Abigael Nelima, 5, plays with a homemade toy made of string tied to an empty plastic bottle beside her family’s home in Kitale, Kenya on February 17, 2024. Her mother Rose says, “For tonight, we have no plan [for what to eat] because I woke up in the morning planning to go for casual work but most of the farms have not started casual work. Even yesterday, we slept without eating.”

Rose Nekesa works in her family's small plot of land in rural Kitale, Kenya on February 17, 2024.

Eldoret, Kenya, a larger town about a one hour drive from Kitale on February 13, 2024. The main issue in Kenya right now is the change in rain patterns. It used to be that December through February was the dry season, rain would come in March, and then farmers could plant corn. Because rain is coming at irregular times and different intensities, farmers don’t know when to plant in order to yield a full harvest.

Leah Adionyi sits in her home in the rural outskirts of Kitale, Kenya on February 14, 2024. She and her husband Francis Osoro have six children. Climate change has brought increased rains to Kenya in the past few years, and because their family’s home is not on high ground, they are at further risk because their crops often flood. Leah was also diagnosed with pneumonia and tuberculosis last year. She’s recovering but not strong enough yet to do casual work to support her family.

Francis Oroni works in their small plot of land on February 14, 2024. He says, “There was too much water that affected our harvest [even though] we use manure and fertilizer from the shops. The [fertilizer] prices have gone very high but the government has brought a subsidy.” But because of the increased rains, their family doesn’t have enough food—and certainly not enough to sell so they can use the profit to pay school fees and keep all their children in school. “This forces us to look for other casual jobs to put food on the table,” he says.

Metrine Mulongo feeds her cow a banana stalk, a common food for cows in Kenya, on February 17, 2024. Metrine and her husband have a slightly higher income than most families living in flood zones because they live on higher ground which is less likely to flood during the heavy rains. As a result, they have not had to start selling off their livestock yet and still retain the milk produced by their cow.

Metrine Mulongo washes clothes using water from her well on February 17, 2024. Her husband is a carpenter and has had less work in the last couple months because it’s been raining during the dry season. Since he works outside, he can’t do any work when it’s raining which reduces their family’s overall income.

Metrine Mulongo's niece Naomi Nasimiyu bathes her son David, 1, in Kitale, Kenya on February 17, 2024. Affording school fees was a long standing challenge for Naomi's family but when she became pregnant, it was the final straw keeping her from attending traditional school. In January of 2024, she started her first of three years at a trade school where she is learning skills in tailoring and in permaculture which will help her family withstand the strain from climate change. She's also raising her son as a single mother: “Despite the challenges I passed through, when I see my son, I always tell myself that he is not an accident and I am strong for him.”

Naomi Nasimiyu sits with her son David, 1, and another student's child in a residence hall at Neema, the trade school she attends in Kitale, Kenya on February 17, 2024.

Naomi Nasimiyu's son David, 1, naps in a residence hall at Neema, the trade school she attends in Kitale, Kenya on February 17, 2024.

Farm manager Enoch Shamala walks in his permaculture farm at a trade school, Neema, in Kitale, Kenya on February 15, 2024. The main issue in Kitale right now is the change in rain patterns. It used to be that December through February was the dry season, rain would come in March, and then farmers could plant corn. But at the end of March this year, it is still dry so for those who have planted, their crops may all die. Because rain is coming at irregular times and different intensities, farmers don’t know when to plant in order to yield a full harvest.

Bernadette Wanjala, an employee at a trade school in Kitale, Kenya, works at the school's permaculture farm on February 16, 2024.

Alice Juma sits with her son Bravin, 1, at school in Kitale, Kenya on February 17, 2024. Alice's mother passed away when she was young and her father is an alcoholic who doesn’t support Alice and her son. She is now gaining an education that will enable to provide for herself, her son, her father, and her siblings. At school, she is learning techniques of farming in permaculture so she can help her family generate income and reduce expenses such as purchasing vegetables.