Photographers, filmmakers, geographers, members and friends gathered at the Society yesterday evening to celebrate this year's Earth Photo competition winners. 

Out of over 1,500 entries from around the world, 10 outstanding photography and film projects received prizes in an award ceremony which took place in the Ondaatje Theatre. 

All the winning works were commended for being visually compelling while also offering a striking reminder of the climate crisis and the profound environmental and social impacts it is having across the globe. 

The overall Earth Photo 2025 winner was Lorenzo Poli for his work Autophagy which depicts an abandoned miners' town at the Chuquicamata mine in Chile. Upon receiving the award, Lorenzo spoke about the talks he organises at schools and universities to share learnings from his work which "delve into the relationship between land, environment and the human."

Society Fellow and expedition photographer Martin Hartley gave a powerful keynote speech about the importance of photography in helping us to "watch the Earth, and study it, and learn from it". He said "allow yourself to look at photographs, allow yourself to not be distracted... and feel whatever the photograph is trying to tell you, that's when change can happen and that's the benefit of photography".

After the ceremony, guests enjoyed the exhibition of winning and shortlisted works on display in the Pavilion and the opportunity to chat to the artists about their works. 

This year's Earth Photo 2025 winners are:

Earth Photo 2025
Lorenzo Poli for Autophagy

Royal Geographical Society - Climate of Change Award
Liam Man, for his series Carcass of the Ice Beast

Forestry England - Forest Ecosystem Award
Mateo Borrero, for his photograph Waterline

Moving Image Award
Mohammad Rakibul Hasan and Fabeha Monir, for their film The Taste of Honey

David Wolf Kaye Future Potential Award - Photo 
Issam Chorrib, for his photograph La Hepica – Consumed Living Spaces

David Wolf Kaye Future Potential Award - Film
Miranda Barton, for her film Soft Fascination

Photoworks Digital Residency Award and Sidney Nolan Trust Residency Prize
Shane Hynan, for his series Beneath | Beofhód

New Scientist Editors Award for a photographer
Vivian Wan for Rotary Screw Taps

New Scientist Editors Award for a filmmaker
Adam Sebire, for his film Sikorluppoq ('the sea ice is not good')

See all the winning images and films

The Earth Photo exhibition is open on weekdays until 20 August at the Society. It is also touring the UK until April 2026 at Forestry England and National Trust sites, as well as at Bowood House, Syon Park and at the Sidney Nolan Trust.

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