The Single Reportage Photo Category is for young photojournalists to capture an environmental connection. The photo should be high-quality and artistic. The photo should address historical, economic, social, and political implications through an environmental lens. It should also show the link between local and global issues. If depicting an environmental problem, realistic solutions should be shared. Finally, the photo should offer a new perspective on the topic, taken in a creative manner.
Winners: Lailah Parker Smith and Yeshai Burgess
Single Reportage Photo Winner Age 11-14
Lailah Parker-Smith – A Golf Ball With A Smile
Age: 11
School: Whitney Institute
There are many golf balls in the sea.
One in the shore, and one in the deep.
There is algae in the little spots of the golf ball.
And it’s shaped like an oval and not like a ball.
It’s not a ball anymore.
I feel like it’s been in the ocean for four years.
The colour is faded but it has a chip that looks like a smile.
If a big fish tries to eat the golf ball it might choke and die.
What motivates me to want to protect the ocean is the fact that all the fish are eating the plastic that is in the ocean.
If the fish are eating plastic and you eat the fish, you are eating plastic.
Some fish and birds get caught in plastic soda rings from soda bottles.
Sometimes turtles get caught in fishing nets.
Don’t litter. Don’t throw your trash into the sea.
Single Reportage Photo Winner 15-18 & YRE Global Entry
Yeshai Burgess – The World in Plastic
Age: 17
School: The Berkeley Institute
My photo encompasses the growing littering problem around the world today. My picture shows bubble wrap suffocating the earth which is a reference to how plastic in the ocean suffocated oceans and how burning plastic suffocates humans. I believe that the solution to this issue is reform from the government and to encourage people to put their trash in the correct places. As seen in my photo, there is a window in the bubble wrap to show that there is a window of opportunity for our earth to change our ways, to change our earth.
