Skip to main content

Due to the preliminary injunction by a federal court on September 14, 2026, which paused a new federal immigration rule change affecting international students and visiting scholars in the United States, immigration information on this website is subject to change. Ohio State is monitoring these developments and will update this website as additional information becomes available.

We Are the Visitors

Two giraffes are walking through a sunlit, grassy landscape surrounded by trees. The scene is tranquil, with soft sunlight filtering through the branches.


“We Are the Visitors”
Location: Tarangire National Park, Tanzania 
Date: September 2026
Photographer: Nerea Lopetegui
Affiliation: Faculty
Home Country: Spain
Category: Places
2026 International Photography Exhibition

“Two giraffes, a few zebras, and the Tarangire at sunset. It was one of those moments that made everything else feel very far away.

In the Tarangire, there is a deep respect for nature and wildlife. There is a quiet understanding that we are the visitors. The animals are not there for us; we are lucky to share their world for a moment.

In a world that can feel so full of noise, chaos, and uncertainty, being surrounded by this much beauty felt almost necessary. Nature has a way of reminding us to slow down. To observe.

Perhaps animals can teach us more than we realize: to live in the present, to coexist without needing to control, and to move through the world with a little more respect.

What a privilege it is to live in a beautiful world. And what a responsibility it is to protect it.”