One lucky photographer will get $20,000 to work on a story with huge impact – could it be you?

In the winter of 2009, acclaimed photographer Ami Vitale encountered a northern white rhino named Sudan for the first time at Safari Park Dvůr Králové in the Czech Republic. The animal, one of merely eight remaining of the Critically Endangered species, was being prepared for a grueling 4,000-mile journey back to Africa. Vitale described Sudan as "enormous and ancient-looking, almost otherworldly," a creature shaped by millions of years of evolution.

Nine years later, Vitale photographed Sudan once more at Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya, but this time, he was near death. The last male northern white rhino on Earth, his passing marked the end of the road for his species. Vitale witnessed Sudan's final moments surrounded by his caretakers, a poignant scene of love and loss. The rain fell softly as the last male rhino took his final breaths, surrounded by the tender gestures of those who loved him.

The photograph captured the end of an era, a glimpse into our own future if the natural world continues to be lost.

However, Sudan's story does not end there. Despite the species being "functionally extinct", an international consortium called BioRescue has been working tirelessly to save the northern white rhino. Using cutting-edge reproductive science, they have created 40 northern white rhino embryos using sperm from Sudan and seven other deceased males, as well as oocytes from Fatu, one of only two female northern white rhinos left.

In 2024, they achieved a historic first: a confirmed pregnancy through IVF using a southern white rhino embryo and a southern white rhino surrogate. The next step is to implant one of the northern white rhino embryos into a surrogate, a monumental achievement in the world of conservation.