Printable Entry Form (.pdf)

Submission Deadline

Friday, April 15th, 2022

Contest Theme

The 2022 Youth Conservation Poster Contest topic is Healthy Soils: Healthy Life. This title must be on the poster for it to be eligible for judging.

Background

Soil is a dirty topic, but everyone needs to learn more about it! Soil is the foundation for many of the items we use in our daily life, such as food, clothing, clean water, homes and more. Healthy soil produces healthy food; healthy food produces healthy people! One characteristic of healthy soil is the presence of a diverse community of living things, including earthworms, insects and other arthropods, protozoans, fungi and bacteria. How we treat the soil affects how many and what types of organisms can live there, so don’t treat your soil like dirt! We invite you to learn more about soil life, and about the conservation practices that promote soil health. Then, create a poster to show others what you’ve learned about life in the soil.

Eligibility

Richland County students in grades K-12 should submit their posters to the Richland Soil and Water Conservation District for local judging by Friday, April 15, 2022; students in other counties in SC should contact their local conservation district for entry deadlines and details. 

Rules

1. Posters MUST be 14”x 22”. We can provide up to 24 sheets of 14”x22” poster paper per school; contact Chanda Cooper at cooper.chanda@richlandcountysc.gov to request supplies.  
2. Any media may be used to create a flat or two-dimensional effect, including paint, marker, ink, crayon, charcoal, colored pencil, stickers, collage, wallpaper, magazines, photos, digitally-designed graphics or flat objects found in nature.
3. Posters should be packaged so they remain flat when sent for judging.
4. All posters must be created by an individual student rather than a team of students.
5. The 2022 contest topic (Healthy Soils: Healthy Life) must be on the poster.  
6. Attach a signed entry form to the back of the poster. Student or school names must not appear on the front of the poster.    
7. Entry must be contestant's original creation and may not be traced from photographs or other artists' published works.

Recommendations

1. Posters should present a simple, concise visual message, similar to a billboard or bumper sticker.  As much as possible, limit text to the contest topic (Healthy Soils: Healthy Life); additional text can be difficult to read and complicates the message.  
2. The contest topic (Healthy Soils: Healthy Life) should be in bold, clear, unique text at the top or bottom of the poster, above or below the illustration; OR the slogan can be incorporated into the illustration, but the words should stand out.
3. Text should be large enough to be easily read.    
4. Avoid fluorescent-colored posters.  

Evaluation

Posters will be evaluated by grade level according to the following criteria:

1. Conservation Message: poster illustrates what lives in the soil, why soil life is important, and/or how we can promote healthy soil through conservation practices.  (50%)
2. Visual Effectiveness: poster attracts attention, uses colors and white space effectively, is easy to read, is neat, and makes good use of colors and shading. (30%)
3. Originality (10%)
4. Universal Appeal:  information conveyed on poster is relevant around the world. (10%)

Submission

Posters completed by Richland County students should be delivered to the Richland Soil and Water Conservation District by Friday, April 15, 2022. Posters may be dropped off in person or mailed.  Posters should be packaged to remain flat when sent for judging. 

Competition Progression and Awards

Richland County winners will progress to the state competition in Fall 2022; state winners will progress to the national competition in Winter 2022. Cash prizes will be awarded at each level.

• County Competition: $25 prizes will be awarded to winning posters in each of five grade level categories. Cash prizes are sponsored by the Richland Soil and Water Conservation District.
• State Competition: $50 prizes will be awarded to winning posters in each of five grade level categories. Cash prizes are sponsored by the SC Association of Conservation Districts.
• National Competition: First place prizes in each grade level category will receive $200; second place posters will receive $150; third place posters will receive $100. Cash prizes are sponsored by the National Association of Conservation Districts Auxiliary and the Albert I. Pierce Foundation.

Sponsors

Richland Soil and Water Conservation District
SC Association of Conservation Districts
National Association of Conservation Districts

For more information, contact Chanda Cooper at (803) 576-2084 or cooper.chanda@richlandcountysc.gov.

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Conservation Districts are political subdivisions of state government under the local direction of five-member Boards of Commissioners. In South Carolina, Conservation District boundaries conform to County boundaries. The Richland Soil and Water Conservation District promotes the wise use and care of natural resources for long-term sustainability.

Contact

Richland Soil and Water Conservation District
2020 Hampton Street, Room 3063A
Columbia, SC 29204
Phone (803) 576-2080
Fax (803) 576-2088
E-mail soilandwater@rcgov.us
Facebook www.facebook.com/rswcd