Polar Wonders
Photographers are invited to submit their most beautiful images depicting landscapes, wildlife and local communities in the polar regions (Arctic and Antarctic).
Intro
Environmental Photography Award
The Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation's Environmental Photography Award was launched in 2021, in honour of the Foundation’s 15th anniversary. This annual award was created with the aim of rewarding photographers who put their creativity to good use in raising awareness on Earth protection. It has the dual purpose of celebrating the incredible beauty of our planet and highlighting the environmental challenges we face through five categories: Polar Wonders, Into the Forest, Ocean Worlds, Humanity versus Nature, Change Makers: Reasons for Hope.
Photographic art, with its immediate and universal language, represents a formidable vehicle for raising awareness. It reinforces, in a virtuous way, the process of awareness on major environmental issues, such as biodiversity, climate and the ocean. Environmental photographers can encourage us to change, to innovate, to invent sustainable solutions in order to better rethink our lives and our economies. They reveal a real “field of possibilities” for new generations who aspire to a more harmonious relationship with Nature.
The photographs – almost 10,000 images participated in the 3rd edition of the competition this year – are carefully selected by a jury of internationally renowned professional photographers for their technical and aesthetic excellence but also, and above all, for the relevance and strength of their message.
The exhibitions of the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation's Environmental Photography Award have already travelled to Italy, San Marino, Spain, the United States and France.
Categories
01
Photographers are invited to submit their most beautiful images depicting landscapes, wildlife and local communities in the polar regions (Arctic and Antarctic).
02
This category welcomes photographs that illustrate the incredible richness of the sea and the ocean surface and underwater seascapes as well as marine wildlife.
03
This category aims to highlight the beauty of the flora and fauna that make up the forest ecosystem and the lives of native communities in the boreal, temperate and tropical forests.
04
Images submitted to this category should depict the conflicting relationship between humans and nature all around the world, and the negative impact of human activities on the environment: issues related to the consequences of climate change (droughts, deforestation, extreme climate events…), the loss of biodiversity (endangered species, disastrous interactions between humans and wildlife…), as well as the depletion of the world’s water resources.
05
This category is dedicated to images that highlight the efforts and actions implemented globally by communities based on their traditional knowledge and on innovative solutions to build a more sustainable world and more harmonious relationships between man and nature. It aims to demonstrate hope for Humanity and for the Planet.
Prizing
(chosen by the jury among the 5 category winners)
- The title “Environmental Photographer of the Year 2023”
- 5,000 € grant
- Invitation (including travel and accommodation) to visit the Amazon Research Station of the International University SEK, and to do a photo documentary in the field, in the heart of the Ecuadorian jungle
- Invitation (including travel and accommodation) to the opening ceremony of the exhibition in the Principality of Monaco
- Public relations support of the Foundation through its communication channels, including social media, press, and newsletter
- 1,000 € grant for each of the 5 category winners
- Public relations support of the Foundation through its communication channels, including social media, press, and newsletter
(to be chosen for each across all categories)
- 500 € grant for the Public Award winning image
- 500 € grant for the Student’s Choice winning image
- Featured in the Environmental Photography Award 2023 exhibition in Monaco and on its international tour
- Published in the Environmental Photography Award 2023 catalogue
The Jury
Our prestigious jury of professional photographers select the shortlisted and winning images for each category. From the category winners they select the Environmental Photographer of the Year.
Gallery
Discover the shortlisted and winning photographs of the 2023 edition.
Baby it’s Cold Out There!, 2019
Magical World of Amanita, 2022
Hunting, 2019
Captive, 2018
Tiny Umbrella, 2018
Life Cycle, 2019
Ancient Sailors, 2021
Party of Three, 2022
My Kingdom, 2022
The Human and the Ocean, 2018
Have You Ever Seen the Rain?, 2022
A Big Shot for a Tiny Rabbit, 2021
Arctic Angels, 2019
Checking Out a Coral Nursery, 2019
Coexisting with Sea Level Rise, 2022
Wildlife CSI Academy, 2022
Traditional Floating Vegetable Garden, 2020
Risking Life for Thirst, 2019
Goliath in Lilliput, 2021
Back from Migration, 2022
Flood, 2020
Monarch Butterfly Colony, 2022
Fight to the Death,2021
Falling Leaves are Blue, 2018
Reconnaissance, 2022
Out for a Run, 2022
Traffic Jam, 2021
The Polar Fox in the Artic Winter, 2020
Burial of a Giant, 2020
New Danger to Underwater Life Covid-19 Waste, 2020
Spider Web, 2021
Predator versus Predator, 2021
New Ways to the Future (III), 2021
The Aura, 2022
Venomous Shelter, 2021
Airborne, 2022
Book
A book is published for each edition (bilingual French-English version), including all the shortlisted photographs, accompanied by explanatory texts or photographers’ testimonials.
2023 Edition
Hardcover, 28.5 x 25 cm, 104 pages