Nature’s Best Photography Magazine is announcing an open call for all photographers to enter the 2009 NATURE’S BEST PHOTOGRAPHY WINDLAND SMITH RICE INTERNATIONAL AWARDS competition. A total of $15,000 is offered in cash and prizes.

The winners of the contest will have their photographs published in the Awards 2009 Collector’s Edition of Nature’s Best Photography. Winning entries may also be selected for the annual exhibition at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC. The photos are also eligible for presentation in other photo gallery displays that are related to the contest.

The entries are judged by the magazine’s editorial staff and critiqued for technical quality, originality, and artistic merit.

Entry fee is $25. The deadline for this contest is May 4, 2009. Entries for this contest are submitted digitally to the website. The official contest entry form is located at the Nature’s Best Photography site. For full details of the contest and submission requirements, go to Naturesbestphotography.com.

Windland Smith Rice was a strong advocate for conservation and an accomplished photographer in her own right. She won a Nature’s Best Photography award in 1999 and began a close relationship with the contest by volunteering her time to the event. She is remembered by her strong love for nature and photography as well as her warm spirit and love of people.

A partial contest category list follows:

ART IN NATURE:
Naturally occurring artistic compositions (colors, forms, textures, etc.) in nature.

BIRDS:
Wild birds in native habitats displaying plumage, mating rituals, nesting, feeding, or other behaviors.

CREATIVE DIGITAL:
Any nature-related image or combination of images that is created and/or manipulated using digital/electronic technology (such as Adobe® Photoshop®). Let your imagination go wild!

ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES:
Images that document current environmental issues, such as pollution, global warming, loss of habitat, etc.

OCEANS:
The fascinating world of the sea: tide pools, coral reefs, marine life, waves, etc. Photos taken above the ocean’s surface, related to ocean life, are also welcome.

SMALL WORLD SPECTACULARS:
Shots of plants, animals, and miniature landscapes taken with macro lenses.

WEATHER:
From dramatic storms to tranquil skies—weather in all its fury and forms. (Tornados, hurricanes, floods, rain, wind, cloud formations, etc.)

WILDLIFE:
Wild animals (mammals, reptiles, amphibians, etc.—birds are a separate category, see above) photographed in their natural habitat (no captive animals).

Got a project to show off to the world? Want your work recognized by a distinguished panel of architects? The Western Red Cedar Lumber Association and the Cedar Shale and Shingle Bureau invite entries in the Western Red Cedar Architectural Design Awards program honoring design excellence and architectural accomplishment using western red cedar.

Deadline is 31 October 2008. Visit the site to learn more.

Design For The Children is an open, international design competition asking architects and designers from around the world to develop a sustainable, culturally responsive, pediatric clinic model for East Africa. Fight for the Children staff will work with local residents at the proposed site in East Africa to build the clinic based on the winning design, using local materials and building techniques. Fight for the Children staff will train and work with local doctors and nurses, who will in turn train other area residents.

Registration deadline is 15 October 2008. 15 January is the submission deadline (only the registration date will be noted on the calendar). Visit the site to learn more.

Rock is more a way of life than just a genre of music, according to Ink Fruit. So they thought it’s time to do it justice. Now they want you to make some rockin Tees. Make sure you’ve got some awesome music playing while you design for this contest. They’ll know if you don’t!

To make sure that the people who make the most Rockin Tees feel real special, they’ve got prizes worth $30,000 bucks (not shabby!). Ten designs will be selected as the winners, so plenty of you are gonna be mighty happy by the end of it - and all the others will find some mind blowing t-shirts to buy…

Deadline is 1 October 2008. Visit the site to learn more.

ASUS Technology Pte Ltd (ASUS) invites entries for an open competition to participate in ASUS Eee PC skin design competition. Entries are invited from the School and General Public category.

Entrants can participate in this design competition either as an individual or as a team. Winners will receive a unit of ASUS Eee PC each, as well as prizes up to S$7,000 from the School & Public Category (Gold, Silver, and Bronze). To reward the winning schools, ASUS will provide 2 units of Eee PC as a form of appreciation in encouraging their students for participation.

As for the Public Category, winners will also be rewarded with a unit of ASUS Eee PC, and ASUS will be donating 2 units to their preferred choice of approved Charity organization(s).

Submission closing date of registration with design entries on 10 November 2007. Visit the site to learn more.

Via: VR-Zone

Enterprise Mauritius invites jewelry designers to participate in the Mauritian theme jewelry collection design competition. Enterprise Mauritius has been entrusted to be the lead agency for the implementation of several projects of the Empowerment Programme more particularly for the development of the jewelry sector.

The competition is open to artists, designers, enterprises, artisans or any individual. Foreigners wishing to participate are advised to seek partnership with a Mauritian national. Designers should keep in mind that the jewelry will be made in gold, silver, other precious metals and may include precious and semi-precious stones and such. Use of natural products is an element to be considered within the design.

Entrants to the competition must send their design renderings together with the official application form and Benefit Sharing Agreement to Enterprise Mauritius to be received on or before
29 October 2007. Visit the site to learn more.