About the Society
Need to know
The Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) is the UK’s learned society for geography and professional body for geographers. We are also a membership organisation and a registered charity.
The Society was founded in 1830 to advance geographical science and this remains our core purpose. We achieve this through supporting geographical research, education, and fieldwork and expeditions, as well as by advocating on behalf of the discipline and promoting geography to public audiences.
We value our independence as well as the breadth of our activities that support the understanding of the world’s people, places and environments. Everyone with an enthusiasm for geography, travel and exploration is welcome to join.
A message
From the President
As usual, this Bulletin is full of activities and initiatives that demonstrate the wide range of the Society’s work and the impact we’re having as a charitable organisation. While I don’t have favourites, I will admit to a partisan interest in the recent redevelopment and relaunch of the Discovering the Arctic website.
This free, interactive resource for schools was first created more than a decade ago as a result of a partnership between the Society, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, and others including the British Antarctic Survey, where I am the Director.
What happens in the Arctic directly shapes our weather, regulates our climate, influences our food and energy, and affects our security. As the climate and geopolitics of the Arctic change, we directly feel the impacts and the updated content on Discovering the Arctic allows young people to get a real understanding of the issues. Please do encourage any teachers or geography students you know to take a look.
I look forward to meeting many of you at the Monday night lectures, however do remember that even if you can’t make it to South Kensington in person, you can watch the lectures live, or catch up with them later on demand, via the Society’s website.
Image credit: Lucy Pope
Society
News
Council nominations
While there are no Council positions up for election in 2026, there are several vacant committee positions. We are now inviting nominations for: Chair of Conference 2027, Member R&HE Committee, Member Education Committee, Member Professional Practice Committee, Member Expeditions and Fieldwork Committee.
Building improvements
We have recently completed the actions identified by a carbon and energy audit of our building including retrofitting LED lights and lagging our boiler room pipework. This was made possible by an Energy Efficiency Grant from Westminster City Council and aims to reduce our energy costs, energy consumption and carbon emissions.
Christmas gifting
When you give a gift of membership you are not only sharing geographical perspectives and a well informed view of our world, but you are actively supporting the work of the Society. Purchase a Membership or Student Membership by 12 December and the recipient will receive their gift in time for Christmas.
Medals and awards
Nominate a friend or colleague for one of the Society’s medals and awards, which reward and recognise excellence in geography across the breadth of the discipline. There are awards for research, education, communication, and exploration among other areas. Full information is on our website and the deadline for nominations is 16 February 2026.
A great ape at the Society
In early September, internationally renowned Australian artist Lisa Roet installed a 13m (43ft) sculpture of a chimpanzee on the Terrace at the Society as part of a wider call for conversations about climate action and deforestation. Lisa’s inflatable sculptures interrogate human–ape relationships and our environmental safeguarding responsibility.
Gertrude Bell’s slides
With the support of Newcastle University and a private benefactor we have been able to digitise over 500 negatives taken by Gertrude Bell on her journey to Ha’il, Saudi Arabia in 1913-14. The images will be displayed at the Society in 2026, alongside images from Newcastle’s own collections of Bell’s photography.
Image credit: Will Pryce
Education
News
Professional development
We have recently completed the actions identified by a carbon and energy audit of our building including retrofitting LED lights and lagging our boiler room pipework. This was made possible by an Energy Efficiency Grant from Westminster City Council and aims to reduce our energy costs, energy consumption and ca The Society’s continuing professional development (CPD) programme for teachers has been updated for 2026 with the introduction of new training and guidance sessions alongside our popular, established ones. Through a mix of online and in-person events, our CPD supports teachers in addressing contemporary challenges in the classroom with sessions on ‘stretch and challenge’ for students, as well as embedding the carbon and water cycles firmly across the A Level curriculum. Teachers will find many more opportunities to network and stay connected to the latest developments across the discipline with educational visits coordinator training, and careers events that showcase real geographers with real jobs. In addition, recognising the unique needs of geography teachers, our TeachMeets encourage sharing of good practice and networking. More sessions will be announced in the coming months.
Online careers sessions for schools
The Society has partnered with the team behind I’m a geographer, get me out of here to facilitate online geographical careers sessions for schools, introducing students to a host of geographical professionals from employment sectors ranging from coastal management, urban planning, hazard response and sustainability, to GIS, mapping and resource management. Whether you’re a teacher interested in booking a session for your students or a professional keen to chat with young people about how you use geography in your job sign up now to get involved.
Image credit: RGS-IBG
Opportunities with your university
We’re making it easier for teachers to find out about the schools outreach provided by the higher education sector across the UK, which inspires students and provides them with a flavour of university life. We are working with universities to ensure schools are aware of what the HE sector offers and how teachers can make the most of it, including guidance on university applications, open days, summer schools and scholarships, workshops and lectures for school students, access to fieldwork and lab facilities, teacher CPD and more.
Ask the geographer
Our popular Ask the geographer podcast has a new themed series focusing on climate change and sustainability. Each episode brings the latest geographical insights to classrooms through interviews with a host of experts. The series is available to listen to now on our website, Soundcloud and other major podcast platforms.
Image credit: University of Sussex
From the field
News
Funding for exploration, research and teaching
Our grants support the discovery and dissemination of geographical knowledge and the next set of deadlines is fast approaching. We’ve doubled the number of Neville Shulman Challenge Awards available for 2026 and doubled the amount each Award is worth to £10,000. As of 2026 the Society will take on the selection of the recipient of the Gino Watkins Fund Award, which offers up to £4,000 to support research and expeditions to polar regions. If you are interested in storytelling, apply to create a soundscape with the Journey in Audio award, which offers training and audio equipment loans. Support is also available for postgraduate students, early career researchers and teachers.
RGS Explore Resource Hub
Our new searchable, filterable collection of web resources provides detailed information and guidance across key areas of expedition planning, implementation and management. The library of content is aimed at individuals and teams involved in scientific, exploratory, educational, and media-focused expeditions, with anecdotal and personal perspectives from an array of experts and thought leaders. The Resource Hub was developed thanks to the support of the Transglobe Expedition Trust and resources associated with the RGS Explore Weekend have been made possible with the support of Rolex Perpetual Planet Initiative.
Image credit: Alex Scoffield
Research and higher education
News
Geography for all
The Society coordinates its support of geographers from underrepresented communities and minority ethnic backgrounds through the Geography for all project. The current phase of the project focuses on three key areas: community – creating a hub for connection, support, and shared learning; signposting – sharing a curated directory of opportunities, highlighting programmes, scholarships, internships, and career pathways; amplifying anti-racism and decolonial practice – highlighting the work and experiences of those already leading the way in shaping more equitable futures. The project builds on a pilot study and research undertaken by the Society. It draws on our understanding of the key barriers to participation and progression in geography before, during and after university, and highlights the experiences of racially minoritised students.
LSE publication
We are delighted that the next two books in the RGS-IBG book series, the first with LSE Press, will be published open access early in 2026. In Climate Hegemony, Laurie Parsons brings us a human’s-eye view of the climate crisis, drawing on two decades research at the frontline of global development in Cambodia. In Nonauthoritarian Authority, Julian Brigstocke argues that in these shattered times, anti-authoritarianism is not enough: a radical, speculative reinvention of authority is needed.
Image credit: byVlado/Unsplash
New CDAs
We are pleased to be supporting four new PhD students researching our Collections with funding through the Arts and Humanities Research Council Collaborative Doctoral Awards programme. The programme provides an opportunity for doctoral students to acquire new skills while contributing to our Collection’s wider interpretation and impact. Erica Deluchi will delve into Cold War Britain and the sonar instrument which transformed seafloor mapping. Doreen Massey’s unpublished archive will be investigated by Colin Fuchs, while Rosalind Hodgson is looking at The Hakluyt Society travel accounts in relation to British imperial culture and its public legacies. Charuta Ghadyalpatil’s research asks what lies behind the map, focusing on the textual, visual, and epistemological practices that underpin border mapping.
New research group
We are delighted to welcome the Geographies of the Middle East and North Africa Research Group (MENA) to our community of Research and Working Groups. MENA aims to raise the profile of the geographical ideas and practices of the Middle East and North Africa by working closely with diverse civil society movements, organisations, scholars, artists and academic institutions.
Image credit: James Tye
Professional
News
New accreditation
Professional recognition and accreditation through Chartership is a valuable signal of expertise, skills and experience. The Government Geography Profession and the Society have worked together to embed accreditation for public sector geographers across the whole range of geographical practice, from GIS to geomorphology. To recognise that there is a group of specialised analysts who require accreditation within the public sector, we have developed a pathway for public sector analytical specialists with the new post nominal ‘Chartered Geographer: Analysis Function’. This signals an important professional development route for public sector analytical specialists and builds the community of accredited professionals further.
Education guide
Employers and professionals play a crucial part in inspiring the next generation and showing how geography is a career for many. We have published a guide to show how employers can get involved with career education, through events, offering work-based experiences, volunteering for career profiles and much more.
Webinars for professionals
Many of our webinars explore how geography is being used across a wide range of sectors. Many of these can be watched again in the Talks on demand section of our website. Look out for upcoming events exploring food security, housing and infrastructure, and flooding, featuring collaborations with RICS, the Government Geography Profession, AGI and others.
Image credit: James Tye
Events
Highlights
Spring events programme
Wherever you are, our events will transport you to new places, inspire you with new ideas or boost your knowledge with expert discourse. Join us in person at the Society in London and you will find a global community passionate about championing the value of looking at the world through a geographical lens. Most of our London events are available to watch as a livestream or recorded to catch up on later, so you are always part of the conversation. We believe that learning never stops and that understanding our world equips us to rethink our future. This summer we will be hosting talks that unpack border dynamics, examine contemporary conservation issues, and explore strategies for resilience. Alongside this you will hear stories of journeys with purpose from the past and present. With a huge range of webinars and CPD, our events serve to boost your knowledge and skills at all levels.
Image credit: Zula Rabikowska
Conservation technology
Turning data into action
For the last 20 years, Dr Jake Wall has harnessed technology to create freely available geospatial tools for the benefit of wildlife conservation and people. His work demonstrates the growing role of data in driving more effective conservation efforts in Africa and beyond.
In spring 2025, Jake was awarded the Esmond B. Martin Royal Geographical Society Prize for his efforts to equip conservationists with the tools and methods to protect the natural world. This career path was sparked by a chance encounter with renowned conservationist and founder of Save the Elephants, Dr Iain Douglas-Hamilton. Jake’s passion grew upon seeing the possibilities of science and research when applied to conservation, in particular, of elephants.
As individualistic and highly adaptable generalists, elephants aren’t always seen as the most immediate victims of climate change and human encroachment. However, expanding agriculture, increased fencing, poaching and deforestation are all creating real and unique problems for elephants, and the landscapes they depend on. Their intelligence and problem-solving skills often bring them into conflict with people – from breaking electric fencing to raiding crops – making coexistence a key priority for conservationists. Mapping and visualising data from tracking collars over the last 25 years has revealed the subtleties of elephant movement ecology and identified where targeted intervention can have greatest impact. “Tracking data provides us with an incredible and intricate view into where an elephant went and when” Jake told us, “from which we can figure out the environmental conditions it experienced, the types of vegetation it encountered, and possibly who it met along the way. The challenge is to know why the elephant chose the path it did and how can we use that information.”
Research by Iain and Professor Fritz Vollrath in 2004 into ‘streaking’ – the sudden movement of an elephant across long distances – revealed sections where elephants often retrace the same routes in such large numbers that their path forms vital wildlife ‘corridors’ across the landscape. Visualising these movement patterns is persuasive, powerful and brings to life an overlooked issue. Today, those corridors are under growing threat. The rapid expansion of fencing in recent years – increasing by 170% in the Greater Mara alone since 2010 – has disastrous impacts on movement-based ecological processes. Sharing and analysing movement data enables conservationists to identify and protect these critical corridors and maintain habitat connectivity. Such insights have already driven practical solutions, from building wildlife underpasses to allow safe road crossings, to generating support for collaborative initiatives specifically focused on corridors, or community-based conservation institutions which seek to keep different regions free of fences. The accessibility of these datasets and the tools to easily interpret them is essential in a field where funding and resources are limited. Through strategic partnerships, Jake’s ideas and technical solutions have been scaled up, placing greater power and potential in the hands of conservationists worldwide.
Image credit: Adam Bannister
In 2014, Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen funded EarthRanger: an open-source platform for ecosystem monitoring, research and management. It brings together data from hundreds of different types of sensors including tracking collars, satellite imagery and weather stations to present data feeds and create tailored alerts such as when an elephant crosses a virtual boundary. Today, it delivers cutting-edge monitoring to more than 10,000 users globally, and tracks over 23,000 animals via GPS.
Ecoscope is the latest project that builds on these years of work in movement ecology tools. The recently launched platform provides access to ready-made analytics from sources of conservation and remote-sensing data streams. Acting as a library of analysis tools, it allows users to easily engage with the data and generate meaningful outputs, thereby turning conservation data into information to improve decision making, insight and the protection of ecosystems. For Craig Millar at Big Life Foundation the benefits are significant, “Ecoscope has changed the game entirely; at the click of the button, we can make sense of it all, seeing patterns and trends that help us to design more effective conservation responses. This tool completes the loop, quickly turning data inputs into useful outputs.” It is pressingly urgent that we build a future for people and wildlife to coexist. Geographers and GIS specialists are crucial to laying those foundations. “To succeed, we require a new generation of quantitative conservationists” Jake says, “who are not only able to collect and use data to understand and protect ecosystems, but who are, at the core, in love with nature”. The deadline for nominations for the 2026 prize is 15 December 2025.
Summit and beyond
Photography and the power of storytelling
How can photography address the global challenges of our time? This was the question we sought to interrogate by bringing together internationally-renowned photographers, explorers, and experts to converse and connect while offering powerful and thought-provoking discussions on environmental and humanitarian topics.
In September we hosted the inaugural Summit Photo, a three-day event dedicated to photography and photojournalism relating to environmental and humanitarian issues. The Society has a long relationship with photography. Our Collections contain over half a million photographs, artworks, negatives, lantern slides and albums dating from around 1830 which demonstrate the power of an image to document, tell a story, and sometimes cause pain. Today, we see the power to cultivate a greater understanding of our planet’s people, places and environments– to challenge and inspire. Over the course of the event these powerful talks, panel discussions and exhibitions revealed shared experiences and examined salient issues. The first morning saw Marissa Roth and Simon Townsley sit down to examine Simon’s work and the importance of shining a light on some of the most difficult subjects, including combat and poverty-stricken global regions.
Image credit: Zula Rabikowska
In these environments trust and truth are exceptionally important. “You cannot rely on images that are presented to you in the way that you used to because who knows how they were generated and where they come from,” Simon said when asked about the future of photojournalism, “We need to send writers and photographers and broadcasters into the field who we can verify. Whose experiences are validated and shared with us, who we can trust”. He continued to explain that photojournalism has an irreplaceable value in its ethics, balance and ability to interpret context.
Trust is required not just in the audience-photographer dynamic but the subject-photographer relationship where there is great risk of exploitation. Anastasia Taylor-Lind, a British-Swedish photojournalist reporting on issues related to women, war, and violence, spoke at Summit Photo about her work documenting the effects of the war in Ukraine on communities living just behind the front. “An estimated 14% of people in the world live within 5km of an active frontline”, Anastasia told the audience when introducing her project, 5K from the Frontline. Over several years she returned to the same communities and families to document how war can reshape the ordinary. Dedicating time to understanding who someone is not only shows respect but allows an image to become a document. “I am not an activist,” stated Simon during his talk, feeling instead that he is a witness. An image has power, to raise awareness, funds, or alter our understanding. When faced with a new view it is our responsibility to look, and perhaps act. Summit Photo, organised in partnership with the Royal Photographic Society and Photoworks, with official sponsor Rolex, will return next year.
Meet the conference chair
Q&A with Peter Hopkins
The next Annual International Conference will be chaired by Professor Peter Hopkins (Newcastle University, UK) and will take place in London and online, from Tuesday 1 to Friday 4 September 2026. The conference theme, chosen by Peter, is Geographies of inequalities: towards just places.
Tell us about your background and career to date?
As a social geographer, I have always focused on issues of inequality, particularly those relating to the intersections of race, religion, gender, and youth. I’ve recently been working on projects about refugee youth and about primary school children’s experiences of racism. I also have a new book, Everyday Islamophobia (published by Bristol University Press).
What inspired you to choose your theme?
Different forms of inequality – whether associated with the environment, housing, health, or community, and so on – are all around us. Geographers bring a diverse conceptual and methodological skillset to these issues and so are ideally placed to explore different spatial inequalities, understand how, why, and where they exist, and offer possible solutions.
What are the challenges around this topic?
The challenges around researching and understanding inequalities are many and include conceptual and theoretical approaches; the methodological technicalities of charting, mapping, measuring and monitoring injustices, and the ethical, political, and activist sensibilities involved in doing such work.
Image credit: Peter Hopkins
How do you hope delegates respond?
My hope is that delegates reflect on the challenges of inequalities in their work and organise engaging sessions, present important papers, and connect with other geographers on this and related issues. My hope too is that those from many different sub-fields take up this challenge – there really is something here for everyone, irrespective of where your interests sit within geography or the type of research or geographical activities you are drawn to.
Do you have any stand out moments from previous conferences?
There are so many it feels impossible to select only one or two moments. I also often find that connections at conferences or moments of inspiration take a while to settle and come to fruition whether this be through a new contact who you develop an email conversation with after the conference or through people you re-connect with at the conference having not been in touch for a while.
What do you hope to give or take from your role as chair?
As conference chair, I hope to give the geographical community an important and engaging theme around which to organise sessions, alongside thought-provoking keynote sessions on important topics and issues. As with all conferences, I hope to return home feeling energised by the new connections made and the interesting ideas and important research I’ve learnt about.
Who or what inspires you in the discipline today?
I am inspired by research that is theoretically engaged, empirically rich, and rigorously conducted. I’m also inspired by work that is hard-hitting, politically engaged, critical and focused on real-world issues. There are many people involved in doing such work and this is the research that I find most inspiring in the discipline.
Image credit: Neill Bell-Shaw
Venue hire
With its entirely unique historical charm and modern facilities our building elevates all events to memorable and impactful occasions. Host a variety of gatherings at the home of ideas and knowledge-sharing in the heart of South Kensington. From hybrid corporate seminars to lavish receptions we have spaces that will cultivate conversation and connection. Our state-of-the-art, versatile rooms can adapt to fit your needs perfectly, ensuring a smooth, worry-free experience for event organisers and a pleasant experience for guests. We are here to make your event unforgettable with the unique blend of heritage and contemporary excellence only the Royal Geographical Society can offer. Contact us to discuss your vision and save with reduced member rates when you book!
Image credit: Matt Chung