Picture This: We Can End Poverty is a global photography contest organized by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), with prizes from contest sponsor Olympus up for grabs. Grand Prize for the Amateur, Professional and People’s Choice will be Olympus’ top DSLR, the Olympus E-3 packaged with a matching pro-level Zuiko Digital ED 12-60mm f/2.8-4.0 SWD lens. Other prizes include E-620 DSLRs and Tough cameras.
Everyone, amateur or professional from anywhere in the world, is invited to join this contest. Judges include photojournalists from the UN and National Geographic Society, the UN’s current Chief of Photography, a former Director of Photography from AFP, and UNDP Goodwill Ambassador Antonio Banderas.
From the contest website:
“Picture This: We Can End Poverty is a global photo contest seeking to show— in a positive way— what people around the world are doing to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), eight goals agreed on by world leaders to halve extreme poverty by 2015:
- Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
- Achieve universal primary education
- Promote gender equality and empower women
- Reduce child mortality
- Improve maternal health
- Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases
- Ensure environmental sustainability
- Develop a Global Partnership for Development
Contestants must enter either as professionals or amateurs, not both.”
From their FAQ:
Who can enter?
Any Amateur or Professional photographer.
What is the deadline?
Midnight 16 July, 2010.
Is there an entry fee?
No.
How many categories may I enter?
You may enter only one time and you can only enter only one of the two categories — Professional or Amateur.
You must select only ONE of the eight Millennium Development Goals and submit a maximum of three photos in the Goal that you selected. Ideally, at least one photo should be a vertical shot for purposes of turning it into a poster.
Am I a professional or an amateur photographer?
For the purposes of this contest, we define a professional photographer as someone who makes a living from selling their photographs or who works as a photographer for either profit or non-profit organizations.
What kind of photos can I enter?
The photos you enter must have been taken in the past 24 months, preferably focusing on progress towards the Millennium Development Goals in a developing country. Contestants may submit up to three different photographs, focusing on ONE Goal. Only photos not already published may be submitted. You must possess all copyrights of your images.
Can I submit my photos by mail?
No. You can only submit them via our website. Click here to register and upload your photos.
What kind of photos and photo essays are you looking for?
We want to see photos with people in them, documenting their efforts to make positive changes to end extreme poverty around the world.
Do I need to include caption information?
Yes. Captions are a crucial part of the contest. We must know who you are photographing, where they live, what they are doing and what change they hope to see as a result.
Aside from the Olympus Corporation, other sponsors are The Agence France-Presse (AFP) Foundation and the United Nations’s Department of Information (DPI).
More information can be found at UNDP-Olympus-AFP Foundation Photo Contest’s website.
