The COVID-19 pandemic that swept across the globe is a testament to the interconnectedness of all parts of the world and has shone a spotlight on the interlink between the health of people, animals, and the environment—also known as One Health.
Thus, it is with a sharp focus on “One Health is Wealth: Healthy Agriculture and Sustainable Food Systems” that the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) marks the 15th year milestone of its annual photo contest.
The 2021 SEARCA Photo Contest is inviting photographers from Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste, and Vietnam to submit their best shots of scenes depicting One Health applications to ARD, particularly those featuring sustainable food systems in this time of pandemic.
Examples of images that demonstrate One Health are interactions between humans, animals, and their surroundings, which could be nature, farm or other agricultural settings, during the pandemic. They may also enter photos of youth or farming families contributing to One Health or images of healthy diets, improved nutrition, and food safety through One Health in agriculture.
Other entries can be pictures that capture sustainable or environmentally harmonious food systems that demonstrate One Health and safeguarding animal health amid the pandemic. Photos that show environmental awareness and protection at the farm level in pandemic conditions are also welcome.
The contest is open to both professional and amateur photographers. Those who wish to join may submit an unlimited number of photo entries as long as they meet the photo contest specifications.
All entries must be submitted to SEARCA online via https://photocontest.searca.org until 30 November 2021.
Cash prizes of USD 1,000, USD 800, and USD 500 await the winners of the first, second, and third prizes. The SEARCA Director’s Choice and Philippine Department of Education Secretary’s Choice winners will each get USD 500, while the winner of the People’s Choice Award via Facebook votation will walk away with USD 400.
To mark the 15th milestone year of the SEARCA Photo Contest, there will also be two special awards tagged Best Youth Photographer, one who used a camera and another who used a mobile phone. Each will take home USD 300.