First, Dr. Lauren Siegel delivered a keynote on her behavioural research which included findings from 11 of the most “Instagrammable” destinations around the world including Turkey, Bali, Hong Kong and Morocco.
Her research identifies the key historical moments which led popular culture towards the phenomenon of chasing “likes” and somewhat standardised photos that exist now on various social media platforms portraying an idealised, globetrotting lifestyle devoid of any local communities or sense of place beyond the aesthetics of the photos.
Lauren identified the negative impacts that “Instagrammability” has on local communities in places not designated for tourism and thus unprepared for an influx of tourists including increased rubbish, environmental damage, overcrowding and more subtle socio-cultural impacts like place change and interruption of daily life.
Specific circumstances in sites like Trolltunga, Norway, Hong Kong, the Faroe Islands and Bali were described by Lauren along with some interesting strategies that the municipal bodies in these places have taken to try to counteract the negative impacts by social media-driven travellers.
Following Lauren, Sabina Trojanova, of Girl vs. Globe, spoke of her experience as a successful travel influencer and then her eventual decision to alter the focus of her content to more authentic and raw experiences, shifting attention back onto local communities and cultures.
The audience then heard from a discussion between Dr Lauren Siegel, Sabina Trojanova, Diana Jarvis and Christopher Coe. The panel came together to discuss these trends, their ethical impacts and impacts in the world of travel photography (and photography in general).
The aim of this focussed evening was to encourage an important discussion on this phenomenon. One of the most agreed points was there was much to unpack on this topic and that more information should be disseminated to wider audiences in order to make any sort of progress.
The Royal Photographic Society and the University of Greenwich hope to run future events that will build on this momentum and to continue these conversations about the ethics of social media and travel photography.
The recording of the event is available on the RPS website.
