The lecture will explore examples of how careful research can be the foundation of progress towards a better world. The 2025 Esmond B. Martin RGS-IBG Prize will also be presented.
Esmond B. Martin was a renowned American geographer and conservationist who passed away in 2018 in tragic circumstances. You can read his obituary in the Geographical Journal.
Esmond left an endowment for the Society to award an annual prize in his name - the Esmond B. Martin Royal Geographical Society Prize. The Prize consists of one or two annual prizes that recognise outstanding achievement by individuals (not organisations) in the pursuit and/or application of geographical research across the breadth of the discipline, with a particular emphasis on wildlife conservation and environmental research studies.
The Society dedicates one Monday night lecture per year to an event that marks the Prize and sees it awarded.
Attending in-person
- All Fellows and Members wanting to attend in person must pre-book a free ticket. You will receive an e-ticket with a QR code that will be scanned on arrival. Your ticket can be shown on a mobile phone or printed. If you do not have a smartphone, we can find your name on the door list instead.
- Doors open at 5.30pm. Please use the Society's entrance on Exhibition Road.
- Monday night lectures are held in person in the Ondaatje Theatre. The bar will be open in the Map Room before and after the lecture. Please be advised all payments are card only.
- The Ondaatje Theatre is fitted with a hearing loop. For the best quality sound we recommend sitting on the outside rows of the front seating section.
- There is step free access to the theatre. Wheelchair spaces can be booked in advance. If you have any questions about the venue, please contact events@rgs.org
Watch online
- You do not need to pre-book to watch the lecture online.
- All Monday night lectures are livestreamed via our website so you can watch them from wherever you are.
If you have any questions or require assistance with your booking, please email events@rgs.org
Venue information
This event will be held in the Ondaatje Lecture Theatre at Royal Geographical Society (with IBG), 1 Kensington Gore, London, SW7 2AR.
Doors open at 5.30pm. The lecture will begin at 6.30pm.
Plan your visit to the Society and find more information about our venue, including our address, accessibility and transport links.
About Monday night lectures
Our Monday night lectures are exclusive to Fellows and Members and are included in the cost of membership. Members can book to attend the lectures in-person at the Society, or enjoy them live from the comfort of your own home.
These lectures are also recorded and uploaded to our website solely for members to catch up on whenever they like. If you would like to receive a weekly reminder email about the upcoming Monday night lecture, please sign up to our Updates about our Monday night lectures newsletter.
- Lecture
The Earth transformed: the meeting of geography, history and science
The Earth’s environment affects its civilizations in myriad ways, with prominent historical examples showing the connections between climate and social phenomena. Historian Peter Frankopan will discuss the intersections of geography, history, and science in conversation with the Society’s Cartographic Collections Manager, Katie Parker.
Royal Geographical Society (with IBG)Open to allMonday 31 March 2025 - Lecture
The Mappa Mundi project: changing the world by changing how we view it
Inspired by a map of the world made in 1300 by German nuns, Sandi Toksvig is looking to reassess how we chart what we know.
Royal Geographical Society (with IBG)Open to allMonday 14 April 2025 - Lecture
Mulu: a remarkable rainforest mountain in Sarawak
Dr Paul Chai, the senior forest botanist on the survey of the Gunung Mulu National Park by the RGS and the Sarawak Forestry Department in 1977-1978 gives an update on the park, highlighting past and future research opportunities for those visiting the magnificent limestone caves and tropical forests of this legendary UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Royal Geographical Society (with IBG)Open to allMonday 28 April 2025
