Xposure 2018 Shines Light on the Environmental Cost of Urbanisation

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In 1800, only 2% of the world’s population lived in urban areas. Today, it is 55% and by 2050, it is expected to increase to 68%. Much of the migration is driven by the promise of jobs and prosperity as well as urban developments that encroach on the rural land, destroying its way of life. What is the impact of such mass migrations? The third edition of Xposure International Photography Festival, being held Expo Centre Sharjah until 24th November under the theme ‘Inspiring Moments’, escorts its audiences through a series of images to answer the critical question.

Dr Yan Wang Preston, British-Chinese artist, documented the efforts of ‘ecology recovery’ in Dali, Yunnan Province, China through her exhibition titled, ‘Forest’, in hopes to find the place of nature in the age of rapid urbanisation. The small rural area is being converted into an international leisure town and an ecological model town. The term is an oxymoron as the concept of nature is simply visually mimicked rather than improved. Semi-artificial soil is brought to replace the natural one while green plastic netting is used to cover-up any objects less visually pleasing such as construction waste and steep quarries. Her images utilise the vibrant red ‘soil’, green plastic netting, and the blue sky to question the impact of such practice.

Dr Wang hoped that her work would eventually affect policy-making in China. “The effects of my work are quite slow. People engage in debates about current practices and its ethical impact which will hopefully transform the legislative system to protect the environment. When it comes to matters of money, things can get quite tricky,” she said.

Indonesia isn’t far behind China in matters of clearing forests. Katarina Premfors, a photojournalist, exhibits the clearing of Indonesia’s rain forests and peatlands to produce palm oil, pulp, and paper, in a series titled, ‘Paradise Lost.’ Such efforts have placed Indonesia as the world’s third-largest producer of greenhouse gases and has pushed orangutans, the Sumatran tiger, and other species towards extinction. Indonesia is locked in a social conflict between those who want to clear the forest and those who wish to protect one of the most diverse habitats on earth.

Katarina was invited by Greenpeace along with ‘Photographers for Hope’ to photograph communities to support social action. She explained, “Following our expedition to document the deforestation, the pictures impacted one person so much that it led them to donate a sizable portion of 650,000 Swiss Franc to the Greenpeace foundation.”

Another exhibition by Paws Trails Explorers seek to further spread the message of destroying natural habitats of animals which is leading to vanishing species. The exhibition is titled, ‘The Wild Trails’, which features regional content from the Middle East and an international collection dedicated to conservation issues across the world.

Showing ‘The Hidden Cost’, J Henry Fair, an American photographer and environmental activist, delves into the detritus of our consumer economy and the unaccounted costs taken from our life support systems for private gain in visually-appealing yet heart-breaking images. Although extinction and destruction are part of the circle of evolution, humans and reckless human activities have increased the rate one-hundred-fold in the past century alone.

Many economists argue that urbanisation significantly reduces humanity’s environmental impact while others fear cities are developing at an alarming pace with unbreathable air, uncontrolled emissions and impoverished populations starved of food and water. Although many cities are already investing in clean transport, renewable energy, better planning for well-being of all, we all need to reflect and do our bit to protect the plant.