Entry Title: " Environmental migrants: the last illusion. Ulaan Baator"
Name: Alessandro Grassani, Italy
Category: Professional, Environmental


Entry Description: 2008 became the point of no return: for the first time in history there are more people living in cities than in rural areas. Over the years, cities are growing even larger due to climate change and to “environmental migrants”, who are destined to become the new humanitarian emergency of the planet in the next few decades. Environmental migrants are people who, escaping from environmental stresses don’t “land” in the richer nations, but look for new ways of livelihood in the urban areas of their home countries, which are already overcrowded and often extremely poor.

Alessandro Grassani was born in Pavia, in 1977. He graduates in photography at the Riccardo Bauer Institute of Milano, where he lives. He begins his career as a photographer in the advertising industry but over the years his interest for documentary photography prevails and takes him around the world covering international events and stories that are socially concerned. He is represented by LUZphoto agency and his works have been published in some of the most renowned international magazines such as: Time magazine, The Sunday Times, Der Spiegel, Diaries Japan, National Geographic, Mare, L’ Equipe Magazine, Vanity Fair (Italy), D di Repubblica, Internazionale, Sette. Grassani's corporate clients include Enel SPA, Lufthansa, FerroviedelloStato (the Italian State railway company), CommerzBank and ICE (Italian foreign trade institution). His images are part of the FNAC Collection and the Holocaust Museum of Jerusalem Collection. He exhibited his work in the following personal and collective exhibitions: Magistrat Gallery (Slovenia, 2011), Les Rencontres d’Arles (France, 2010), Palazzo delle Esposizioni di Roma (Italy, 2010), Jeani Madsen Gallery (USA, 2009), FNAC Galleries (different countries of Europe, 2009), Palazzo Ducale di Genova (Italy, 2008), SI Fest – Savignano Immagini Festival (Italy, 2006), Galleria Belvedere (Italy, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009), FotoGrafia – Festival Internazionale di Roma (Italy, 2003). Grassani has been honored with some of the most coveted awards in photojournalism such as Terry O’Neill Award - Shortlisted (2011), SOFA Global World Photo Award – Honourable Mention (2011), IPA (International Photography Awards) – 3rd Prize, People Story (2011), Memorial Mario Giacomelli - Honourable Mention (2010), FNAC Contest - Honourable Mention (2007). In October 2011, his last work on the environmental migrants in Mongolia has been awarded with 15th Luis Valtueña International Humanitarian Photography Prize – 1st Prize.