Erdenet, Orkhon Province, Mongolia

Otgonkhishig Choisuren and Bilegdemberel Battur plant flowers at Amar Central Square in Erdenet city, Orkhon province, Mongolia. Otgonkhishig, who is part of the province’s initiative to plant around 50,000 flowers, says, “I like this work very much, because I contribute to making our city scenery fresh by planting beautiful flowers of multiple colors. I do this out of happiness.”

Juana Pérez Luna holds her grandson Antonio Ramírez, 3, in Chenalhó, Chiapas, Mexico. Hers is among six families from the Tsotsil community that were forcibly displaced from their homes and lived in a camp for internally displaced people for almost two years.

Oaxaca, Mexico

From left, Susana Gómez, Alejandro García and Erasto Silva publicly request that senators pass a law to address bike safety in Oaxaca, Mexico. Rally attendees printed the names of those killed in accidents on white cloths and displayed them on bicycles to honor their memory.

San Cristóbal de las Casas, Mexico

Magno Morales and Oscar Bautista, members of Colectivo Chuvajetik, paint a mural to commemorate the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia in San Cristóbal de Las Casas, Chiapas, Mexico.

Buenos Aires, Argentina

Malena Szabo, right, holds a sign shaped like a teacher’s smock during a protest in front of a school in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Educators organized the protest to demand virtual classes and coronavirus vaccines after the death of fellow teacher Silvina Flores.

Lalitpur, Nepal

Pigeons scatter across Patan Durbar Square in Lalitpur, Nepal. The streets were empty except for patrolling police during a second lockdown in April as a result of a surge in COVID-19 cases.

Erdenet, Orkhon Province, Mongolia

Uranchimeg Oyunchimeg paints a bench in a shopping district in Erdenet city, Orkhon province, Mongolia. Uranchimeg, who manages this retail area, says, “After the [coronavirus] lockdown is over, everyone will be back to work. I believe that people who come to our shopping street at that time would cheer up and feel happy seeing the colorful, fresh street.”

Mexico City, Mexico

Margarita González rolls cannabis during a workshop about the risks and benefits of different filters and paper at Huerto Roma Verde, an outdoor community center in Mexico City, on International Cannabis Day. González says, “Since I’m a pastry chef, I want to find the perfect balance to achieve the desired effect and a high-quality flavor.”

Chilpancingo, Guerrero, Mexico

José Alonso Castro, known to his friends as Jack Ramón, performs juggling acts on Avenida Juan N. Álvarez in Chilpancingo de los Bravo, Guerrero, Mexico. Urban artists like Alonso came together on one of the city’s main streets to commemorate World Circus Day.

Chihuahua, Mexico

Martín Hernández, 8, and Alonso Prado, 10, members of the Rarámuri community, rest after dancing during a Holy Week celebration in Norogachi, Chihuahua, Mexico. Holy Week, or Semana Santa, is considered the most important festival of the year.

Guerrero, Mexico

Isidro Solano Bernardino makes control lines in the area’s ejido, or communal land, to prevent the spread of fires during this year’s fire season in the Llanos de Tepoxtepec community in Guerrero, Mexico. Solano leads the community’s unofficial fire brigade.

Aguada, Puerto Rico

Construction worker Eduardo Cabán helps restore Parroquia San Francisco Asís, the Catholic church in downtown Aguada, Puerto Rico. The church has been rebuilt multiple times since it was founded in 1692, and it’s undergoing a new restoration while church services are minimized due to the coronavirus.

Jaffna, Sri Lanka

Kanthiah Pusparaja makes a flower garland to sell for personal and religious occasions in the city of Jaffna, Sri Lanka. Pusparaja has been selling garlands since he was 7 years old.

Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Tserenjav Uuganbat patrols the area around the Tolit secondary school to make sure citizens comply with lockdown measures during the strict quarantine in Songinokhairkhan, a district in the Mongolian capital of Ulaanbaatar. Since there aren’t enough police officers to enforce the lockdown, 27,000 civil servants were brought in to help.

Kathmandu, Nepal

In Gairidhara, a neighborhood in Kathmandu, Nepal, Binay Kumar Bista and Barsana Bista, 1, write on the Saraswati temple’s walls with white chalk during Saraswati Puja, a festival that marks the arrival of spring. Barsana is celebrating the festival for the first time, and Bista prays to Saraswati, the goddess of knowledge, for the infant to gain wisdom.

Orkhon Province, Mongolia

Oyunbaatar Narantsogt arranges the altar at Holy Lama Gandan Shadduvlin Monastery, the Buddhist center in Orkhon province, Mongolia, for Tsagaan Sar. The traditional Mongolian holiday celebrates the arrival of spring after a harsh winter and marks the beginning of the lunar calendar.

Entebbe, Uganda

From left, Laurean Dumba, 11, Leticia Segawa, 12, and Jackie Atuhaire, 12, braid the hair of Lucy Nakawala, 11, under a neighborhood mango tree in Entebbe, Uganda. Since schools are closed due to the coronavirus, the children’s parents have begun to teach them skills to help them in the future – and keep them busy now.

Bayandalai, Umnugovi Province, Mongolia

Gansukh Sharavsambuu carries fodder to a storage facility in southern Mongolia’s Umnugovi province. The animal feed will be provided to herders who are suffering from a dzud, a Mongolian term for a severe winter in which it is common for a large number of livestock to die.

Lusaka, Zambia

Anthony Mpolokoso lays a wreath to pay his last respects to Father Charles Chilinda at St. Ignatius Catholic Church in Lusaka, Zambia’s capital. Chilinda died of COVID-19 on Jan. 22. The national government is discouraging funeral gatherings, so St. Ignatius created a space within the church premises for mourners to pay their respects without gathering.

San Cristóbal de las Casas, Mexico

Alberto López Santiz sells balloons and pinwheels in Plaza de la Paz in downtown San Cristóbal de Las Casas, Mexico.

Chihuahua, Mexico

The plaza outside the Cathedral of Chihuahua in Chihuahua, Mexico, usually bustles with older adults who pass time on the benches and families who come to shop at the mobile vendors. The plaza has been closed since November due to the spread of the coronavirus.

Mexico City, Mexico

Luis Espinoza fixes his bicycle at Enchúlame la Bici (Beautify My Bike) a collective workshop in Mexico City, Mexico. The workshop was closed for almost six months to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. When it reopened, the workshop offered a class on basic bicycle maintenance and mechanics.

Bayandalai, Umnugovi, Mongolia

During a traditional ceremony, Buyandalai Ulambayar gallops on his horse while offering horse milk to the air with a tsatsal, a ceremonial wooden milk spoon, in Bayandalai soum, Umnugovi province, Mongolia. During the ceremony, he chants, “Tsegeend tsad,” which means, “May we have plenty of food!”

Kathmandu, Nepal

A stray dog rests in front of a row of shops near the Pashupatinath Temple in Kathmandu, Nepal. All religious sites have been closed since the end of March due to the coronavirus, including the main gate to the Pashupatinath Temple, a sacred site for Hindus. The shops that line the area are normally crowded with tourists, but owners have seen little business during the pandemic.