Sharjah24: Xposure International Photography Festival is thrilled to unveil the highly-anticipated second edition of its Conservation Summit, set to take place on February 12th. This year's summit, themed around "Climate Change," will bring together some of the most renowned photographers in the industry to showcase their powerful and impactful work on conservation efforts, and will be a feast for the eyes, as well as the senses.

The summit promises to be an exciting and thought-provoking experience, featuring a series of captivating exhibitions and seminars that delve into the intersection of photography and conservation, and will be a true spectacle of preservation, providing attendees with unparalleled insights and perspectives on the urgent issues at hand. With a lineup of world-class photographers and conservation experts, it will be a visual safari, not to be missed.

Opening Ceremony: Bringing the world together

The summit will commence with an engaging opening ceremony,featuring some of the most renowned and accomplished conservation photographers from around the world.HE Khaled Al Huraimel, Group CEO of BEEAH Group, will be giving a keynote speech at the event, given the group’s leading role in ground-breaking environmental innovations and smart solutions for future-ready cities. This will be followed with a thought provoking panel discussion, exploring the dynamic and powerful role that photography plays in conservation efforts. The panel will be led by none other than James Balog, Carsten Egevang, Esther Horvath, and Robbie Shone, and moderated by Kathy Moran, guaranteeing an unforgettable and enlightening experience.

Exhibitions: Seeing the effects of climate change with your own eyes

‘Greenland Unseen’ by Carsten Egevang is an exhibition featuring photographs from his best-selling book of the same name, published in 2021. The exhibition showcases the unique connections and the strong dependency between humans, animals, and the surrounding environment in Greenland, and is a visual tribute stemming from Egevang’s deep-rooted and enduring fascination with the country.

‘When the Magic Melts in our Hidden Worlds’ by Robbie Shone is an exhibition that focuses on the European ice caves and Alpine glaciers that have seen a major shift in melt over recent years, highlighting the need to document and understand the impact of climate change on these unique environments.

‘Polar Night: A scientific expedition to the Central Arctic Ocean’ by Esther Horvath is an exhibition that focuses on the MOSAiC expedition, an effort by hundreds of experts from 20 nations to investigate the fate of sea ice and the coupled ocean and atmosphere system in the Arctic. The goal of the MOSAiC expedition was to gain fundamental insights into global climate change.

‘James Balog and The Human Element: A Time Capsule From The Anthropocene‘ is an exhibition that focuses on the impact of human activity on the planet through photographs taken by James Balog, highlighting the need for action to protect the environment.

Seminars: Giving a voice to the planet

The first seminar of the day will be ‘Climate Change at the Extremes’ where the panel including James Balog, Carsten Egevang, Esther Horvath, and Robbie Shone discuss the effects of climate change on various regions including the Arctic, Antarctica, and European Alps glacier caves. They stress the importance of raising awareness and finding solutions to tackle climate change.

In ‘The Loss of the Hidden World’ photographer Esther Horvath discusses the effects of rising temperatures on the unique ice caves and European Alps glacier caves and their significance as a source of tourism and scientific research. They hope to raise awareness of their sad demise and inspire action to prevent similar effects on other parts of the planet.

Discussing the effects of global climate change and how photography can be used to communicate these effects, Carsten Egevang hosts his talk titled, ‘Greenland - Lands of Contrasts’, where he stresses how Greenland’s changing landscapes show huge consequences for all living things in the area and around the planet.

During ‘Arctic - Through the Eyes of Explorers’ Esther Horvath reveals the effects of climate change on the Arctic and the importance of research done by scientists and explorers in the region, shedding light on the challenges and importance of their work in understanding the effects of climate change.

There will also be a thought provoking seminar titled ‘Climate Change - The Global Threat’ on the 14th of February, featuring a presentation by Bangladeshi photojournalist Abir Abdullah highlighting the effects of climate change worldwide and the potential for 200 million human climate migrants by 2050. The seminar will discuss how climate change will impact food and water supplies, and lead to an increase in floods and storms.


Through this conservation summit Xposure aims to give a dedicated eco-progressive platform to important global topics, and will be an opportunity for visitors to be inspired, informed, and moved by the power of photography, raising awareness and promoting positive change for our planet, bringing the community together to conserve the world we live in, one frame at a time.