Belize Reef Week 2025 is here! This year, the Belize Fund is launching a national art competition that highlights the connection between land and sea. Under the theme “Building Resilience from Ridge to Reef,” this contest invites artists to creatively depict the importance of conservation, sustainability, and ecosystem protection. Through visual storytelling, we aim to inspire greater awareness and action for the health of Belize’s coastal and marine environments.
Contest Duration: February 19 – March 12, 2025
Winners Announced: March 21, 2025
Categories: Ages 12-17 and Ages 18+
How it Works:
Your artwork should reflect this year’s theme, Building Resilience from Ridge to Reef, and may showcase:
- Marine Conservation: Coral restoration, sustainable fishing, mangrove protection
- Biodiversity & Wildlife: Colourful marine species, reef ecosystems, coastal flora and fauna
- Climate Change & Resilience: Rising sea levels, coral bleaching, climate adaptation efforts
- Community & Traditional Knowledge: Fishers, conservationists, and indigenous coastal communities protecting the ocean
- Human Connection to the Reef: Eco-tourism, snorkelling, diving, and sustainable coastal living
Submission Styles:
🖌 Paintings (watercolour, acrylic, or oil)
🎨 Crayon Art & Drawings (pencil, charcoal, ink, or crayons)
💻 Digital Art (graphic illustrations, digital paintings)
Rules and Guidelines:
- Participants must be a citizen or legal resident of Belize.
- All submissions must be original creations.
- Participants may submit only one entry in the Ages 12-17 category or Ages 18+ category.
- Accepted file types: JPG, JPEG, PNG, or PDF.
- Minimum art piece size: 18″ x 24″
- Image resolution must be 240 DPI or higher. Blurry photos will be disqualified.
- Submit a photo of yourself holding up your art piece
- Participants can submit their entry along with a photo of themselves holding their art piece by completing the form below and sending to communications@belizefund.bz
- Belize Fund will feature submissions using the hashtags #ReefWeekBelizeArt and #ReefWeekBelize2025 on our social media accounts.
- Winners will be required to submit their physical art pieces upon request.
Judging Criteria:
- Creativity and Originality.
- Interpretation and Understanding of the theme.
- Impact.
- Overall impression of the submission.
Prizes:
| Ages 12-17 | Ages 18+ |
| 🥇 1st Place: $700 | 🥇 1st Place: $1000 |
| 🥈 2nd Place: $550 | 🥈 2nd Place: $800 |
| 🥉 3rd Place: $450 | 🥉 3rd Place: $600 |
| 🏅 4th Place: $300 | 🏅 4th Place: $400 |
| 🏅 5th Place: $200 | 🏅 5th Place: $300 |
✨ Overall Fan Favourite (awarded to the submission with the most engagement (likes, comments, and shares) on Belize Fund’s social media platforms) – $200
Disclaimer:
By submitting an entry, participants agree and grant permission for full use by the Belize Fund to be displayed, distributed, reproduced, and created as derivative works of the texts, in whole or in part, in any media currently existing or subsequently developed, for any educational, promotional, publicity, exhibition, archival, scholarly, or all other standard purposes of the Belize Fund’s communication activities and product development related to Belize coastal and marine environment.
