Contest Closed… Our Biggest Year Yet!
June 15, 2016Thank You!
2016 has been our biggest year yet: We received over 2,150 submissions (compared to 1,100 in 2015 and 360 in 2014) from middle and high school students around the world (see map below!). We are so excited to begin judging all of the amazing works of art, poetry, prose, and film, and to see the many creative ways our participants made meaning out of ocean pollution.
Thank you so much to all of our student participants and sponsors!
From oil spills to plastic to noise, ocean pollution is everywhere — it’s not one country’s problem. So we’re happy to see that our Contest is all over the world, too. This global issue needs continued global support. Remember: you have the power to change the world. Use it.
Student participants came from: Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belgium, Benin, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, China, Colombia, Egypt, Ethiopia, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Korea, Kuwait, Lithuania, Malaysia, Mauritius, Mexico, Namibia, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Serbia and Montenegro, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Vietnam, Zimbabwe
Even though this year’s Contest has ended, we hope that you continue to use your creativity to give a voice to the oceans. The ocean conservation movement needs your inspiration and motivation now more than ever.
Whether the Contest was assigned as a class project or you applied on your own, we hope that it sparked a dialogue about the threat that pollution — in its many forms — poses to our blue planet. And not just dialogue: we want this Contest to be about change; about action. We often hear from participants that the Contest was a catalyst that inspired them to give up single-use plastics or to form a Green Team at their schools. We want you to be advocates for healthy coastlines and oceans, and the human communities that rely on them (that’s all of us).
So stay in touch with us on social media (@fromthebowseat)! Our team will be busy judging all summer, but we’ll be posting sneak peeks, hosting giveaways, and sharing updates on events and exhibits. 2016 Winners and 2017 Contest Launch will be announced in the fall. Stay tuned!