On June 8, for World Oceans Day, the United Nations announced the winners of the tenth edition of their annual photo contest in New York.
The award-winning shots were selected from thousands of photos submitted from around the world by amateur and professional photographers. The theme for this year 2023 was « Planet Ocean: The tides are changing. »
The jury composed of nature photographers selected the winners for the following categories: The Ocean is Life, The Wonderful World of Tides, Putting the Ocean First, No Time to Waste, Underwater Seascapes, and Big and Small Underwater Faces.
The 2023 contest winners are from 14 different countries and have signed a charter of 14 commitments concerning photography ethics.
Since its inception in 2008, the United Nations World Oceans Day celebrates the ocean and its importance to the planet and our lives, while raising awareness of the many threats it faces. The challenges faced by the oceans continue to grow, hence the need to understand them and mobilize globally.
This contest is coordinated in collaboration with the United Nations Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea, DivePhotoGuide (DPG), Ellen Cuylaerts, Oceanic Global, Nausicaa, and the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO (IOC/UNESCO).
No time to waste
1st Prize – Álvaro Herrero (Spain)
2nd Prize – Simon Lorenz (Germany)
3rd Prize – Ines Goovaerts (Belgium)
Putting the Ocean First
1st Prize – Tom Shlesinger (Israel)
2nd Prize – Edwar Herreño Parra (Colombia)
3rd Prize – Edwar Herreño Parra (Colombia)
The Wonderful World of Tides
1st Prize – Chris Gug (United States)
2nd Prize – Sina Ritter (Germany)
3rd Prize – Alex Permiakov (Russia)
Honorable Mention – Pavlos Evangelidis (Greece)
Honorable Mention – Nuria Bufort Costa (Spain)
The Ocean is Life
1st Prize – Shane Gross (Canada)
3rd Prize – Niklas Manger (Germany)
Honorable Mention – Rachel Moore (United States)
Honorable Mention – Galice Hoarau (France)
Big and Small Underwater Faces
1st Prize – Glenn Ostle (United States)
2nd Prize – Simon Temple (United Kingdom)
3rd Prize – Adriano Morettin (Italy)
Underwater Seascapes
1st Prize – Andy Schmid (Switzerland)
2nd Prize – Mayumi Takeuchi-Ebbins (United Kingdom)
3rd Prize – Simon Biddie (United Kingdom)
Honorable Mention – Fan Ping (China)
Opening image: 1st Prize – Underwater Seascapes © Andy Schmid – UNworldoceansday.org