2026 Nandagang International Wetland Photo Contest: Together for Wetlands

About this call

Hosted by the Cangzhou International Communication Center and organised by Xinhuanet North America, the Nandagang International Wetland Photo Contest invites photographers worldwide to tell the story of wetland conservation. Nandagang Wetland, in Cangzhou, Hebei Province, China, lies beside the Bohai Sea and the Grand Canal and is a key stopover on the East Asian-Australasian Flyway. There are six categories: Global Wetlands, People and Wetlands, Nandagang Wetland, Youth Imaging (under 28, mobile photography accepted), Wetlands and Migratory Birds, and Wetland Conservation Stories, a video category for works up to 3 minutes. The Grand Prize is USD 1,500; in each category first, second and third prizes pay USD 500, 200 and 50, with 6, 12 and 18 winners in total, plus special awards for creativity, humanistic spirit and youth. The jury includes Albert Dros, Georgina Goodwin and Ritu Ahluwalia. Winners are announced from 30 December 2026.

Who can apply

• The official call states no eligibility restriction
• Medium: Photography / Video
• Entry fee: See official site
• Open to everyone. You may enter several categories; up to 6 works per category, as single images or series. The Youth Imaging category is for creators under 28. Images in JPG, JPEG, PNG, DNG, HEIC or HEIF, preferably at least 3,000 pixels on the longest side, no larger than 10 MB, sRGB; no watermarks, borders, signatures, names or other identifying information. Only basic adjustments (exposure, colour, white balance, contrast, sharpness, noise reduction, cropping) that do not alter the factual content are allowed; compositing, AI-generated images, AI expansion and adding, removing or substantially altering content are prohibited. Works must be your own; plagiarism is prohibited. Keep the original files with complete EXIF data; shortlisted or provisionally awarded entrants must supply originals and high-resolution files, and failing to do so may lead to disqualification (for phones, drones and other devices without RAW, the highest-quality original file is accepted). Entries with severely incomplete key information are invalid. Videos up to 3 minutes, horizontal or vertical. Disturbing wildlife, baiting, staged photography, bird hides and photographing birds during nesting or chick-rearing are prohibited. Provide an email address, mobile number or WeChat account. Entrants authorise free use of their works for public welfare purposes, including promotion, and the organiser may modify and crop them; winners grant non-exclusive, worldwide, non-commercial rights to awarded works. Personal information is stored in mainland China. Winners must sign, scan and email documents within the period set by the organiser or forfeit the award. The page does not mention an entry fee.