World Wildlife Day International Youth Art Contest

The International Youth Art contest is held in partnership with the Secretariat of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Contestants can enter with traditional art mediums (hand drawn using markers, crayons, colored pencils and/or paint). The contest is open to youth artists aged 4-18.

They ask that participants choose a species that benefits from conservation programs, which include many of the planet’s threatened and endangered species many of which IFAW works to protect through its programs. Participants should consider the importance of funding to secure protected areas and the wildlife and resources found within them. Once the artist has decided on a species, they may depict it as an individual animal portrait or in its native habitat.

Theme

• This year’s World Wildlife Day is celebrated under the theme of “Wildlife Conservation Finance: Investing in People and Planet” and aims to highlight the need to invest in wildlife through innovative financing solutions that recognize the critical role of wildlife to support the economies and well-being.

Benefits

• All Finalists and the Grand Prize Winner will have their artwork featured on the IFAW website by the 2025 celebration of World Wildlife Day, March 3, 2025. A selection of any entered submissions may also be chosen by IFAW, CITES, and the UNDP for inclusion in their promotional and other materials, such as (without limitation) calendars, classroom posters, greeting cards, etc.
• All entrants will receive a certificate of participation upon uploading their submission.
• The Grand Prize Winner, the Finalists, and the Best of Age Group Winners will all receive a certificate noting their placement in the Contest (“Prize”).
• The Grand Prize Winners may be invited to participate virtually (live or pre-recorded) to be recognized at the official World Wildlife Day celebration.

Eligibility Criteria

• The Contest is open to any individual aged 4 to 18 years as of the date of entry into the Contest. For entrants who have not reached the age of 18 (a “Minor Entrant”), a parent or legal guardian must complete the online Entry Form and agree to these Rules and other Contest terms on behalf of the Minor Entrant.

Ineligibility Criteria

• Trustees, board members, employees, interns, or partners of IFAW (including its affiliates and subsidiaries), CITES, or UNDP, and their immediate family (spouse, parent, child, sibling, and their respective spouses), and household members are not eligible to enter the Contest.
• Individuals residing in any “Excluded Jurisdiction” are ineligible to enter the Contest. Excluded Jurisdiction means any country listed on the US Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) Active Sanctions Programs List.

Judging Criteria

• Judging of the winning entry will be performed by a panel of at least 6 judges selected in advance by IFAW, CITES, and the UNDP at their discretion, and will be based on creativity, originality, relevance to the theme, and adherence to these Rules and other Contest terms.
• Following the end of the Submission Period, the panel will:
  • select up to 12 finalists (each, a “Finalist”). From the 12 finalists, there will be one Best of Age Group Winner selected for each of the following age groupings: 4-6 years of age;7-10 years of age; 11-14 years of age; and 15-18 years of age (“Best of Age Group Winner”). In addition, there will be one Grand Prize Winner (the “Grand Prize Winner”) selected from the Best of Age Group Winners, regardless of age.

Application Requirements

• To enter the Contest, eligible participants must create and submit an original piece of art.
• Artwork entries must comply with the following:
  • IFAW, CITES and the UNDP welcome artwork entries in the form of paintings or drawings inspired by the theme “Wildlife Conservation Finance: Investing in People and Planet” for the 2025 World Wildlife Day. This year’s theme encourages young minds to think about how humans protect the planet’s incredible wildlife through innovative conservation financing and the importance of sustained funding to secure protected areas and the wildlife and resources found within them. It’s a wonderful opportunity for children to learn about environmental stewardship while expressing their artistic talents. IFAW encourages students to portray species that benefit from conservation programs, which include many of the planet’s threatened and endangered species—many of which IFAW works to protect through its programs. Please only represent the animal(s) and do not include the people in the artwork:
    • All artwork entries must be original and created by hand using markers, crayons, colored pencils and/or paint. No artwork containing photographs, photocopies, tracing or computer-generated designs will be accepted.
    • All entries must be submitted electronically on the IFAW website.
  • Entries mailed to IFAW, CITES, or UNDP will not be accepted.
  • Only one entry may be submitted per entrant.
  • A fully and correctly completed Entry Form must be completed when the artwork is uploaded either by an entrant having attained the age of 18 or by a parent or guardian of a Minor Entrant.
  • Art submissions must not contain any content or material which:
    • contains personal information of any individual;
    • infringes or violates any copyright, trademarks, rights of privacy, publicity or other intellectual property or other rights of any other person or entity; or
    • is or might be regarded as being harassing, threatening, abusive, vulgar, obscene, defamatory, sexually explicit, racist or otherwise objectionable, inappropriate or unlawful.
  • Any entry which contains any such content or material as determined by IFAW, CITES, or UNDP in its sole discretion shall be disqualified from the Contest.

For more information, visit IFAW.