Summit Photo, the Royal Geographical Society's interactive forum, returns from 17–19 July 2026 in London and online, celebrating the power of environmental and humanitarian photography and film-making. The event brings together world-leading photojournalists and film-makers to confront the defining ecological and human challenges of our time.
Flooding and Displacement
Gideon Mendel's photograph captures Terrence McKeen with his mother Gloria in Middleburg after Hurricane Irma. The storm caused flooding over 28 feet, completely submerging their one-storey home. 'There's no way to describe the pain I felt when we returned. My mom and I burst into tears. Everything was gone. Climate change played a big part in this,' Terrence said.
Selene Magnolia Gatti documents pigs that survived a flooded factory farm in Lugo, Emilia-Romagna, Italy, in May 2023. Canals and rivers overflowed after heavy rains and extreme weather, following years of severe drought that compacted the soil, reducing its ability to absorb rainfall. Factory farms can create biological health risks after weather-related catastrophes by contaminating water with pollutants and waste.
Food Insecurity and Economic Crisis
Simon Townsley's image shows Bashirya Murtala, 20, and her two-month-old daughter Rahila in Nigeria. The country faces immense food insecurity after the removal of fuel subsidies and a fragile security environment. Displaced families take refuge in the partially built 'Emir's Palace' in Anka, north-western Zamfara state. Bashirya and Rahila arrived three years ago after being driven off their farm by bandits; her husband now earns just 500 naira a day, a quarter of a British penny.
Plastic Pollution and Wildlife
Mandy Barker's work 'Still Falling, Flesh-Footed Shearwater' responds to the ongoing situation on Lord Howe Island. Barker joined scientists in April 2019 during the short window when fledgling chicks leave their burrows to migrate to the Sea of Japan. Instead, they found birds dying on the shoreline, unable to fly because of the weight of plastic in their stomachs. The species is in increasing decline.
Industrial Hazards and Health
Shahidul Alam's photograph from 2008 shows workers at a shipbreaking yard in Chittagong, Bangladesh, carrying metal sheets weighing up to a ton. Such heavy loads require extreme coordination; a misstep could lead to serious injury or death. Workers die and suffer injuries regularly. Some receive modest compensation, others do not. According to workers, many deaths are simply not registered, with bodies being 'disappeared' by the owners.
Selene Magnolia Gatti also portraits Jan, a local resident living metres from a large pig factory farm in Zeeland, Brabant, Netherlands, in April 2024. Jan's health is affected by the farm's presence, and he is a Q fever survivor still struggling with long-term impacts of the disease.
Social and Political Struggles
Shahidul Alam's 'The cry of the imprisoned' depicts a 2020 protest against the imprisonment of journalists, writers, poets, cartoonists and other artists under Bangladesh's Digital Security Act. The event featured songs, poetry, drama, illustrations and film at Shahbag Square in Dhaka. A record number of arrests were made during the Covid-19 period. Artists Sohan Mahmud, Humaira Fehrooz and Khuddho Ganguly performed at the event.
Migration and Refuge
Giles Duley's photograph shows Aya, 7, who has spina bifida. After losing her Syrian home in 2012, her family fled to Lebanon, camping by a cement factory. Conditions were difficult, and they moved to Tripoli before relocating to France. 'Aya struggles to sleep,' explained Sihan, 'but on the first night I was able to say to her, "it's OK Aya, this is your home now."' Aya is now in school, receiving full support for her medical needs, and fully integrated in her local community.
Cultural and Environmental Memory
Rhiannon Adam's image shows three generations of Muslim women on the banks of Lake Salda, known as 'the Turkish Maldives', which is Earth's closest match to the geology and mineralogy of the Jezero crater on Mars. To avoid Haram, the women's backs are turned away from the camera.
Erdiola Kanda Mustafaj, recipient of the Hidden Narratives Residency, presents 'The landscape of shadows from An Unusual Face', Stockholm, 2025. The residency embeds contemporary artistic practice in the Royal Geographical Society's image collection, activating the archive as a site of enquiry where photographs are re-read through present crises. Mustafaj's selection reflects a shared institutional interest in landscape, displacement and environmental memory.
Animal Welfare
Aaron Gekoski's 'Under the Lights' shows an elephant carrying riders through Colombo streets during the Perahera procession. The heavy fabric obscures her ears, restricting movement and limiting one of the primary ways of regulating body heat, while exposed to loud music and crowds. Elephants are central to the Perahera, symbolising power, protection, and continuity, but welfare concerns persist.
Summit Photo is organised in partnership with the Royal Geographical Society, Photoworks and the Royal Photographic Society, supported by official sponsor Rolex.
