OPEN to both professional and amateur photographers, the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) Photo Contest is still accepting submissions until Dec. 30, 2023.
SEARCA Director Glenn Gregorio said the photo contest is open to Filipinos and nationals of Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste and Vietnam.
For its 17th year, the annual photo contest zooms in on the theme "Regenerating agri-ecosystems, lowering global boiling," which aims to highlight technologies and practices in agriculture that help mitigate the worsening effects of climate change.
Gregorio said no other than United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres alerted the public on July 21, 2023 toward the issue, saying, "We are past the era of global warming, and we are now experiencing global boiling."
Guterres also cited the hotter-than-usual July weather compared to the temperatures throughout the century and coined "global boiling" to plea for critical actions to reverse the trend.
Gregorio said each contestant may submit unlimited photo entries as long as the photo contest specifications are met.
In the photo contest, he said SEARCA is searching for images that show agricultural technologies and practices that help abate climate change and promote less pressure on natural resources.
He said the images could be farming technologies that promote recycling or reusing by-products and farm wastes, and those with a low carbon footprint.
"They could be practices that save water, improve soil health, reduce postharvest losses or use renewable energy, among others," Gregorio said adding that submissions should ideally showcase farmers and farming families, researchers, inventors, and even students and the youth using technologies and practices in the field.
He also noted that the images could be part of agricultural production or experimentation across the broad spectrum of crop cultivation, livestock and animal husbandry, or fishery.
Photo submissions should be original, have not been digitally altered or enhanced, have not won in any past photo competition, or have not been published elsewhere (print or electronic).
The winners will receive cash prizes: $1,000 for the first prize; $800 for the second prize; and $500 for the third prize, all in United States currency.
There will also be special awards such as the SEARCA Director's Choice and the Department of Education Secretary's Choice winners who will each get $500.
Meanwhile, the winner of the People's Choice Award through Facebook voting will receive $400.
All entries must be submitted via the SEARCA Photo Contest website at https://photocontest.searca.org until Dec. 30, 2023.
