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FAO launches Mountain Cultures Photo Contest

21.11.2016

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has launched the Mountain Cultures Photo Contest in celebration of International Mountain Day (IMD) 2016. From 18 November – 5 December, participants are welcome to submit up to three photos of mountain cultures, including portraits of mountain dwellers around the world, mountain communities and festivals, or sacred sites in mountains, for the chance to win a one-year subscription to National Geographic.

“Mountain Cultures: celebrating diversity and strengthening identity” is the theme chosen for this year’s celebration of IMD. The concept of traditional heritage, culture and spirituality is intrinsically linked with peoples’ livelihoods in the mountains, where it is often traditional lifestyles that determine the way people make a living and subsist. Many mountain areas host ancient indigenous communities that possess and maintain precious knowledge, traditions and languages. The Mountain Cultures Photo Contest provides an occasion to raise awareness about the variety and richness of mountain cultures, promote the vast array of mountain identities and ensure that indigenous rights are recognized and traditional ways endure.

To enter the Contest, individuals 18 or over (see the Terms and Conditions for details) may submit up to three photos through the online submission form, along with a description of the photo(s) explaining why the people, festival or mountain site represent mountain cultures. Participants are asked to send photos of:
• A portrait of a person living in the mountains, anywhere in the world;
• Mountain communities in action (practicing traditional cultural activities, local farming techniques, weaving and handcrafts, livestock rearing, etc.);
• A mountain festival, ritual or celebration;
• A sacred or legendary mountain; and/or
• A temple, a church or a place of worship on a mountain.

The deadline for entries is 5 December 2016. FAO will select the top 30 photographs based on originality, relevance to the theme, artistic value and communication potential, and a FAO jury will shortlist six images, which will be posted on the FAO Facebook page. Fans will be given the opportunity to vote (“like”) for the photo they like the most during a period of seven days. The first-place winner will be the photograph with the most likes. The prize for the outright winner will consist of an annual subscription to National Geographic Magazine starting from January 2017.

Participants are also invited to post their photos of mountain cultures on Twitter, Flickr or Instagram using the International Mountain Day hashtag: #MountainsMatter. FAO will retweet some of these photos on the @FAOForestry Twitter.

Since 2003, FAO has observed IMD every year to create awareness about the importance of mountains to life, to highlight the opportunities and constraints in mountain development and to build alliances that will bring positive change to mountain peoples and environments around the world.

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Photo: FAO/Antonello Proto