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Join the 2020 Earth Day Campaign Contest!
Go virtual. Make an impact. Win prizes.​

Art & Writing Challenge 2020: ​"Our Connected Planet"​

In the past year, the Peace Center has been proud to see momentum build in the climate justice movement, led by student activists. They have mobilized huge numbers of people to stand up for our planet and demand change from world leaders and policymakers. These students, among many other inspiring activists and grassroots organizations, advocate that climate justice must be addressed using an intersectional approach, connecting the health of our planet with various forms of systemic marginalization that disproportionately affect low-income folks of color, immigrants, and indigenous communities. 

For this year’s art and writing challenge, we take inspiration from these activists and ask:

• How has your connection to our planet played a significant role in your life?
• How have you been impacted by threats to our climate/planet? How do you see others being affected? 
• Do you see climate justice as connected to other forms of social justice? If so, how? 
• In what ways is our planet impacted or threatened by things like nuclear energy, the military-industrial complex, capitalism, and notions of “progress”? 
• What would your vision of a just and healthy world look like?

The theme is intentionally broad to allow students the freedom to convey their vision. We hope that students critically grapple with the past and present to inform their work.

Due to COVID-19, the deadline for this contest has been extended to May 15th!

CLICK HERE to be directed to the official website for more information and submission form. 

GREEN MEDIA CONTEST      

 Deadline for submissions is January 15th       

"Special Districts Make the Difference" - video contest:

16 teams will each win $10,000!

• The Land & Water Challenge: 8/14/18–10/15/18
• The Air & Climate Challenge: 10/17/18–12/10/18

World of 7 Billion Video Contest Create a short video - up to 60 seconds - about human population growth that highlights one of the following global challenges:  Advancing Women & Girls, Feeding 10 Billion, or Preventing Pollution.  Submission Deadline  February ___, 2019

Performance-Based Competitions

In this type of academic competition, students must create something, or do something that meets a challenge statement for the competition. In the environmental competition arena, there are two types of performance-based competitions: ones where students conduct a conservation/sustainability project and get rewarded for it, and ones where students create or engineer a solution to an environmental problem and are evaluated on how well it performs. 

Brower Youth Awards.

Students submit an application identifying and describing their outstanding work in support of the environment. Students must have already performed a project in an area of environmental conservation to be awarded one of the finalist spots. 

Eco Hero Awards.

Similar in nature to the Brower Youth Awards, in the Eco Hero Awards, youth from countries around the globe send in their applications and explain their work relating to an environmental project they have started or been involved in. Then a panel of judges including experts in environmental science, biology and education determines the year’s top achievers. Students must have already completed (or at least reached significant milestones in) the environmental conservation project to be considered. 

Genius Olympiad.

The Genius Olympiad is an international high school academic competition about environmental issues. It hosts projects in five general disciplines with an environmental focus: Science, Visual and Performance Arts, Business, Writing, and Robotics. Projects in each category take different forms, but all fall within the environmental issues/themes.

Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes.

This award celebrates and recognizes inspiring, public-spirited young people from diverse backgrounds all across North America. Each year, the Barron Prize honors 25 outstanding young leaders ages 8 to 18 who have made a significant positive difference to people and the environment. Students must submit an application detailing how they have conducted a project that helps people or the environment.

NCF Envirothon.

This competition exposes students to diverse environmental issues, ecosystems, and topography. Teams compete for recognition and scholarships by demonstrating their knowledge of environmental science and natural resource management. Student teams are evaluated on their performance at each of the following training/testing stations−Soils/Land Use, Aquatic Ecology, Forestry, Wildlife, Current Environmental Issue.

Energize School Earth Day Campaign Contest Join Energize Schools Earth Day Campaign Contest by creating a sustainability behavior change campaign at your school and in your community. Compete to create positive, measurable, changes in behavior in one of the four categories: Energy, Waste, Water, and Transportation. Prizes valued at over $3,000 will be awarded to schools.  Submission Deadline  May ___, 2019

NEED Youth Awards Program for Energy Achievement.

Students from across the country working in groups on an Energy Challenge designed to stretch their minds and energy knowledge. Want to stretch your mind even more? A limited number of spaces are available for a special two-day, pre-conference event which will allow students access to additional hands-on energy sessions, time to discuss energy with their peers, and access to industry professionals to learn about energy careers. 

President’s Environmental Youth Awards.

PEYA has two parts — a regional award for Grades K-5 and a regional award for Grades 6-12. Students must complete an environmental project and submit an application for through their sponsoring school and teacher.

Seaworld Youth Environmental Excellence Award.

This award recognizes young people who take conservation action at an early age. Each year, it recognize the work of the next generation of conservation leaders. To be considered for the award students must complete and submit a written and video application describing their conservation work demonstrating their leadership in the field. 

Stockholm Junior Water Prize.

Students conduct water related science projects that start at local or regional levels and advance to national competitions. National finalists are then invited to participate in the annual international Stockholm Junior Water Prize competition. 

Young Champions of the Earth.

Students who have a big idea to protect or restore the environment; or who have a vision for a more sustainable future can be a Young Champion of the Earth. Each year, six young people – one from each global region – will be named Young Champions of the Earth. These winners receive seed funding, intensive training, and tailored mentorship to help them bring their big environmental ideas to life. 

National Ocean Sciences Bowl.

Students use critical thinking in "rapid memory recall" questions covering the biology, physics, geology, and chemistry of the oceans, as well as related geography, technology, history, policy, and current events. Teams of students compete in a tournament (bowl) style competition to see which team can answer the most questions correctly in each match.  

Kid Wind Challenge.

Student teams create their own small scale wind turbines and are judged on how much electricity they can generate! Teams first participate in regional events held across the US. Then teams selected for the final program are invited to the national championship and tested in a large wind-tunnel. 

Shell Eco-Marathon.

Shell Eco-marathon is a unique competition that challenges students around the world to design, build and drive the most energy-efficient car. With three annual events in Asia, Americas and Europe, student teams take to the track to see who goes further on the least amount of fuel.