The Society's popular Monday night lecture series features renowned speakers discussing informative, educational and enlightening subjects.
The lectures are open to members and Fellows. On some occasions, members and Fellows are invited to bring one guest - please check the listings below or your Bulletin in advance.
- Booking is not required to attend Monday night lectures
- Seats are not reserved and are offered on a first come, first served basis
- Please show your Society membership card on arrival
- For lectures open to members plus one guest, guests arriving separately should be met at the Exhibition Road entrance
- Doors open at 5.30pm
- Attendees are requested to take their seats in the Ondaatje Theatre by 6.20pm
- Lectures begin at 6.30pm, and end by 7.45pm
RGS-IBG members can watch recent Monday night lectures online at their convenience, by signing in to the members' only area.
Heart of the hero: the remarkable women behind polar exploration
Kari Herbert
- Monday 8 April 2013 at 6.30pm (members and one guest)
- Supper available after this lecture
Author Kari Herbert presents a fascinating insight into the lives of some of the world’s most famous polar explorers through the eyes of the women who inspired them to achieve great things.
This lecture is a repeat of the 26 February 2013 City lecture held at the Clothworkers’ Hall.
Opportunity to meet other members
Join the Younger Members’ Committee for an informal get together after the lecture and opportunity to meet other members in the Map Room.
What has nature ever done for us?
Tony Juniper
- Monday 15 April 2013 at 6.30pm (members only)
From bees to vultures and from trees to plankton, natural systems underpin our human welfare and development. Drawing on the themes in his new book, Tony will speak on how the economy is a wholly-owned subsidiary of ecology.
This lecture will be repeated at the Clothworkers’ Hall on 23 April 2013.
Colliding continents: the geological exploration of the Himalaya, Karakoram, and Tibet
Professor Mike Searle
- Monday 22 April 2013 at 6.30pm (members only)
Geologist Mike Searle gives a beautifully illustrated talk on his field research and expeditions in many remote locations, over 25 years, to understand the evolution of the world’s greatest mountain system – the Himalaya and the adjacent Tibetan Plateau and Karakoram Ranges.
Mao’s Great Famine
Frank Dikötter
- Monday 29 April 2013 at 6.30pm (members and one guest)
- Supper available after this lecture
Frank Dikötter talks about the research behind Mao’s Great Famine, the book that won him the Samuel Johnson Prize for Non-Fiction in 2011.
Inspiring young people through fieldwork
- Monday 13 May 2013 at 6.30pm (members and one guest)
- Supper available after this lecture
The Society’s Learning & Leading programme changes the lives and aspirations of young people from less advantaged circumstances, offering them opportunities to develop, learn and become leaders through overseas fieldwork and geographically focused gap year experiences. Come and share their stories.
Opportunity to meet other members
Join the Younger Members’ Committee for an informal get together after the lecture and opportunity to meet other members in the Map Room.
A South Indian journey
Michael Wood
- Monday 20 May 2013 at 6.30pm (members only)
A long time traveller in Tamil Nadu, broadcaster and historian Michael Wood reflects, with the aid of many of his own photographs, on what has been called the last surviving classical civilisation and on the relationships between geography, climate and culture.
Open afternoon, Annual General Meeting (AGM), medals and awards, annual reception
Join us for our open afternoon from 1.30-4.00pm to discover more about the Society, meet staff and tour the building. The AGM business meeting starts at 4.30pm, followed by the medals and awards celebration hosted by the President in the Ondaatje Theatre from 6.15-7.30pm. Entry to all three events is free to Fellows and members, please bring your membership card along on the day.
Tickets are required for the annual reception from 7.30pm-9.15pm, priced £17.50 and should be booked in advance (a maximum of two tickets per RGS-IBG member).
Further details will available online from April 2013 and sent out with the AGM mailing in May 2013.
Measured, recorded and then what?
Paul Boyle
- Monday 4 March 2013 at 6.30pm (member and one guest)
- Supper available after this lecture
The Government collects data about us all but are we gaining the best use from it? Paul Boyle, ESRC Chief Executive, uses fascinating examples to argue that the UK could lead the world in using routinely collected data to give new research insights into the UKs changing society, while protecting the public's right to privacy.
Opportunity to meet other members
Join the Younger Members’ Committee for an informal get together after the lecture and opportunity to meet other members in the Map Room.
World routes
Lucy Durán and James Parkin
- Monday 11 March 2013 at 6.30pm (members only)
BBC Radio 3’s World Routes music team share their travel experiences recording and documenting littleknown village artists and musical traditions all over the world. This lecture is a repeat of the 27 November 2012 lecture held at The Clothworkers’ Hall.
The butterfly isles
Patrick Barkham
- Monday 18 March 2013 at 6.30pm (member and one guest)
- Supper available after this lecture
Author and butterfly enthusiast Patrick Barkham explores the challenges and joys of going in search of Britain’s 59 species of butterfly, and the miraculous ways they have adapted—or not—to our changing countryside.
A wildlife photographer’s journey
Andy Rouse
- Monday 25 March 2013 at 6.30pm (member and one guest)
- Supper available after this lecture
Recipient of the Society’s 2012 Cherry Kearton Medal and Award for nature photography Andy Rouse takes us on a trip around the world’s wildlife by way of his favourite and most memorable wildlife images.
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Scroll through the calendar below, then click on a title to view details of a lecture: