Empowering global stories through diversity, equity, and inclusion
We are redefining what “world” means in World Press Photo
Since we shifted to a regional strategy in 2021, one of our main focuses has been (and continues to be) to encourage more local photographers to enter the contest, as well as more female and non-binary photographers. Every year, we evaluate and improve our efforts to reach marginalized communities and underrepresented voices. In just three years, we have already seen an increase in the diversity of gender and nationality of our winners (see our Impact Report 2024), but there is still more work to be done.
This strategy goes beyond the contest
Our strategy shapes our hiring, education programs, exhibitions, public events, and partnerships. From special shows like Celebrating Communities, Resilience and (Un)Settled to our internal practices, diversity, equity, and inclusion are at our core.
We are committed to:
- Celebrating diversity by ensuring our contest, exhibitions, and partnerships reflect a wide range of voices and perspectives from around the world.
- Fostering a safe and inclusive environment both internally in our office, as well as in every activity that we do. A culture where everyone—regardless of race, gender, nationality, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, or ability—can participate fully, whether as contest entrants, winners, jury members, exhibition partners, participants in our educational programs, or staff members.
- Promoting equity by supporting underrepresented communities in photography and visual journalism and amplifying their stories.
- Challenging stereotypes and biases by encouraging ethical, respectful, and responsible storytelling that reflects the complexity of our world (read more in our Code of Ethics).
Our commitment to a sustainable future
The climate crisis is one of the defining realities of our time, and it's captured powerfully through the images we receive in our contest every year.
These images, many of which are awarded in our contest, show the harsh realities:
fires,
droughts,
displacement, and
disappearing ways of life. The climate crisis is reshaping entire regions and ecosystems, forcing all living beings to confront challenges that threaten their very existence. At the same time, they also reveal resilience:
community alliances,
innovative solutions, and
technological advancements. These stories remind us that while the challenge is immense, there is still hope, as long as there is collective action and commitment.
In 2023, we began our own sustainability journeyAs a global leader in photojournalism and documentary photography, we see it as our responsibility to commit to meaningful climate action and sustainable practices. For us, sustainability means more than lowering our footprint; it’s about social equity, economic resilience, and long-term impact for our organization, our partners, and the communities we serve. You can find out more about the steps we have taken in our
Impact Report.
Sustainability at our coreWe are embedding sustainability across everything we do – from how we operate to how we plan for the future. That means rethinking our business model to meet environmental and social challenges head-on. So far, our first steps have been:
- Hiring a sustainability coordinator for one year to join our team and develop our environmental action plans, research, and track our carbon footprint.
- Engaging with the Gallery Climate Coalition, which has provided us with the Carbon Calculator tool that we have used to measure the carbon footprint of our organization for 2022 and 2023.
- Communicating our commitment towards reducing our carbon footprint to all our exhibition partners and production suppliers, asking them to think along with us about how to achieve our goals.
Cutting our carbon footprint
Our carbon audit revealed key areas for improvement, which we have already begun to activate. Here’s what we are doing:
- Prioritizing train over air travel whenever possible
- Reducing staff travel to international exhibitions
- Shifting to local production of exhibition materials when feasible to cut shipping emissions
- Planning to ship two exhibitions via seafreight rather than more polluting airfreight
Using our platform to promote sustainability
Our exhibitions and programs spotlight the need for sustainability. In May 2025, we launched a special thematic exhibition on climate change and climate futures with the Dutch embassy in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, in collaboration with Climate Visuals (UK), and we are planning a similar exhibition to tour multiple locations worldwide.
Building sustainable partnerships
We work with like-minded partners, cultural institutions, and grassroots groups to amplify the reach and impact of our work, spark dialogue, and drive collective action for a more sustainable future.
Questions, ideas, or want to collaborate on DEI or sustainability?
