I. Information About the Call 

The Earth is the common home of humankind and the only home of humankind so far. At the Leaders’ Summit of the fifteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the Convention on Biological Diversity, President Xi Jinping called on the international community to build a community of all life on Earth. It is our desire to better expound to the world President Xi Jinping’s thought on eco-civilization, which is based on the environmental philosophy of harmonious coexistence between human beings and nature, the development philosophy of “lucid water and lush mountains are invaluable assets”, the people-centered philosophy that a good environment is the most universal welfare, and the systemic philosophy of promoting eco-civilization, and the world view of seeking to build a global ecological civilization. To tell the story in a more realistic, vivid, three-dimensional and comprehensive way, the 2024 “You Make the World a Beautiful Place” Image Story Global Collection Event will select works in the form of pictures and videos to convey to the global audience the value of building a community of all life on earth. 

II. Organizers: 

China Center for International Communication Development of China International Communications Group 

Publicity and Education Center of the Ministry of Natural Resources 

Information Office of Guangzhou Municipal People’s Government 

Supported by: 

Southern Power Grid Lancang-Mekong International Energy Co. 

Beijing MW Foundation 

Visual China 500Px Photography Community 

III. Accepted Themes 

1.“Beautiful World – Shared Diversity” Section:  

Theme 1: Beauty of Nature 

Submissions will focus on the world’s natural environment and biodiversity, show the beauty of the earth and tell the story of nature. For example: natural landscape or nature reserves, national parks, etc., or works of animals, plants, microorganisms, especially precious and rare species and endemic species. 

Theme 2: The Green Path 

Submissions will focus on the exploratory efforts and positive actions of human beings in respecting, adapting to and protecting nature. For example, stories about initiatives to protect and improve ecology and the environment, green development of cities, etc., showing the development of livable cities that promote eco-civilization and share the fruits of development with all. 

Theme 3: The Way of Harmony 

Submissions will show the comprehensive and sustainable development of human beings in different dimensions, such as between human beings and nature, among human beings, and human beings in society, which depict a beautiful environment, a harmonious coexistence, improved people’s livelihoods, and living and working in peace and contentment. 

2.“Charming Guangzhou – Fascinating Journey” Section 

Theme 1: Eco-Guangzhou 

Submissions will focus on Guangzhou’s green development, livable environment, eco-friendly urban landscape, beautiful pictures of harmonious coexistence between human and nature, and vivid stories of ecological governance and restoration. 

Theme 2: Energetic Guangzhou 

Submissions focus on Guangzhou’s vitality and dynamism as a city of innovation, from the vanguard of reform and opening up to a manufacturing town to a city of consumption, showcasing the new outlook of Guangzhou as a millennia-old business capital in the new era. 

Theme 3: Culture-Rich Guangzhou 

Submissions focus on the unique charm of Guangzhou’s Ling’nan culture, the submissions will showcase a series of “Guangdong cultural name cards” such as the Cantonese language, Cantonese opera, Cantonese cuisine, Kung Fu tea, lion dance, dragon boat, Yingge dance, and the flower market, as well as the distinctive style of “Guangzhou life”. 

IV. Eligible Candidates 

Individuals, teams and legal organizations worldwide are eligible to submit entries, with no more than 10 entries per participant. 

V. Content Requirements  

1.The submissions should closely follow the themes; they should be novel and positively oriented, and should not contain any information touching obscenity, violence, gambling, superstition, terrorism, racial discrimination, religious taboos and other contents that do not comply with laws and regulations. No advertisements are allowed; 

2.The submissions can come in forms including but not limited to pictures, short videos, micro-documentaries, Vlogs, art works and installations, etc. All works should be submitted online in digital forms; 

3.Picture group participants can submit color or black and white pictures, in any form including single picture, group picture. Works must be equipped with detailed picture description; picture resolution should be not less than 1920 pixels on the long side, the picture format JPG, and the picture data not less than 800K; the author must retain the original data file so that the pictures can further adjusted if needed; the works can be retouched, but the content or elements in the picture can not be altered, nor can the original appearance of the work be changed by synthesizing. 

4.Video group participants can submit multilingual works but they should come with English or Chinese subtitles; format accepted: MPG, MPEG, AVI, MOV, WMV, MP4 files; resolution: 1280*720 or more; length: not more than 30 minutes; landscape picture recommended; 

VI. Participation Channels 

Participating organizations or individuals can send their entries in the form of oversized attachments to the registration email with the subject line noting it is for the 2024 “You Make the World a Beautiful Place” Image Story Global Collection Event, together with the entry form. You can also send an email with the link and password of your work to Baidupan in China and Google Drive in other countries. 

DOWNLOAD APPLICATION FORM 

Domestic registration e-mail: cop15bw@163.com 

Overseas registration e-mail: cop15bw@outlook.com 

Visual China Submission Channel: https://500px.com.cn/contest/2024sjyneml?r=allWorks 

VII. Deadlines 

Call for entries: July 8 – October 15 

Selection of works: October 16 – November 30 

Announcement of winners: December 1 – December 15 

In case of special circumstances, the organizing committee may adjust the schedule as appropriate. 

VIII. Selection and Prizes 

1.Each of the two units of this activity will award a gold prize, with a prize money of 5,000 yuan; two silver prizes, with a prize money of 3,000 yuan; and five bronze prizes, with a prize money of 1,000 yuan (all before tax). There will also be 50 merit awards. 

2.Representatives of the winning authors/institutions will be given honorary certificates; 

3.Representatives of the winning authors/institutions will have the opportunity to participate in relevant themed activities. 

IX. Disclaimer 

1.The organizer has the right to use all the entries, only for the purpose of non-commercial activities such as publicity and promotion of this Call, exhibition, and media report. 

2.Participating organizations or individuals must ensure that the works submitted are original works or that they have obtained the right to use. If there is any infringement of rights including copyrights and portrait rights, all damages will be borne by the participant; 

3.There is no registration fee, no remuneration for the works submitted, and all submitted works will not be returned; 

4.Any organization or individual participating in this activity is deemed to agree with the foregoing provisions; 

5.The right to interpretation of this activity belongs to the organizer. 

“You Make the World a Beautiful Place” Image Story Global Collection Event Organizing Committee 

July 8, 2024