Panel on Climate Photography: The Line Between Evidence, Empathy and Exploitation

Photography has the power to bear witness to the climate crisis, but it also risks perpetuating stereotypes, sensationalism, or even exploitation. This panel explores how climate photography navigates the line between evidence and empathy — and how it can responsibly represent the unequal impacts of the climate crisis.

German climate activist Luisa Neubauer, South African photographer Lee-Ann Olwage, and Christoph Koch, Head of the Science Desk at Stern magazine, will join moderator Sebastian H. Schroeder for a critical conversation. Together they will confront questions such as: 
Why has the important issue of climate crisis and global warming been pushed out of the public eye at the moment? What can we do to draw more attention back to this important issue?

What responsibilities do photographers, editors, NGOs, and curators have in shaping these narratives? Which stories are missing from mainstream coverage — and how can visual storytelling highlight not only catastrophe, but also resilience and resistance?

This session situates climate photography within broader social debates, asking how images and articles can remain urgent at a time when war, migration, and political crises dominate the headlines. It is an invitation to think critically about the ethics and responsibilities of visual storytelling — and about the transformative potential of journalism in the struggle for climate justice.