The 20 photos of 2016 that shine a light on the power of good.

January 3, 2017

A photo essay dedicated to everyone who helped make the world a better place in 2016.

From the front lines of the Syrian conflict to remote Australia, we shine the light on hope and goodness. When it seems like the world’s overflowing with suffering and injustice, never forget countless acts of kindness and compassion are happening every second of every day.

Click through the gallery below to view the moving photos and their descriptions.

Our 20 best photos of 2016.

Mediterranean Sea, Europe. Image via Yara Nardi/Italian Red CrossMigrants rescued from the Mediterranean Sea are given blankets, medical help, food and water aboard the search and rescue vessel Responder. International Red Cross medical teams on the vessel have been working to the save lives of those trying to cross the sea. This “floating ambulance” — launched in August — is a joint life-saving mission between the Italian Red Cross and the independent charity Migrant Offshore Aid Station. “This vessel is a buoy of hope that will save lives and alleviate human suffering,” said Elhadj As Sy, IFRC Secretary General. Photo: Yara Nardi/Italian Red Cross.

Maiwut, South Sudan. Image via ICRC/Albert Gonzalez Farran.Medical professionals from around the world work with the International Committee of the Red Cross at this hospital in the small town of Maiwut, in South Sudan. As the only functioning health facility in southern Upper Nile State, it allows nearly 120,000 people to gain access to medical and surgical care. Here Australian aid worker and pediatric nurse Jessica Hazelwood and her team attend to five-month-old Nyanene — the generator cut and the oxygen machine stopped, causing the baby’s heart rate to drop.Maiwut hospital is located in the Upper Nile region about 20 kilometers from Gambella. It is the only medical facility in the region providing surgical and advanced health care to the nearly 80,000 people living there. The ICRC currently supports seven medical and primary health care facilities in South Sudan. Since January this year ICRC teams have performed more than 1,600 surgeries. Photo by Albert Gonzalez Farran - ICRC

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Katherine, Northern Territory. Image via Australian Red Cross/Dilini Perera.Staff and residents at Red Cross’ Kalano Flexible Care facility in the Northern Territory farewell four residents as they begin the journey back home to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Wave Hill Walk-Off. The walk-off was a historic protest about working conditions and Aboriginal land rights. The Kalano centre, which we help a local Aboriginal organisation to run, is a home for vulnerable aged Aboriginal people from Katherine and other regions.

Settimo Torinese, Italy. Image via Andreea Anca/IFRCSerena Corniglia (35) volunteers at the migrant facility in Settimo Torinese, Italy. Here she is photographed with Promise (20) from Nigeria who left her country in March and arrived to Italian shores on a boat in October. “I love working with the migrants, this work gives me so much. Often they share an important piece of their life with me or their wisdom. This is very precious, I take it as a gift from life. These people go through the worse and they are still smiling. I learn so much from them.” Serena has been a Red Cross volunteer for 16 years. Photo: Andreea Anca/IFRC.

Cap à Fou, Carcasse, Haiti. Image via Marko Kokic/Canadian Red Cross.Elizabeth Hinston, a nurse with Canadian Red Cross emergency response unit mobile clinic, examines three-month-old Fleurime Bedchina. The Canadian Red Cross clinic was the first humanitarian assistance to reach the remote community of Cap à Fou, Carcasse after Hurricane Mathew hit the country in October. Photo: Marko Kokic/Canadian Red Cross.

Homs, Syria. Image via Abdulaziz Al-droubi / Syrian Arab Red Crescent.An ambulance crew from Syrian Arab Red Crescent move a patient on a stretcher through the snow in the city of Homs, towards a waiting ambulance, on the first day of 2016. Volunteers of Syrian Arab Red Crescent provided first aid in the city of Homs on New Year’s Day, despite the difficult weather conditions. Syrian Arab Red Crescent is the main provider of assistance to those in need throughout the conflict ravaged country. Photo: Abdulaziz Al-droubi / Syrian Arab Red Crescent.

Manila, Philippines. Image via Australian Red Cross/Cheryl Gagalac.Tia and her little cousin live with their mum Rhoda in downtown Manila in the Philippines. With its tight alleys and multiple power lines, their neighbourhood is highly vulnerable to fire. Red Cross has been helping Tia and Rhoda’s community to get its fire plan ready, including an early warning system, evacuation plans, fire fighting equipment and a partnership with the local fire brigade. Photo: Australian Red Cross/Cheryl Gagalac

South Australia. Image via Australian Red Cross/Brenton Niemz.Red Cross and the Ceduna Youth Hub have teamed up to support young people in Ceduna and the Far West Region of South Australia. The collaboration focuses on placing young people at the centre of their own, and their communities’, development. This photo was taken on a school holiday field trip, where young people took the lead in navigating the drive, cooking lunch and running activities. Photo: Australian Red Cross/Brenton Niemz.

Sydney, New South Wales. Image via Australian Red Cross/Dilini Perera.Every year countless people donate gifts to others who’re going through hard times. This Christmas our corporate supporters, in partnership with Uber, collected almost 1,000 toys for us to pass on to children in Sydney and Melbourne. We are sure each and every toy will be cherished and played with for years to come. Photo: Australian Red Cross/Dilini Perera.

Amatrice region, Italy. Image via Gianluca Fortunato/Italian Red Cross.Volunteers from the Italian Red Cross provided first aid and emotional support to survivors of a devastating 6.2 magnitude earthquake that hit the country’s Amatrice area in August. “Our volunteers are with survivors now and trying to help them come to terms with this disaster,” said Italian Red Cross’ Tommaso Della Longa. Our Italian colleagues also sent search and rescue teams, sniffer dogs and ambulances in to search for people in the rubble. Photo: Gianluca Fortunato/Italian Red Cross.

Chikwawa district, Malawi. Image via Victor Lacken/IFRC.Schoolchildren in Malawi’s drought-affected Chikwawa district queue to wash their hands before receiving food from Malawi Red Cross. As food became scarce because of the drought, which caused many crops to fail, there was an increase in school dropouts. Children are less likely to go to school if they haven’t enough to eat and many seek casual employment instead. But since the school feeding program started in May schools have seen sharp increases in enrolments, an indication of just how serious the food shortages are. Photo: Victor Lacken/IFRC.

Rakiraki, Fiji. Image via Navneet Narayan/IFRC.Hundreds of local Red Cross staff and volunteers provided support to those who had lost their loved ones, their homes, and their livelihoods when Tropical Cyclone Winston hit Fiji in February. The cyclone was the most powerful in Fiji’s history. Fiji Red Cross emergency response teams went into affected communities to assess the damage and deliver vital supplies. Those teams were able to reach some of the worst affected communities. The Australian community gave more than $4.2 million to Australian Red Cross appeal to provide humanitarian support. Photo: Navneet Narayan/IFRC.

Tiwi Islands, Northern Territory. Image via Australian Red Cross/Kerry Klimm.On the Tiwi Islands, in the Arafura Sea north of Darwin, Red Cross volunteers and staff are supporting the community to improve health and well-being and build the leadership skills of their young people. In September the island community staged a heartfelt welcoming ceremony to mark the opening of our new centre. Photo: Australian Red Cross/Kerry Klimm.

Betio, Kiribati. Image via Australian Red Cross/Darren James.In Kiribati we’re working with people to build their own toilets and install their own water tanks, which will bring better health for everyone. In most villages in this island group, which lie halfway between Australia and Hawaii, very few people have access to clean water or toilets. Photo: Australian Red Cross/Darren James.

Kaikoura, New Zealand. Image via Simon Makker/New Zealand Red Cross.More than 140 staff and volunteers from New Zealand Red Cross helped after an earthquake struck the country in November. They worked in the worst-affected areas, running community centres, going door-to-door, providing support and comfort, and distributing food, water and other essential supplies.“The need is great,” says New Zealand Red Cross Secretary General Tony Paine. Photo: Simon Makker/New Zealand Red Cross.

Nigeria. Image via ICRC/Ramin Hasshempour.Australian aid worker Dorsa Nazemi-Salman is based in Nigeria’s south, where for the last two years she has been coordinating the Red Cross humanitarian response to the country’s ongoing crisis. In Nigeria hundreds of thousands of people have been forced from their homes by violence and insurgency. Photo: ICRC/Ramin Hasshempour.

Gold Coast, Queensland. Image via Australian Red Cross/Susan Cullinan.Our volunteers supported more than 2,200 members of the public after four people died and two children were injured on a ride at the Gold Coast’s Dreamworld theme park in Queensland. Tragedies affect different people in different ways and our volunteers were there to provide emotional support and information to help people cope. “It’s normal for many people to feel distressed after an event such as this. In this case, many people will have visited the park and been on the ride so may feel a sense of shock,” said Red Cross Queensland Director Leisa Bourne. Photo: Australian Red Cross/Susan Cullinan.

Geelong, Victoria. Image via Australian Red Cross/Trina Dakin.Every November the city of Geelong holds the iconic Gala Day Parade. This year the parade, which started as a fundraiser to help Red Cross provide comforts to WWI soldiers and nurses, celebrated its 100th year. Red Cross people have participated in Gala Day since it began, and this year to celebrate the centenary, most of the contingent — who ranged in age from two to 82 — dressed in historic uniforms. These days this community-wide celebration raises funds for University Hospital Geelong Annual Appeal. Photo: Australian Red Cross/Trina Dakin.

Erbil, Iraq. Image via IRCS/ Safin Ahmed.Even in the hardest of times, people can find reasons to smile. This glimpse of life in a relief camp near Erbil, in northern Iraq. Iraqi Red Crescent Society teams have been helping to set up camps like these and assisting people who have fled fighting in and around the besieged city of Mosul. Along with setting up the camps, Red Cross has been organising food, water and psychosocial support for the people who have fled and are suffering. Photo: IRCS/ Safin Ahmed.

Brisbane, Queensland. Image via Australian Red Cross/Lara Cole.Twice a week our Night Cafe provides Brisbane’s young homeless people with a safe space away from the streets, free hot meals, showers, first aid, information and support. “The young people at the Night Café are often up for a chat and really seem to enjoy the sense of community and as result develop a sense of belonging. The need for connection is just as strong as the need for food.,” says Brianne Terpstra, who helps run the cafe. Helping out is a family affair for Brianne — who comes from Canada — her partner donates most of the shoes given to those who visit the cafe. Photo: Australian Red Cross/Lara Cole.

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