National Geographic celebrates 10 years on Instagram with 200M followers

National Geographic's Instagram account @natgeo has become the first brand to surpass 200 million followers, a milestone achieved over a decade of photography. The account has amassed over 26,000 images, totaling 82 billion views and 8 billion likes. To mark the anniversary, the magazine highlights memorable moments captured by its photographers, including Ami Vitale bidding farewell to Sudan, the last male northern white rhino; Kiliii Yuyan documenting synchronous fireflies in Great Smoky Mountains National Park; and Jimmy Chin at Grand Teton National Park. The selection also features impactful images addressing global issues: Joshua Irwandi's photo of a suspected COVID-19 victim in an Indonesian hospital, Stephanie Sinclair's 2005 portrait of a child bride in Afghanistan, and Nichole Sobecki's image of a cheetah cub rescued from illegal wildlife trade. National Geographic uses the occasion to underscore the power of social media and photography in raising awareness about environmental and social causes, urging followers to avoid engaging with posts that promote illegal wildlife trafficking.