April is Earth Month, a 30-day emphasis on our planet, sustainability, and how we can make the world a better place, and April 22 is the 46th year we celebrate Earth Day.  Earth Day Network is the global organizer behind Earth Day and creates tools and resources for you to get involved with Earth Day in your community, and there are tons of activities planned across the world.

Read “10 Tips to Celebrate Earth Month!” from the Ian Somerhalder Foundation. Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net via ISF.

April is also World Landscape Architecture Month, an international celebration of landscape architecture, and my own background.  Join us as we showcase environmental design and fight environmental apathy by highlighting some fantastic, endearing, earth-healing landscapes on roofs and walls.

Celebrate Greenroofs & Walls with our Earth Month Photo Contest

In celebration, once again Greenroofs.com is happy to announce our “Love the Earth, Plant a Roof or Wall!” Earth Month Photo Contest for 2016! #lovetheearthcontest

Although we started this feature annually in 2010, we switched to featuring it biennially in off years of our biennial Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit: Connecting the Planet + Living Architecture due to time overlapping, and we hope you join in.

The Essentials:

Submit your favorite picture on our special Facebook Contest tab of a beautiful greenroof or greenwall project by noon Eastern Time on Earth Day, April 22 – one entry per email.

Enter a caption for your photo including its name and location – tell us how it is a living example of loving the Earth and worthy of being an example of forward-thinking sustainable design.

Tell people to vote for you/yours – one vote per person.  Share it on social media with #lovetheearthcontest on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram!

Start voting for your favorite on Facebook at 12:01 pm Earth Day through the end of Earth Month, at 11:59 pm – one vote per entry on Facebook.

Decided purely by the most number of votes, the winner will be announced on May 1, 2016 and receive a whopping $100 Amazon.com Gift Card – just a small token of our esteem – but you’ll get some publicity, too!

More Info:

The mission of the “Love the Earth, Plant a Roof or Wall!” Earth Month Photo Contest is to create interest in all kinds, styles, and sizes of beautiful living architecture and highlight some outstanding designs.  It’s designed to be quick and simple, and is basically a popularity contest among our international readership, so promote, promote, promote.

What kinds of projects are eligible?  

Any and all types of real greenroofs or walls are eligible, any place on Earth, old or new. Most importantly, no concepts or Photoshopping will be accepted!

The beautiful & popular 2014 Photo Contest winning entry: Green Wall in Israel by Asaf C.

Once voting is open, you can see all of the submitted projects on our Facebook page before voting for your favorite – and see who’s winning!

What do I have to do to enter the contest or vote?

Then, click here and follow the directions to submit your photo.  You’ve got just over two weeks to enter, and then you’ll have until April 30 to rally your friends, family, and colleagues to vote for your submission.

Does it have to be “my” project or just one of my favorites?

The contest is open to everyone, not just the roof/wall owner or the designers of record.  But you must be the sole owner of the copyright of any image submitted.  Didn’t take the photo yourself?  Make sure you contact the source and check for any copyright issues and get it in writing.

How do people vote?

Once open on April 22 at 12:01 pm, click on the View Gallery tab and click on the photo you want to vote for. Use #lovetheearthcontest on social media.

How do I win?

The photo with the most votes will be announced as the winner.

What do I get if “my” project wins?

The winner will have “their” project highlighted on Greenroofs.com as an upcoming Greenroof or Greenwall Project of the Week, and receive a $100 Amazon Gift Card to spend on your favorite Spring project!

Image courtesy of ponsulak at FreeDigitalPhotos.net.

Click here to see the Official Rules.

If you’re not already a fan of Greenroofs.com, we invite you to Like Us and stay connected.

Let’s honor Earth Month by participating in our “Love the Earth, Plant a Roof or Wall!” Earth Month Photo Contest for 2016 with our living architecture community to help inspire awareness of and appreciation for our Earth’s environment!

Love the Earth, Plant a Roof or Wall,

~ Linda S. Velazquez, ASLA, LEEP AP, GRP
Greenroofs.com Publisher