2019 Student Photo Contest
The State of the Rockies project invited students to submit a photo and a description of the photo from the Rocky Mountain West that reminds us of the importance of conservation efforts given recent significant evidence of climate change and the Trump administration's proposed slash to government funding of public lands.
Show us what's at stake
Conservation in the West 2019 Poll voters strongly supported the protection of land and water over energy production. A majority of Westerners identify as conservationists and believe the loss of wildlife habitat to be an extremely serious problem.
Submitted photos addressed areas of concern for wildlife, outdoor recreation, shifting climate patterns and processes, public lands, and water availability. Finalists' photos were exhibited on Tutt Library's Ray Data Viz Wall during Earth Week, April 22-26, 2019. Library visitors, faculty, staff, and students voted by text for the photo and description they felt was most compelling.
WINNERS
Andrew Hildenbrand '20 • 1st place | Margaux Rose '20 • 2nd place | Jane Hatfield '22 • 3rd place
Photo Contest Finalists
![This photo of Patty Owe arcing a turn in the Cody Peak backcountry area was taken in March of 2019 during Spring Break. Cody Peak lies directly adjacent to Grant Teton National Park, and is less than 100 miles from Yellowstone. While it faces the threat of a shorter ski season, this region also faces potentially massive exploitation of oil and gas resources. Opening up our national parks to oil and gas drilling is a tragic move, and puts some of our last wild places at risk of exploitation and degradation on extreme levels. <span class="cc-gallery-credit">[Andrew Hildenbrand • f1.8, 1/800 sec, ISO 80 • Outdoor Recreation]</span>](../../_images/2019-state-of-the-rockies-photo-contest/AndrewHildenbrand2.jpg)
![Public Lands • Margaux Rose This photo was taken at Rocky Mountain National Park, I believe it is representative of Conservation in the West topics because the aspen trees are characteristic to the change of seasons here in Colorado and are famous for their striking colors. Aspen trees are also beginning to decline rapidly, forests in lower elevations (such as Arizona) were shown to have lost approximately 90% of their Aspen population, while forests at higher elevations have been shown to have lost approximately 13% of their Aspen population. It has been shown that the drier and hotter seasons, likely a symptom of global warming, have left the trees more susceptible to disease and attacks by bark beetles. <span class="cc-gallery-credit">[Margaux Rose • Public Lands]</span>](../../_images/2019-state-of-the-rockies-photo-contest/Margaux.JPG)
![Seconds before this shot was taken, I passed by climbers scaling up the backside of this Lyon's sandstone formation at Garden of the Gods, Colorado Springs. Colorado's State of the West 2019 Poll found that 73% of poll takers attribute living near or in a national forest as a significant reason they lived in the West. These spaces, in their aesthetic beauty, recreational utility, and inspiring form remain key spaces to reimagine, play, and frolic in the wild. <span class="cc-gallery-credit">[Jane Hatfield • Shot on Leica D-Lux, ISO 200, 20.6 mm • Outdoor Recreation]</span>](../../_images/2019-state-of-the-rockies-photo-contest/JaneHatfieldGOGs.jpg)
![This is a photo taken in Lake Powell, Utah. Lake Powell is one of the most famous places for watersports, like paddle boarding and water motorcycles. Hundreds of cars like the one shown would be the scale during the summertime. The most urgent and overlooked issue during my brief visit there is the widespread problem of micro trash like plastic caps and wraps. The water level here is highly variable over a year, not only by climate factors but also by the control of the Glen Canyon Dam downstream, and the sand deposits are vulnerable to water erosion, bringing micro trash into the water body. Increasing research has been done on the extent of plastics into the ocean by continental tributaries and how they disturb ecologies. Plastics ultimately enter into the food chain and human bodies, increasing risks of cardiovascular and neuro diseases. It is just so easy for people to neglect the plastic waste left while enjoying outdoor recreation, especially near water bodies, which possess environmental consequences that are hazardous qualitatively and quantitively. <span class="cc-gallery-credit">[Mingxi Hu ● 1/400s, ƒ/91, ISO200, 65mm ● Water and Outdoor Recreation]</span>](../../_images/2019-state-of-the-rockies-photo-contest/MingxiHuLakePowell.jpg)
![This photo of Max Lavinsky engulfed in blower powder was taken in February in Breckenridge, CO. Days like this one may not be possible, as we see the ski season consistently shortened due to anthropogenic climate change. Earlier spring melts, and shallower mid-season snowpack in many regions are testament to this growing trend. A massive and constantly growing industry is at risk, and the potential for future winters to be as rad as this one has been is on a downward trend. <span class="cc-gallery-credit">[Andrew Hildenbrand ● f1.8, 1/1,000 sec, ISO 50 ● Outdoor Recreation]</span>](../../_images/2019-state-of-the-rockies-photo-contest/AndrewHildenbrand1.jpg)
![This photo was taken in Rocky Mountain National Park during a November storm that heralded the arrival of winter in Colorado. Across party lines, voters in the West are shifting towards a consensus that climate change is a serious problem. 77% of Coloradans share this view, and regionally 67% believe water supplies are becoming less predictable and wildfires are more of a problem than 10 years ago. As atmospheric CO2 shoots above the highest levels seen yet in human history; wildfire, precipitation, and seasonal patterns are also shifting outside the norms we have evolved for as a society. Regardless of how individuals in the West vote, we will all share the burden of confronting extreme weather patterns together. The sooner that voters and policymakers agree on the challenges we are facing, the sooner we will be able to take decisive action and collectively improve our own future. <span class="cc-gallery-credit">[Brent Jacoby ● 1/3200s, f/8, ISO 100, 300mm ● Climate Change Recreation]</span>](../../_images/2019-state-of-the-rockies-photo-contest/Brent Jacoby.jpeg)
![The photo is taken at Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado. The ecosystem of the park is shifting to observe an abnormal overabundance of herbivores, especially elk, in their low elevation winter range due to climate change and settlements decreasing major predators. Research has found that the decreased migratory pattern of herbivores led to threaten the native vegetation habitats in the area such as aspen and willow population: they serve as a crucial part of the core winter range and provide essential habitat for a variety of plants, butterfly, and bird species. In order to restore the natural range of biodiversity, efforts have been taken to reduce and redistribute elk, as well as intensive management of the aspen and willow population. <span class="cc-gallery-credit">[Aiden Yu ● 1/125s, f/5, ISO 200, 38mm ● Wildlife]</span>](../../_images/2019-state-of-the-rockies-photo-contest/Aiden Elk2.jpg)
![Colorado's State of the West 2019 Poll found that 73% of poll-takers believe living near or in a national forest was a significant reason they lived in the West. Recreational Parks like Lake George at Eleven Mile Canyon are used for fishing, hiking, climbing, and a range of other outdoor recreational activities. This photo questions what's to happen in the years to come- will this space remain wild? Will our values as Coloradans be respected on a local and national scale? Can we still even consider our public lands to be wild now? <span class="cc-gallery-credit">[Brent Jacoby • 1/200s, f/8, ISO 800, 182mm • Outdoor Recreation]</span>](../../_images/2019-state-of-the-rockies-photo-contest/Brent Jacoby-2.jpeg)
![national forest was a significant reason they lived in the West. Recreational Parks like Lake George at Eleven Mile Canyon are used for fishing, hiking, climbing, and a range of other outdoor recreational activities. This photo questions what's to happen in the years to come- will this space remain wild? Will our values as Coloradans be respected on a local and national scale? Can we still even consider our public lands to be wild now? <span class="cc-gallery-credit">[Jane Hatfield • Shot on Leica D-Lux (Type 109,) ISO 200, 10.9mm • Public Lands]</span>](../../_images/2019-state-of-the-rockies-photo-contest/JaneHatfieldWILD1.jpg)
View Slide Show 9 Photographs
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Last updated: 02/14/2023