People of the desert

Nomadic herders and traders of the central Sahara, famous for their indigo-dyed veils that stain the skin — earning them the name "the blue people". For centuries they guided camel caravans across the dunes.

Arab nomads who have roamed the deserts of Arabia and North Africa for thousands of years, living in woven tents and herding camels and goats across the sands, moving with the seasons and the rains.

Among the oldest continuous cultures on Earth, the San are master trackers and foragers of the Kalahari, able to find water and food where outsiders see only scrub and sand.

First Nations peoples have lived in Australia’s deserts for tens of thousands of years, navigating by songlines and holding deep knowledge of waterholes, bush food and the land.

Semi-nomadic herders of north-west Namibia, known for coating their skin and hair in otjize — a bright red paste of ochre and butterfat that protects them from the harsh desert sun.

Herders of the Gobi live in portable round felt tents called gers, raising hardy Bactrian camels, goats and horses across one of the coldest deserts on Earth.