2022 United Nations World Oceans Day Photo Competition now open to entries from across the planet (deadline for entries: Friday 15 April 2022)

The 2022 United Nations World Oceans Day Photo Competition, hosted by the United Nations, curated by underwater photographer Ellen Cuylaerts and a jury composed of world-renowned individuals, is now open to applications from anywhere in the world.

The deadline for entries to the competition is Friday 15th April 2022.

Photography is a powerful medium to convey a feeling or a message. This OPEN AND FREE photo competition seeks to inspire the creation of imagery capturing the beauty, the challenges and the importance of the ocean and humankind’s relation to it, hoping to contribute to actions to preserve this vital resource.

The 2022 categories are:

o Revitalization.
o Above Water Seascapes.
o Underwater Seascapes.
o Nature-based Solutions & Ocean Exploration.
o Ocean Critters, and
o Coastal Communities.

Winning images will be recognised at the United Nations on June 8th during the United Nations’ event marking World Oceans Day 2022. Recognition and diffusion of the winning images and finalists will be widely exposed throughout the contest websites, the media and the informational materials related to subsequent competitions. Winning photos have been printed for exhibitions around the world.

Rules

o The contest is open to entrants of all skill levels.
o Photo contest staff and judges are not allowed to enter the contest.
o Winners will be announced on Wednesday, June 8th, 2022 in New York, during a hybrid UN World Oceans Day event, hosted by Oceanic Global as strategic partner for the day, and published on www.unworldoceansday.org shortly afterwards.
o Entries may have been taken from any camera, digital or film (as scanned slides).
o Conservation rules will be strictly observed. Flora and fauna should never be stressed or endangered for the sake of a photo. Entries suspected of involving the following behaviour will be disqualified:
> Photographers visibly damaging the environment (e.g., gear dragging or kicking up sand, divers exhibiting poor buoyancy control).
> Animals with signs of stress (e.g., puffed puffers, inking octopus).
> Animals moved to an unnatural environment or risky location, and
> Marine life being touched or placed (e.g., nudibranchs, coral polyps, seahorse tails).

For further information and details about how to enter the competition, visit United Nations World Oceans Day.