THE WINNERS

The winners of the 11th Annual Photo Competition for UN World Oceans Day were announced on June 7th, 2024, during the UN World Oceans Day (UNWOD) 2024 event at the UN Headquarters in New York. The free competition, which launched this past March, explored the five thematic categories linked to the overarching 2024 theme: “Awaken New Depths.” World-renowned judges underwater photographer Tom St George (UK), cave instructor and explorer Julia Gugelmeier (Germany), photographer and dive center operator Mohamed Rifshan Shaheem (Maldives), and underwater photographer Mayumi Takeuchi-Ebbins (Japan) selected first, second, and third place winners for the categories. Winners were selected from thousands of global entries made by both amateur and professional photographers.

The 2024 Photo Competition for UN World Oceans Day is coordinated in collaboration between the United Nations Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea, DPG, Oceanic Global, the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, the United Nations Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States, the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO, and Nausicaá.

The 2024 winning photographers hail from nine different countries: Renee Capozzola, Patrick Webster, Sina Ritter (“Awaken New Depths”), Andrea Marandino, Stuart Chape (“Small Island Developing States”), Mathieu Macias, George Kuowei Kao, Irene Middleton (“Big and Small Underwater Faces”), Taryn Schulz, Daniel Sly, Vanessa Mignon (“Underwater Seascapes”), Michael Sswat, Emmett Sparling, Romeo Bodolai (“Above Water Seascapes”). All participants signed a charter of 14 commitments regarding ethics in photography.

The United Nations World Oceans Day Photo Competition is an ongoing tradition that calls on photographers and artists from around the world to communicate the beauty of the ocean and the importance of the respective UNWOD themes each year. Winning photos from past years can additionally be seen at www.unworldoceansday.org.

Awaken New Depths

© Renee Capozzola (USA). Awaken New Depths — Winner
“Bringing Up The Net”: This large discarded fishing net was found lying on the reef at about 30 meters in Kona, Hawaii. Volunteers from Ocean Defenders Alliance (ODA), brought up this net by working closely together, using lift bags, and the net was then raised onto a boat provided by Kona Honu Divers. Earlier that day, ODA had raised and extracted large volumes of fishing line (ultimately filling large buckets for removal) that had been snarled upon the reef. Unfortunately, our ocean suffers from large amounts of debris, which can destroy reefs, entangle marine life, and release harmful chemicals. Many thanks to organizations such as ODA for helping to clean our ocean and preserve marine ecosystems for future generations.

© Patrick Webster (USA). Awaken New Depths — 2nd Place
Kelp restoration technician Andrew Kim removes purple sea urchins (Strongylocentrotus purpuratus) from an experimental site that will investigate whether divers can adequately defend and restore kelp forests devastated by warming oceans. Since 1980, kelp forests around Monterey Bay have declined in their canopy coverage by 90-some percent. Most recently, beginning in 2013, a “perfect ecological storm” hit the kelp everywhere it hurts, stressing the forests and emboldening its grazers in the absence of their predators. The disappearance of kelp up and down the coast has raised the alarm, rallying countless organizations and dedicated divers to try their chilly hands at becoming gardeners of the kelp forests. By playing sea otter, sunflower star and seaweed surrogate in their absence, these inspiring coastal caretakers are hoping to bolster the coastline and give it a fighting chance for a more resilient future ecosystem and community in the face of climate change.

© Sina Ritter (Germany). Awaken New Depths — 3rd Place
“Guiding Fins”: This photo captures a moving scene in Costa Rica where local conservationists tenderly release some hawksbill turtle hatchlings into the ocean. The image brings us close to the gentle hands of a conservationist, carefully escorting these tiny, vulnerable creatures toward the vastness of the sea—their ultimate haven. As these hatchlings navigate a world filled with predators and natural challenges, the image emphasizes the crucial role humans have in protecting our planet’s wildlife. It’s a vivid reminder of the delicate thread of life and how targeted conservation efforts can significantly boost the survival rates of these young turtles.

Small Island Developing States

© Andrea Marandino (Brazil). Small Island Developing States — Winner
This image was taken in Abatao, North Tarawa, Kiribati. The children of Kiribati have a close relationship to the ocean and play in the water from a young age. Tarawa, the capital of Kiribati, is a narrow strip of land that lies between the Pacific and an enormous lagoon that requires a freshwater lens. The kids are always smiling and happily interact with the few visitors, but their future is uncertain. Kiribati’s coral atolls are very low-lying, with a maximum elevation of 3 to 4 meters above sea level, making it one of the countries most threatened by climate change.

© Andrea Marandino (Brazil). Small Island Developing States — 2nd Place
This shot was taken in the village of Korotongo, on the southern coast of Viti Levu, Fiji. The lady in the photo, Mele, was catching sea urchins with two cousins—something they do regularly together for their own consumption. She would open the sea urchins to extract the edible part, mixing them in a bucket with lemon and chilli. They invited me to join (classic Fijian hospitality), and we ate them fresh on the beach, with bread fruit on the side. Delicious, and one of my favorite memories of Fiji.

© Stuart Chape (Australia). Small Island Developing States — 3rd Place
Coastal village, Solomon Islands: The large village of Haghalu is located on the south coast of Ngela Sule island in the Central Province of the Solomon Islands. The elevation of the village ranges from 1 to 5 meters above sea level and is surrounded by coral reefs and deeper sea that support village livelihoods and food security by providing marine resources. Like all Pacific islands’ coastal villages, Haghalu is vulnerable to climate change, particularly rising seas and extreme weather events.

Big and Small Underwater Faces

© Mathieu Macias (France). Big and Small Underwater Faces – Winner
This photograph is a portrait of a leafy seadragon taken in Rapid Bay, South Australia, where it is endemic. I was absolutely charmed by this creature as soon as I saw it for the first time in a photo, and it became a dream for me to meet one. Although the first try was a failure, I decided to come back a few months later and my dream came true. I was so happy to meet this animal that is so cute and almost unreal, with its amazing camouflage ability. Due to the animal’s shyness, it was a big challenge to shoot this portrait, but I am delighted with the result.

© George Kuowei Kao (Taiwan). Big and Small Underwater Faces — 2nd Place
A dive revealed a hard coral hosting blennies, whose charm rivaled groundhogs, through my new lens. As I captured their likeness, creativity spurred me to push the scene’s boundaries. Employing a snoot, I orchestrated a dramatic, overexposed standoff between two blennies. Jason, my guide, with a heart-shaped gesture, turned a shared look into a shared vision. This photo, a fusion of spontaneous nature and a flash of inspiration, is the fruit of that dive.

© Irene Middleton (New Zealand). Big and Small Underwater Faces — 3rd Place
This is a juvenile football octopus (Ocythoe tuberculata), a pelagic octopus species that usually lives in midwater, at a depth of around 200 meters, where they are the favorite prey of lancetfishes and rissos dolphins. The juveniles are occasionally encountered near the surface, where they often use large salps as protection. I saw a handful in salps on this day at the Poor Knights Islands off New Zealand’s northeastern coast, but this was the only free-swimming juvenile I encountered.

Underwater Seascapes

© Taryn Schulz (Canada). Underwater Seascapes — Winner
“Cormorant Love”: This image was taken at Isla Islotes, off the Mexican state of Baja California, a location known for its sea lion colony. The day we dived here, there happened to be a large number of sardines taking refuge by the island, which became an exciting spectacle in the water, with pelicans and cormorants like in this photo flying around and torpedoing themselves in the water. Moments before this shot, the sardines were swimming very quickly, so I turned around as I knew something was coming, and I was so happy to capture the heart shape of the sardines as they fled from the cormorants.

© Daniel Sly (Australia). Underwater Seascapes — 2nd Place
During the winter months, hundreds of thousands of giant cuttlefish (Sepia apama) aggregate in the shallow waters of the upper Spencer Gulf in South Australia. The cuttlefish arrive here with just one thing on their minds: mating! The gathering of these cuttlefish is skewed towards the males of the species at a ratio of around eight to one, so competition for the limited numbers of females can be fierce. In the foreground of this image, a large male has completely engulfed a smaller female with its arms, while in the background, several other sets of males can be seen challenging one another for the opportunity to mate with the nearby female.

© Vanessa Mignon (France). Underwater Seascapes — 3rd Place
I traveled to Baja California, Mexico, hoping to witness the Mobula munkiana aggregation. On this day, we found a vortex of them in deep, blue waters. They were circling and swimming in unison. It felt like a beautiful, hypnotic dance. Seeing such big aggregations can lead one to think that their populations are doing well. Unfortunately, Mobula munkiana are listed as “Vulnerable” on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

Above Water Seascapes

© Michael Sswat (Germany). Above Water Seascapes – Winner
Sitting at the rocky shore in Norway watching the northern lights and their reflection in the sea surface with friends—what more do you want?! In this case, we even had more beautiful nature to experience, as earlier in the day, we were diving through canyons into incredible kelp forests meeting lobsters and nudibranchs, in the Namsfjord, off the village of Utvørda, north of Trondheim.

© Emmett Sparling (Canada). Above Water Seascapes — 2nd Place
On our first night in the Tuamotus, French Polynesia, we stopped in Tahanea—an uninhabited atoll deep in this stunning archipelago. We had a perfectly windless evening, where the ocean turned to glass. The next morning, the water was still glassy and a group of blacktip reef sharks patrolled the waters around our boat. Rainbows and sharks are common subjects in the Tuamotus, two things I’ll never get used to.

© Romeo Bodolai (Hungary). Above Water Seascapes — 3rd Place
In Myanmar, a fisherman tries to catch fish for his family using a traditional technique. This picture was taken on Inle Lake in 2019. I was lucky with the pleasing, warm light, which added a nice extra touch to this beautiful moment.