“What a strange alchemy we have worked, turning earth around to destroy itself, using earth’s own elements to wound it.” —Linda Hogan (Chickasaw)

“A starting place for this work would be to recover an elder imagination of the earth.” —Robert Hass

“The environment is in you, it’s passing through you, you’re breathing it in and out, you and every other creature.” —Wendell Berry

“In a fast-paced and competitive world, we need to feel grounded. We need to feel the earth and hear birdsong. We need to use our senses to be in the world. Maybe, if we bang our heads against a brick wall long enough, it will crumble and fall. And maybe the rubble can be used to rebuild something better and more beautiful, enabling our own wildness. Imagine that.”—Dara McAnulty

Contestants must be ages 13 and up in the U.S. and 16 and up globally. Check our Submission Guidelines and Rules and our Terms of Service for more details.

All entries must be related to the contest theme: The Environment Is in You. Students will submit one photograph or original illustration that is a response to one of the excerpts above from Linda Hogan, Robert Hass, Wendell Berry, or Dara McAnulty. How might the excerpt you choose inspire your photograph or illustration?

Photo entries and original illustrations must be accompanied by a short artist’s statement (a minimum of 100 words and a max of 600). Artist’s statements can also be in the form of a poem. The aim of this statement is to tell the story of what is captured in the photograph or illustration. Statements must respond to at least two of the following questions:

• How is your artwork a “love story” to the planet? 
• In what ways has your local ecosystem changed in the last few years? How might your artwork document that story? 
• How might your artwork document your feelings about climate change? In what ways might the environment shape your identity?
• In what ways has the COVID-19 pandemic revealed new ways of seeing climate change? How might you capture our earth in a time of ecological crisis? 
• What would you like your artwork to communicate to your peers, community, or the world?

Images should help to express students' human relationship with our planet. Students can include themselves and others in their photographs. If your photograph contains a person, you will need to fill out and return the Photo Subject Release Form.

The photograph or illustration submitted must take into consideration the Global Oneness Project’s mission statement: Planting seeds of resilience, empathy, and a sacred relationship to our planet. 

Each photograph or illustration and response must be original and previously unpublished. Photographs may also include photo collages, but not be heavily edited (e.g. photoshopped).

Eligible entries will be judged by a qualified panel consisting of professional filmmakers, photographers, and authorized personnel from the Global Oneness Project. Only one entry per contestant.

Prizes. Winners will be awarded $200 USD each and photographs will be published on the Global Oneness Project website. 

All entries must be accompanied by this signed Parental Permission Form. 

All entries must be received by May 5, 2022. Winners and finalists will be announced and notified on May 26, 2022.