The competition attracted a total of 16,650 entries from 7,877 people in 160 countries and states. A panel of judges made up of photographers from around the world awarded gold, silver and bronze prizes in adult and junior divisions, together with four special prizes and 110 honorary mentions.

The Gold Prize in the Adult Division was awarded to Mr. Hartmut Schwarzbach of Germany for a portfolio of three photographs of children who live in the slums along Manila Bay entitled ‘Floating Kids at Manila Bay’.

The living environment of Manila, one of the leading cities of the world, has undergone drastic change as a result of overpopulation. It faces a host of common urban problems such as waste disposal, traffic jams, water pollution, illegal housing in slums and child labour. ‘Floating Kids at Manila Bay’ was highly regarded by all of the judges for its sensitive portrayal of Manila’s various problems associated with the environment. Mr. Schwarzbach’s work received the Bronze Prize in a previous competition, making this the second time that he has been awarded a prize in the UNEP International Photographic Competition on the Environment.

The Gold Prize in the Junior Division went to Miss Miriam Koehler, also of Germany, for her entry ‘Artificial Nature’.

The Canon Special Prize was awarded to Mr. Luis Veiga of Brazil; the UNEP Executive Director’s Special Prize was awarded to Mr. Au Chin Ki of The People’s Republic of China; the International Photographic Council Scholarship was awarded to Mr. Wang Xun, also of China; and the newly-introduced Digital Camera Special Prize was awarded to Mr. Claudio Bacinello of Canada.

An interesting aspect of this competition was the extremely high number of entries from Asia, 45%, up from 22% in the previous competition. The judges also commented that ‘we were able to feel the power of Asia throughout the screening process,’ indicating that an increase in quality accompanied the increase in quantity.

The gold, silver and bronze prize-winners in the adult and junior divisions are each to receive prize money, commemorative certificates and supplementary prizes of Canon products. The gold prize-winners in the adult and junior divisions will receive US$20,000 and US$2,000 respectively.

All the winning entries and honorary mentions can be viewed at www.oneworld.net/media/gallery/unep/

All the winning images can be obtained for reproduction through Still Pictures on E-mail: info@stillpictures.com



Comments by the Winner of the Gold Prize (Adult Division)

Mr Hartmut Schwarzbach (Germany)
Title: Floating Kids at Manila Bay (a portfolio of photographs)
Pictures taken in the Philippines

‘It is the highest honour for me in my career as a photographer for my work to be awarded the Gold Prize in the UNEP International Photographic Competition. I believe that it is a photographer’s duty to observe everyday life and convey the truth through photography. The message of my photograph is: “Never forget the children in the so-called Third World!”

‘On the morning of January 5 this year, I visited Manila with an interpreter and walked along the waterfront of Manila Bay to a wild slum. The place was packed with people, and some people were cooking rice on open fires. I was drawn to the children who were paddling between the boats and the pier on floats made of pieces of Styrofoam. The noise of the container trucks continued non-stop and the air was filled with the stench of polluted water. These children live in this sort of environment. They go without breakfast, hop on their floats and paddle into the dirty water to collect plastic garbage for long hours every day. It was a way of surviving that I had never seen before.

‘I grew very fond of the children and decided to spend a week with them. I called them the “Floating Kids”.

‘My photographs portray more than just the children. They also focus on a host of environmental problems in urban areas such as water and air pollution, overpopulation, waste disposal, child labour, health issues and illegal housing in slums. I hope that people will become more aware of the problematic situation of the living environment in megacities and realize that environment consists of both humankind and nature together and for each other.

‘My biggest wish is that Len Len, Ron Ron, Redgu, Melinda, Renalyn, Marie Rose, Christy, Rudolfo and the other “Floating Kids” of Manila Bay will be able to receive an education soon.’

Mr Hartmut Schwarzbach



Comments by the Winner of the Gold Prize (Junior Division)

Miss Miriam Koehler (Germany)
Title: Artificial Nature
Picture taken in Germany

‘I was very surprised to hear that I had won the Gold Prize. I’ve never won a photo competition before so I feel very happy.

‘In June last year, a boy left his toy turtle in a garden. When I saw the contrast between the cheap, plastic turtle and the colour of nature, it gave me such a strange feeling and I knew I had to take a picture.

‘Turtles are in extreme danger of becoming extinct. I hope that in the future I won’t see only plastic turtles.’ Miss Miriam Koehler