The Louisiana Outdoor Writers Association (LOWA) is ready to accept participants for this year’s Youth Outdoor Journalism Contest sponsored by LOWA and Safari Club International (SCI) with support from the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF).
The contest will include both essay and photography categories that are designed to spur interest in outdoor journalism in the youth of Louisiana. All entries are judged by professional educators and outdoor communicators and must be postmarked by July 3, 2009 for this year’s contest.
The essay contest is broken into two age classes, senior (ages 14-18) and junior (13 years of age and younger). The essays should be about personal experiences related to the outdoors and between 300 and 1,000 words in length. Submitted essays must be typed, double-spaced and only on one side of each piece of paper.
The photography category is open to all students 18 years of age and younger with no specific age categories. An original, unpublished photo in color or black and white in a 4-by-6-inch, 5-by-7-inch or 8-by-10-inch print that is center mounted on 8-by-10-inch poster or mounting board will be accepted.
First place prize winners will take home $150 in cash. Second place will receive $100, third place will get $50 and honorable mention will take home $25. All of the winning applicants will also receive an LOWA certificate. The cash prizes are donated to the competition by the Louisiana Chapter of SCI and will be presented at the annual LOWA Fall Conference.
LDWF will publish the first-place essay and photography winners in upcoming issues of their magazine, Louisiana Conservationist. Winning entries will also have their work published in other various media outlets and Web sites across the state.
All entries must be postmarked no later than July 3, 2009 and sent to LOWA, Advocate Educational Services, P.O. Box 588, Baton Rouge, LA 70821. The entries must also include the contestant’s name, age, school, home address and telephone number at the top of the first page of the essay or attached to the back of the mounting board of the photos. Participants that want to have their entries returned must include a self addressed stamped envelope. Winners will be notified by mail.
For more information, contact Adam Einck at 225-765-2465 or aeinck@wlf.louisiana.gov.
