"It stood out for me for a number of reasons. The first, and by far the most important to me, being that the composition is absolutely gorgeous." - Tim Clinch, Amateur Photographer "Packed with compelling visuals and important discussions around some of the planet's biggest issues, it's an excellent compendium of some of the world's best photographers working today." - Amateur Photographer "As compelling in its visuals as it is in its messaging, Fire is an unforgettable document." - Jonathan McIntosh, Royal Photographic Society Journal Fire is the fourth element. It destroys and creates something new. In its heat, colours, and magnitude, it provides a terrifying spectacle as much as an existential threat. Today, it speaks as much to the fragility of human structures as to the damage wrought on nature: the fire at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, forest fires from the Amazon to Australia, and infernos in California so colossal that the sky turned red. Reason enough for the Prix Pictet, the world's leading award for photography and sustainability, to dedicate this year's photo book to the many facets of fire. Selected by photography experts from around the world, this impressive publication features 100 images from the Prix Pictet shortlist and beyond. As compelling in its visuals as it is in its messaging, this is an unforgettable document of an elemental force, and of the increasing extremes of climate change.

In the 1830s, a small community known as El Fronton de Santa
Isabel set roots on the banks of the Laguna Madre Bay. Official claim for the land was granted to Don Rafael Garcia as part of the
Potrero ("Pasture") de Santa Isabel in 1828. Less than two decades
later, Point Isabel was home to Zachary Taylor's Fort Polk and found itself a home base during the Mexican-American War. In 1853, construction was completed on the Point Isabel lighthouse, a
navigational beacon with a 16-mile view. Port Isabel was incorporated in 1928, and a deep-water port shipped its first commercial load in 1937. By the 1950s, Port Isabel was the "Shrimping Capital of the World," and the first Queen Isabella Causeway connected South Padre Island to the mainland. Port Isabel continues to deepen its roots on the banks of the Laguna Madre Bay. Heritage and cultural tourism, a relaxed quality of life, and an appreciation for all things coastal are synonymous with Port Isabel.