2020 Contest Winners

Photography Contest

The many uses of Earth materials.
ESW 2020 Contest Photography Winner (Alex Xu)

Alex Xu of Clyde Hill, Washington, won first place in the photo contest with an image depicting the many uses of Earth materials - in the buildings, the power plant, the natural setting, and more - at the Snoqualmie Falls Hydroelectric Plant, located in Snoqualmie, Washington.

Submissions illustrated the theme “Earth Materials in My Community.”

Finalists

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ESW 2020 Contest Photography Finalist (Ella Giguere)

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ESW 2020 Contest Photography Finalist (Evan Costa)

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ESW 2020 Contest Photography Finalist (Jessica Malkin)

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ESW 2020 Contest Photography Finalist (Tori Judy)

Visual Art Contest

Creative ways that Earth materials are used.
ESW 2020 Contest Visual Art Winner (Justin Xu)

Justin Xu of Sugar Hill, Georgia, won first place in the visual arts contest with their drawing that included the many creative ways that Earth materials are used.

Students in grades K-5 made two-dimensional artworks illustrating the theme “Earth Materials and Me.”

Finalists

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ESW 2020 Contest Visual Art Finalist (Elizabeth Xu)

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ESW 2020 Contest Visual Art Finalist (Everett Lee)

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ESW 2020 Contest Visual Art Finalist (Nathan Xu)

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ESW 2020 Contest Visual Art Finalist (Teagin Costanzo)

Essay Contest

Our Next Step

As intelligent civilizations, we’ve advanced from the Stone Age to the Modern Age by utilizing natural resources from the Earth. But we don’t always ponder about how …

Akhshith Rengaraju

Akhshith Rengaraju of Aurora, Illinois, won first place in the essay contest with their paper on “Our Next Step.”

Students in grades 6-9 wrote essays of up to 300 words addressing how we can develop practices and policies that allow us to derive practical value from raw materials while maintaining community values.

The views and assertions presented in essays are neither endorsed by nor reflect the positions the American Geosciences Institute.

Finalists

“Earth Materials: Needs Over Wants”

Throughout time, humankind has utilized Earth materials in various ways- such as architecture, agriculture, and transportation. Eventually, our use …

Processing Earth Materials

Throughout our day, earth’s materials are processed in various different ways but we are not always aware of how much our uses can affect the earth. Think about some …

How We Process Earth Materials

All life on Earth is dependent on Earth’s materials, it’s what connects humans to the planet. But when we don’t properly create balance in what we take …

“How We Process Earth Materials”

For centuries, people have relied on Earth materials to sustain their lifestyles, from brick houses to iPhones. However, despite their prevalence in …

Video Contest

Halite-Uses Around The World.
ESW 2020 Contest Video Winner (Isabella Van Deman and Faith Qin)

Isabella Van Deman & Faith Qin of Virginia Beach, Virginia (team), won first place in the video contest with their entry on halite, with respect to the many historical, cultural, and scientific dimensions, as an Earth material that people use.

Individuals and teams created brief, original videos exploring the many ways people interact with our planet’s raw materials.