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YAAS

2023

YOUNG ARTISTS AND
AUTHORS SHOWCASE

PEACE BY PIECE: FOOD SECURITY IN MY COMMUNITY

Consistent with the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda, Sister Cities International will continue to embrace climate change as the overarching theme for its 2023 Young Artists and Authors Showcase.

For this competition, SCI is proud to invite youth from member communities to submit innovative, thoughtful, and impactful creations that emphasize various aspects of food security, including the impact of climate change on food production and food consumption, in their own communities.

2022 Classic Art Showcase Winner

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Content Guidelines and Categories

Artists Showcase

(Classic Medium)

Artists Showcase

(dIGITAL Medium)

Photographers Showcase

Authors Showcase

Poets Showcase

Musicians Showcase

(Original pieces)

YAAS Informational Flyer

Download the YAAS Informational Flyer in PDF file format.

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online Application form

Complete this Google Form to apply to the YAAS 2023.

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YAAS 2023
How To Organize Your Local Competition

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YAAS 2023
Application Form (PDF)

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YAAS 2023
Application Form (DOC)

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As a leading nonprofit, citizen diplomacy organization, Sister Cities International has been promoting peace through mutual understanding since its origins in 1956. Food has been one of the core pillars of sister cities’ cultural understanding – food is a universal language that unites us.

As food unites us, the unrelenting struggle of food security, or a lack thereof is an issue that all communities face. The ongoing environmental changes continue to impact locals and their access to nutrition. This makes the importance of raising awareness more essential every day and youth leadership is a necessary tool to help tackle these circumstances felt around the globe.

FOOD INSECURITY

Please see our resource section for more information on food insecurity.

U.N. WEBSITEDOWNLOAD

We encourage our youth to be creative and examine all aspects of this year's theme, including:

How has climate change affected food security in your community?

hand-with-world-300x300 updated

How does your culture value food?

How can you, as a future leader, contribute to the solution?

What does food security mean to you?

IMPORTANT NOTE

Please read the following details carefully, as our rules and awards have changed slightly from previous years.

When describing their artwork in the application form, students are encouraged to discuss how their local communities and/or international cities are approaching this year’s theme. Students can talk about collaborative efforts between communities, give project examples, or explore areas of potential cooperation within the water sustainability field. Descriptive paragraphs should be written by the student.

  • Students must be between 13 and 18 years of age at the time of the May 1, 2023 deadline.
  • The student must be affiliated with a dues-paying member of Sister Cities International or an international community partnered with a dues-paying member. (If you have any questions regarding your affiliation with a dues-paying member of Sister Cities International, please visit our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page or contact [email protected].)
  • No more than five (5) submissions per category will be accepted from each member community. International community partners are also eligible to submit no more than five (5) submissions per category. [Note for Sister City Contact Persons: Please provide a list of your (up to) five (5) participating students and their submissions organized by category to [email protected].] If you have any questions regarding submission limits, please visit our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page or contact [email protected].
  • Member communities are encouraged to form their own local competitions and submit the top five (5) in each category to Sister Cities International.
  • No student may enter submissions into more than one category.
  • All entries must meet the criteria listed below.
  • All entries must conform to Sister Cities International's policy on plagiarism found here.
  • All entries must be submitted and received with a completed application by May 1, 2023, 11:59 PM ET.
  • For any other questions, please contact [email protected].
  • All award winning artists' works will be published to Sister Cities International's website alongside the artists' names and names of the pieces.
  • One artist will be selected as a Grand Prize Winner, 2nd Place Winner, and 3rd Place Winner for each category.
  • Each category's Grand Prize Winner will receive $1,000 cash.
  • Each category's 2nd Place Winner will receive $250 cash.
  • Each category's 3rd Place Winner will receive $100 cash.
  • The winners of each category will be announced during or at the Youth Leadership Summit.

 

*Grand Prize Winners across each category will be asked to complete W-9 forms in order to receive their prize payment.*

congratulations 2022 yaas winners

Artists Showcase

(Classic Medium)

Students may select one (1) piece of artwork to submit for this showcase.

Media accepted in this category include oil, acrylic, watercolor, charcoal, colored pencil, crayon, ink, marker, etching, collage, etcetera. Digital medium artwork will be taken in a separate category.

Important note: This year we will not be accepting physical artwork, only photographs of the artwork. To ensure our judges have the best quality view of your work, please confirm that photographs are no less than 1350×1080 pixels.

Only two-dimensional (2D), unframed artwork will be accepted.

Students must upload the photograph of their artwork to Sister Cities International by attaching the photo to the application below in either a .jpeg or .png format.

Students are also encouraged to post one (1) photograph of their artwork to Instagram and include the following in their caption:

-Tag @SisterCitiesInt

-Use the hashtag #YAAS2023

-Include the city, state, and country where the student is from

All submissions must be made by May 1, 2023.

Judges will evaluate submissions based on theme interpretation, and creativity.

All work must be original.

Artists Showcase

(Digital Medium)

Students may select one (1) piece of artwork to submit for this showcase. 

Digital mediums will be accepted in this category. According to the Eden Gallery, “Digital art… refers to art made using software, computers, or other electronic devices. Anything produced or made on digital media, such as illustrations, digital paintings, and such can be classified as digital art.” Moving art pieces will not be accepted – only still frame submissions are permitted. Please ensure that submissions have a minimum of a 1350×1080 px and are saved in a .jpeg or .png file type.

Students must upload a file of their artwork to Sister Cities International by attaching the file to the application below.

Students are also encouraged to post their artwork to Instagram and include the following in their caption:

-Tag @SisterCitiesInt

-Use the hashtag #YAAS2023

-Include the city, state, and country where the student is from

All submissions must be made by May 1, 2023.

Judges will evaluate submissions based on theme interpretation, and creativity.

All work must be original.

Photographers Showcase

Students may select one (1) photograph to submit for this showcase. 

Students must upload a file of their artwork to Sister Cities International by attaching the file to the application below in either a .jpeg or .png format. Photo editing is allowed. Please see FAQ for more information.

Students are also encouraged to post the photograph to Instagram and include the following in their caption:

  • Tag @SisterCitiesInt
  • Use the hashtag #YAAS2023
  • Include the city, state, and country where the student is from

All submissions must be made by May 1, 2023.

Judges will evaluate submissions based on theme interpretation and creativity.

All work must be original.

Authors Showcase

Students may select one (1) piece of writing to submit for this showcase. 

Articles can be creative writing, essays, anecdotes, and other written works following the content guidelines below. Poetry will be taken in a separate category.

Students must upload a file of their artwork to Sister Cities International by attaching the file to the application below in either a .pdf or .doc format.

Article submissions are not to exceed 500 words.

Submissions must be written in English.

All submissions must be made by May 1, 2023.

Judges will evaluate submissions based on theme interpretation, creativity, composition, and grammar.

All work must be original.

Poets Showcase

Students may select one (1) poem to submit for this showcase.

Students must upload a file of their artwork to Sister Cities International by attaching the file to the application below in either a .pdf or .doc format.

Poetry submissions are not to exceed 200 words.

Submissions must be written in English.

All submissions must be made by May 1, 2023.

Judges will evaluate submissions based on theme interpretation, creativity, composition, and grammar.

All work must be original.

Musicians Showcase

Students may select one (1) piece of music to submit for this showcase.

Students should submit their music piece in MP3 format by uploading the file to the application below.

Only audio submissions will be accepted; no videos. Submissions cannot exceed 4 minutes.

All musical pieces must be submitted by May 1, 2023.

Judges will evaluate submissions based on theme interpretation, and creativity.

The piece must be original.

Only solo performances are permitted.