ACTS Launches Annual Photo Competition

4th August 2016

The ACTS Sustainability Photography Competition was first launched in 2012 with the aim to raise awareness of sustainability and sustainability concepts through a fun and artistic medium; and we’re delighted to announce that the popular competition is back in 2016…and going global! Staff and students from educational organisations around the world are invited to upload a photographic entry to instagram on the theme “River to Reef”.

Finalist entries, as determined by those with the highest amount of likes on instagram, will be exhibited at the 16th International ACTS Conference, hosted by the University of the Sunshine Coast from 2-4 November 2016. The competition winner will judged and selected by sustainability educators and professional attending the conference, and awarded AUD$1000 from our supporting partner aquaBUBBLER.

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THEME “RIVER TO REEF”

Water. It’s found everywhere on Earth, from the polar ice caps to steamy geysers. And wherever water flows on this planet, you can be sure to find life. Every drop cycles continuously through air, land, and sea, just as it does through the human body, transporting, dissolving, replenishing nutrients and organic matter, while carrying away waste material. Water is truly a powerful factor in all ecosystems.

In the past water was seen as a symbol by which to express devotion and purity, though recently it appears as though our developed, technological society has become indifferent to this miracle of life. Our natural heritage (rivers, seas and oceans) has been exploited, mistreated and contaminated.

The theme “River to Reef” invites photographic entries that pay homage to this most essential element, and that conceptualise the importance and connectivity of water in our modern society.

ENTRY TERMS AND CONDITIONS

Eligibility

In order to be eligible to submit an entry to the competition, and individual must currently be studying and/or employed by an educational organisation worldwide. For the purpose of this competition, an educational organisation refers to a registered school, university, college and/or technical institution. ACTS reserve the right to validate all entrants’ affiliation with an educational organisation.

Entry requirements

An eligible individual (entrant) can submit one (1) original photograph (an entry) addressing the competition theme “River to Reef”.

An entry must be uploaded on the social media platform “Instagram” by 5.00pm AEST Friday 30 September 2016, using the hashtag #actsrivertoreef, and tagging @acts_inc

Within the entry’s text description, the entrant must state the education organisation they study and/or work for and their country of residence.  A brief description of the photograph and its relation to the competition theme may also be included.

The entrant must follow the instagram accounts @acts_inc and @aquabubbler and continue to follow both accounts until the winner of the competition is announced on Thursday 3 November 2016.

The entry, in its entirety, must be a single work of original material taken by the entrant. By entering the competition the entrant acknowledges, and warrants that the submitted photograph is an original work created solely by the entrant, that the photograph does not infringe on the copyrights, trademarks, moral rights, rights of privacy/publicity or intellectual property rights of any person or entity, and that no other party has any right, title, claim, or interest in the photograph.

Photographs must have been taken by the student or staff member within 1 year of the date of entry and may not have previously won an award.

ACTS reserves the right to use finalist photo entries for marketing purposes.

Entrants will be advised if an entry is being used for marketing purposes.

Winner Selection

Entries that meet the stated eligibility and entry requirements that gain the highest number of instagram “likes” by 5pm AEST 20 October 2016 will be selected as finalist entries.

Finalists will be contacted via instagram, and will be required to forward their full name and contact email address to the competition organiser.

Finalist entries will be displayed at the 16th International ACTS Conference, held at the University of the Sunshine Coast from 2-4 November 2016.

Delegates attending the conference will view the finalist entries and have the opportunity to cast one (1) vote (per delegate) for the entry they believe creatively reflects the competition theme.

The entry that receives the highest number of delegate votes will be announced as the competition winner on the evening of the Thursday 3 November 2016.

The copyright of the winning entry will be purchased from the entrant for the amount of AUD$1000. The funds will be transferred into a validated PayPal account matching the name of the entrant.

Following delivery of the competition award, Australasian Campuses Towards Sustainability (ACTS) will retain all ownership and copyright of the winning photograph. The entrant will provide the original high-resolution photograph to ACTS and will request written permission for any further use.

Find out more here.