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Global Change Program

Kindergarten to College, Students Communicate Climate Through Art

December 11, 2020

By Selena Langner

Over 60 students competed in an art and photography contest organized by the Atlanta Global Studies Center (AGSC) in partnership with the German Consulate General in Atlanta and the Georgia Department of Education this October as part of the second-annual Global Climate Action Symposium.  Renowned German photographer and climate activist Barbara Dombrowski served as primary judge for the contest, which challenged participants to communicate their perspectives on our changing climate. Students ages 5-20 from across Georgia were encouraged to photograph and submit their work online, along with a caption explaining their process. Submissions included needlepoint embroidery, drawings, paintings and landscape photography. “I was very lucky to see what huge creativity is in Atlanta and in the youth”, Dombrowski remarked while presenting the winners on the final day of the Symposium.

Watercolor painting by Patricia Graffunder. A grinning face, framed by stacks of money, toxic barrels and decimated marine life, manipulates puppet strings from their fingers. The puppet strings connect to a group of people standing with hands interlocked.
College-Level First Place Winner: Patricia Graffunder

The Global Climate Action Symposium is an annual collaboration between the Georgia Tech Global Change Program, the Atlanta Global Studies Center, the Center for Serve-Learn-Sustain, and 6 European consuls based in Atlanta (Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Germany, the UK, and Switzerland), and was hosted as a virtual, fully online event in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Explore the full gallery of student art submissions.

Watch Barbara Dombrowski’s virtual exhibit, “Art and Climate Justice.” Watch the full 2020 Global Climate Symposium recordings.

Contest Winners

Kindergarten-5th Grade

6th-9th Grade

10th-12th Grade

Undergraduate and Postgraduate

Kindergarten to College, Students Communicate Climate Through Art

Kindergarten to College, Students Communicate Climate Through Art

By Selena Perrin

Over 60 students aged kindergarten through college competed in an art and photography contest this October as part of the second-annual Global Climate Action Symposium.  Renowned German photographer and climate activist Barbara Dombrowski served as primary judge for the contest, which challenged participants to communicate their perspectives on our changing climate. Submissions ranged from needlepoint embroidery, to drawings, paintings and landscape photography. “I was very lucky to see what huge creativity is in Atlanta and in the youth”, Dombrowski remarked while presenting the winners on the final day of the Symposium.

The Global Climate Action Symposium is an annual collaboration between the Georgia Tech Global Change Program, the Atlanta Global Studies Center, the Center for Serve-Learn-Sustain, and 6 European consuls based in Atlanta (Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Germany, the UK, and Switzerland), and was hosted as a virtual, fully online event in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Explore the full gallery of submissions here. Watch Barbara Dombrowski’s virtual exhibit, “Art and Climate Justice” here. Watch the full Symposium here.