EUROPEAN GREENWAYS PHOTO CONTEST

– CONTEST RULES –

1. PRESENTATION

European Greenways are the protagonists of this digital photography competition which will take place in the spring of 2016, from 11 April to 12 June 2016.

The competition is organized by the European Greenways Association, in the framework of the European project Greenways Outdoor (co-founded by the Cosme programme of the European Union). The objective is to promote greenways as a suitable infrastructure for different groups to practise outdoor activities at any time of year.

European Greenways Association (EGWA)

The European Greenways Association (EGWA) was created in 1998 in Namur (Belgium) with the aim of encouraging the creation and promotion of greenways in Europe. It brings together some 50 different organizations from 16 countries involved in the development of greenways. Further info at www.aevv-egwa.org.

The greenway concept

Greenways are “Communication routes reserved exclusively for non-motorised journeys, developed in an integrated manner which enhances both the environment and quality of life of the surrounding area. These routes should meet satisfactory standards of width, gradient, and surface condition to ensure that they are both user-friendly and low-risk for users of all abilities. In this respect, canal towpaths and disused railway lines are a highly suitable resource for the development of greenways.” (Declaration of Lille, 12 September 2000).

2. PARTICIPATION

Participation is free and open to any photographer living in one of the member states of the European Union, EFTA or official European Union candidate countries, or in any other member state of the Council of Europe.

3. TOPIC

The submitted photos must be related to the European Greenways according to the Lille Declaration and show the infrastructure itself (viaducts, tunnels, old railway buildings, canal towpaths, etc.), or users, heritage and natural attractions of the environment, places and singular elements, and especially the practice of activities by different kinds of users (cyclists, hikers, sports, families, etc.).

4. SUBMISSION OF PHOTOS

Photos may be sent by email or uploaded to Facebook!

Each photograph must be submitted with a title and a brief summary of what it shows, indicating on what greenway it was taken.

It is possible to submit a maximum of five photographs per participant, free-form, using any photographic technique, in colour or black and white. Photos that have been published or awarded in other competitions will not be accepted. The following information must accompany the photos:

Forename
Surname
Telephone number (optional for photos sent by email)
City and country of residency
Email address
Place where it was taken (country, region and approximate location or kilometre coordinates)
Date the picture was taken
Title
Brief description

Additionally, for pictures uploaded to Facebook:

The hashtag #EuropeanGreenways2016
Facebook tag the official Facebook page of European Greenways Association https://www.facebook.com/European.Greenways.Association/ on the photo itself. Also the photo must be made visible to the public to ensure that our team can view your entry.

The photos must be submitted in .jpg format, with a maximum size of 3 MB each and a minimum resolution of 300 pixels per inch. If sent by email, for technical reasons attachments must not exceed 5 MB. If they exceed this size, photos should be sent in several attachments.

The photos must be submitted exclusively by email to greenwaysphoto16@aevv-egwa.org or uploaded to the official European Greenways Association Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/European.Greenways.Association/

The EGWA will analyse all photos received before exhibiting them, discarding those that are not of a minimum quality or that might be distasteful or offensive.

5. DEADLINE

The deadline for submission is Sunday, June 12, 2016.

**6. PRIZES (*)**

A. There will be a total of five awards :

1st PRIZE: 2 tickets in 1st class for a round trip to any of the Renfe-SNCF en cooperación / en cooperation destinations**, sponsored by renfe-sncf.com
2nd PRIZE: 3 Day trip to Madrid for 2 people (bike rental, 2 nights at hotel** and self-guided visits to Tajuña and Eresma Greenways) – organized and sponsored by Rutas Pangea
3rd PRIZE: 3 Day trip to Andalucía for 2 people (2 nights at Olvera Casa Vagon Vía Verde de la Sierra and 1 day bike rental for 2) – sponsored by Fundación Vía Verde de la Sierra (FVVS)
4th PRIZE: 3 Free bookings for any of the Greenways Marathons plus 3 bib numbers – organized and sponsored by Diversport.
5th PRIZE: Day trip with lunch to the Olive Oil Greenway for 4 people (bike rentals and t-shirts included) – organized and sponsored by Subbética Bike Friends (SBF)

Plus for all the winners and the first 5 finalists:

European greenways promotional package:

Trip planner from Vennbahn/Belgium
Map Voies Vertes et Véloroutes – Af3V /France
FFE – Vías Verdes kids t-shirt + calendar + DVD /Spain
CIM Dao Lafoes t-shirt/Portugal

The awards will be made public during the month of June, in the second half of the month. Winners will be notified by email or Facebook and on the website www.aevv-egwa.org. Any material prizes will be sent to the winners by post.

B. And a SPECIAL Social Networks Prize for the person with the most points:

There will be one prize offered by the EGWA – Greenways Outdoor project, consisting of two nights’ accommodation *** with breakfast for two people near one of the winning greenways of the 7^th European Greenways Award 2015 (Excellence and Exemplary Initiatives categories).

You could choose one of the following greenways destinations:

Nordbahntrasse Wuppertal / North-Rhine-Westphalia / Germany
Plazaola Greenway / Navarra / Spain
Koleje in Nový Jičín / Moravia-Silesia / Czech Republic
Greenway between Flemish Ardennes and the Pays des Collines / Flanders / Walloon region / Belgium – Sporen in de Tijd / Tracks into Time – initiative
Harby to Lincoln Greenway / UK – Greener greenways – initiative
Greenway of Terra Alta / Catalonia / Spain

The photo scoring the most points will DIRECTLY win the special Social Networks Prize and the next 10 photos with the most points will be pre-selected to go before the jury.

How to earn points?

Like the official European Greenways Association Facebook page (+1)
Following our official Twitter and Instagram accounts: @GreenwaysEurope (+1/each)
Share your greenway photo through Twitter or Instagram: Use the hashtag #EuropeanGreenways2016 (+1/each)
Share the competition with your friends. (+1/each network)
Earn as many likes as you can during the contest period (+1/every 10 likes). The more likes you earn, the more chances of winning!

7. JURY

The international jury will be formed by professionals and specialists from the world of communication, photography, greenways and tourism.

From all the photos received there will be a shortlist of 50 photographs (10 of which will be the ones with the most points) to be exhibited at www.aevv-egwa.org .The jury will choose the 5 winners from among the 50 shortlisted entries.

8. CRITERIA JURY

Special consideration will be given to the artistic and technical quality of the photographs and how they convey the values, the attraction and the qualities of greenways and, especially, how they depict greenways as highly suitable venues for the practice of outdoor activities.

The jury’s decision is final.

9. RIGHTS

Participation in the competition entails:

The assignment to EGWA by all participants of the rights of reproduction, distribution, public communication, transformation and any other right of exploitation that may arise on the photographic works used by EGWA for purposes related to its activity. Authorship of the photos will be acknowledged only where possible.

It is the responsibility of the contestants to ensure that the submitted photographs are free of third party rights and that they have obtained the explicit permission and consent from anyone appearing in the photo used in this competition.