Join us
Orange welcome sign that reads Royal Geographical Society with IBG.

Become a member and discover where geography can take you.

Join us
A local resident of Fuvemeh, Ghana, standing on a beach while leaning against the wall of a building damaged by coastal erosion.

Earth Photo 2021

View the winners of the 2021 Earth Photo competition.

Overall winner

The winner of the 2021 Earth Photo competition is Rosie Hallam for her stunning triptych A Right to an Education depicting one family’s story: daughter Selamaw, the first person in her family to stay on at school past primary age, her mother Meselech, and finally her father Marco, who are all subsistence farmers participating in an education programme in Ethiopia.

Two portrait photos of local farmers in Ethiopia.
© Rosie Hallam

These images exemplify hope and possibility, and were awarded for their sensitive portrait style, but also for trying to interpret the world with an eye towards positive change by raising awareness of the importance of literacy.

Education is both a basic human right and a smart investment. It is critical for development and helps lay the foundations for social wellbeing, economic growth and security, gender equality, and peace.

Visit Rosie's website

The 2021 category winners

  • Place category - Edward Bateman, Half Dome in Winter
  • Nature category - Markus van Hauten, Blue Pool
  • Video category - Pierpaolo Mittica and Alessandro Tesei, Semipalatinsk Polygon, the crime of nuclear testing
  • Changing Forests category - Roberto Bueno, Forest Like Garden
  • A Climate of Change category - Antonio Pérez, The Sea Moves Us, the Sea Moves (Fuvemeh, Ghana)
A blue, geothermal spring in a rugged, desolate mountainous landscape.
© Markus van Hauten
  • A blue, geothermal spring in a rugged, desolate mountainous landscape.
  • A lush forest juxtaposed against a human-made stepped vineyard.
  • Sepia-coloured 3D-printed reconstruction of a the Half Dome summit in Yosemite, California.
  • A local resident on the beach of Fuvemeh, Ghana, posing in the doorless doorway of a building affected by coastal erosion.

Pierpaolo Mittica and Alessandro Tesei: The Semipalatinsk Polygon, the crime of nuclear testing video

Previous competitions

To view all winning and shortlisted entries from previous competitions, visit the Earth Photo archive.