Deadline Extended: Third Annual Essay and Blogging Contest on Sustainability
By Jeff Kart, posted on December 22nd, 2011 in Announcements, Essay Contest 2011
UPDATE: The deadline for submissions has been extended to Jan. 20, 2012.
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Earthzine invites undergraduate and graduate students from around the world to submit an essay for its 2011 Third Annual College and University Student Essay and Blogging Contest. This year’s contest theme is “How Can Earth Observation Help Us to Build a More Sustainable World?”
Earthzine, an online publication dedicated to promoting the societal benefits of Earth observation and Earth information, is conducting a competition to encourage students to explore the role of Earth observation in creating a sustainable world.
Students are invited to submit original essays that describe, reflect upon, or envision roles for Earth observation in improving sustainability around the globe. Earth observation includes technological solutions such as satellite observation, navigation and positioning systems; in situ observations, international web-based collaboration and data sharing initiatives; and social perspectives that address sustainability through a better understanding of our planet.. From local to global benefits, we are interested in essays that address the potential of Earth observation to meet the environmental challenges we face.
(See Winners from 2010 and 2009)
After an initial judges’ review, Earthzine will post candidate essays on its website. The author(s) of the essay will be invited to lead a blog about their essay and to participate in blogs of competing essays. Winners will be determined based on the overall quality of the essay and blog.
Winners will share $1,200 in prizes, with $500 for the first prize. They also will receive certificates. All finalists will receive an Earthzine T-shirt.
Eligibility: Enrollment in any (e.g. American, European, African, Asian, etc.) undergraduate or graduate degree program at an accredited college or university, attending full or part-time at the time of essay submission. Please indicate your anticipated year of graduation and the contact email of your registrar.
Submission Guidelines:
The submission deadline is Dec. 22, 2011 (Solstice) Jan. 20, 2012.
Winners will be announced on March 20, 2012 (Equinox).
Essays should be no longer than 2,500 words and should conform to Earthzine’s Writer’s Guidelines. See earthzine.org/about.
All essays must be original and previously unpublished.
Please include a brief (<100 words) biographical sketch of the student, corresponding mailing address and T-shirt size.
Images are welcome, but must be either owned by the author or in the public domain.
Failure to comply with the Submission Guidelines may result in disqualification.
Earthzine reserves the right to edit any content posted on its site.
Queries and final essays should be sent to Dr. David Mullins, Associate Editor for Education, at dmullins@sf.edu.
NASA Daily Image
Expedition 30 Cosmonauts Perform Spacewalk
This image of Russian cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko and Anton Shkaplerov, both Expedition 30 flight engineers, was taken during a spacewalk on Thursday, Feb. 16, 2012. During the six-hour, 15-minute spacewalk, Kononenko and Shkaplerov moved the Strela-1 crane from the Pirs Docking Compartment in preparation for replacing it in 2012 with a new laboratory and docking module. The duo used another boom, the Strela-2, to move the hand-operated crane to the Poisk module for future assembly and maintenance work. Both telescoping booms extend like fishing rods and are used to move massive components outside the station. On the exterior of the Poisk Mini-Research Module 2, they also installed the Vinoslivost Materials Sample Experiment, which will investigate the influence of space on the mechanical properties of the materials. The spacewalkers also collected a test sample from underneath the insulation on the Zvezda Service Module to search for any signs of living organisms. Both spacewalkers wore Russian Orlan spacesuits bearing blue stripes and equipped with NASA helmet cameras. Image Credit: NASA