservation acts can accumulate into unique forests amid wider biodiversity collapse. In Sudan, Hanadi Dawood, a young nurse, died defending Zamzam camp and became a symbol of women's fortitude and the war's savagery.
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