The 5th Edition of the Audiovisual Contest for the Conservation of the Balearic Sea, MARE24, Sets Sa

MARE, the audiovisual contest for the conservation of the Balearic Sea, is ready for its 5th edition, inviting photographers to capture the beauty of the sea to promote its protection.

The presentation event for the 5th Edition of the MARE Contest brought together photographers, conservation entities, collaborators, and media at Port Adriano, marking the starting point for participation in the contest.

Through images, MARE helps us understand the life and marine landscapes of the Balearic archipelago with a clear goal: to promote their conservation. This edition will again feature three participation profiles – expert, amateur, and youth (under 16) – and will maintain the 'Mare Popularis' category, where the public can vote for the winning image. A total of €10,000 will be distributed in 26 prizes — monetary awards for adult participants and underwater equipment for youth participants.

Expert and amateur participants can submit their photographs in the following 6 categories:

1. MARE Animalia: Images that highlight the personality of marine animals in their environment.
2. MARE Botanica: Images that show the importance of a plant species in its environment.
3. MARE Sapiens: Images that show the positive relationship between the sea and people.
4. MARE Denuntiare: Images that show the negative side of the human relationship with the sea.
5. MARE Nostrum: Images about the Mediterranean Sea taken both underwater and on the surface, telling spectacular stories.
6. MARE Popularis: Public award.

Additionally, 6 honorable mentions will be awarded: 3 for Marine Protected Areas and 3 for Water Quality.

A novelty in this contest is a new honorable mention dedicated to "a concept open to multiple interpretations but incredibly important for our ecosystems and society: the quality of our waters. Vulnerable, mistreated waters with rising temperatures. But also clean, crystalline, and turquoise waters full of life, emotions, and experiences," according to Abraham Calero, the technical manager of the contest.

The jury for this edition consists of Debora Morrison, director of the Palma Aquarium Foundation, who emphasized her focus on the emotional impact of an image; Pep Bonet, the award-winning Mallorcan filmmaker and photographer; and Rafael Fernández Caballero, who was named Underwater Photographer of the Year in 2022.

After the land presentation, participants embarked on the Blue Circle, an electric catamaran from Trueworld Organization, heading towards the marine reserve of the Malgrats Islands.

Once there, photographers Sílvia Mus, Julia Miralles, and Jordi Cerdà, along with about twenty diving enthusiasts, dived in search of marine landscape images, which they then contributed to MARE. As of the start of the 5th Edition, over 1,500 images have been submitted by photographers for conservation purposes. Since its first edition in 2020, MARE has received more than 4,500 images from 450 photographers.

The images submitted to the contest are used in outdoor exhibitions that help raise awareness about the sea around us and accelerate its conservation. The selected photographs may be part of a traveling exhibition that will tour the Balearic Islands throughout 2025.