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Endangered Species Youth Art Contest

Unleash your creativity and help endangered species! Submissions for 2025 now open!

Calling all young artists! Mark your calendars and join us for our 8th annual Endangered Species Youth Art Contest starting February 2025. In celebration of Endangered Species Day (May 16, 2025) Roger Williams Park Zoo is accepting art entries from local K-12 grade students and homeschoolers in the New England area depicting threatened and endangered species. Art can inspire others to make deep connections and empower change. Together we hope to raise awareness about the importance of saving endangered species and their wild habitats. Let your artwork roar with passion and inspire others to join us in protecting these remarkable animals and their habitats.

Winners will be notified by email before May 1 with a public announcement made on Endangered Species Day, May 16.  See below for complete contest guidelines, past winners, prize packages, and submission instructions.

Submit Your Artwork

Special thank you to supporting partner:

Jerrys Artarama Providence logo

Art Contest Guidelines

Rules & Art Submission Instructions:
  • All entries are to be submitted electronically. Online Submission Form > 
  • Students’ artwork must be original and all art mediums are allowed (Please note: Computer-generated/AI and traced images are not allowed and will NOT be judged.)
  • All artwork MUST depict threatened/endangered species.
  • Each art entry must also include a short explanation (3-5 sentences) as to why saving your chosen species/subject from extinction is important.
  • Students may submit more than one entry.
  • Deadline: Entries must be received by Sunday, April 6, 2025. Late entries will not be judged.

Please Note: All artwork becomes the property of Roger Williams Park Zoo. Submission of the artwork grants the Zoo a non-exclusive, royalty-free license to publish your student’s/child’s artwork in our editorial, educational, and promotional print and digital materials, and on social media. All published artwork will be credited “Artist’s Name.”

Questions? Please contact Corrie Ignagni, Manager of Digital Communications at cignagni@rwpzoo.org. Thank you!

2025 Art Contest Prizes
  • GRAND PRIZE (Judges Choice)
    • One (1) Family RWPZoo membership (a $149 value; or extra year added to current Zoo membership. Renewal based on equal or lesser valued-membership)
    • An adopt-an-animal package of your choice
    • One (1) $100 gift card to Jerry’s Artarama of Providence
    • Artwork custom framed by Jerry’s Artarama of Providence and displayed in the Zoo’s Hasbro’s Our Big Backyard exhibit until May 2026.
  • GRADE CATEGORY WINNERS (Grades K-2, Grades 3-5, Grades 6-8, and Grades 9-12) Each grade-winner shall receive:
    • Six (6) General daytime admission tickets to RWPZoo
    • One (1) $25 gift card to Jerry’s Artarama of Providence
    • Artwork custom framed by Jerry’s Artarama of Providence and displayed in the Zoo’s Hasbro’s Our Big Backyard exhibit until May 2026.
  • HONORABLE MENTIONS (Grades K-2, Grades 3-5, Grades 6-8, and Grades 9-12) Each grade-honorable mention shall receive:
    • Four (4) General daytime admission tickets to RWPZoo
    • An award certificate

All winners and honorable mentions artwork will be highlighted on the Zoo’s website and social media pages, and in the Zoo’s summer WILD Magazine issue.

2024 Winners:

Congratulations to the student winners of the 2023 Endangered Species Youth Art Contest! The Zoo’s 6th annual contest received over 300 art submissions from creative and talented young artists from across New England. Big thanks to the countless teachers who helped their students take part in this year’s contest and for helping us raise awareness of endangered species everywhere. Thank you to our co-partner, Jerry’s Artarama of Providence, for their continual support. See their works in the Zoo’s Big Backyard exhibit through May 2025.

2024 Grand Prize Winner:

Bella Tan (Golden-cheeked warbler, 3-5 grade)

Saving the endangered golden-cheeked warbler will help us protect an abundance of plants and animals in the Texas Hill Country.

9-12 Grade Winner:

Kalina Liu (African painted dog) 

Painted dogs are known for their unique coat, with splotches of different shades of brown and gold. They are endangered due to a multitude of reasons, one of them being harmful stigma toward them by us, humans. These wild dogs are unfairly assumed to be violent, causing unjust killings of these creatures. On top of other factors such as habitat loss, the African painted dog is being pushed closer to the brink of extinction. As humans who have caused such a wild sight to become so rare, we have the power to reverse our negative impacts, raise awareness, and protect the biodiversity in Africa’s savanna’s and on our Earth.

9-12 Grade Winner:

Jose Puentes (African painted dog) 

African wild dogs (Lycaon pictus) are one of the maximum endangered carnivores in Africa, with simplest approximately 6,600 individuals left in the wild. We nonetheless have work to be accomplished with these creatures, it truly is why preferred to color those creatures ,in this painting I show the introduction by using colours to expose symbolism ,the green represents nature and the threats in there places in which they live ,the blue significs the germs and rabies which maximum of there species to die ,the pink threats also inside the pink side there may be a orange hatch marks represent a fence with move be them being regarded are the experience of there species lost in being captured as endangered, in green aspect we have a target symbolizes them being hunted down and killed ,the circles around is a symbol increase is that they populace optimistically in the future to grow massive in robust with the help these creatures and others need .There face additionally can be a experience blend feelings as one is satisfied and some scared as those animals don’t know what is occurring ,but with a bit of luck with this portray it gives  the query that is  ” The hope in nature ” and the energy helping those creatures.

6-8 Grade Winner:

Abigail Duan (Red hill salamander)

Red Hill Salamanders are critically endangered from habitat loss, pollution, diseases, and climate change. These little creatures get rid of pests like mosquitoes! As this specie starts dying out, it is important to help all creatures that have unfortunately become endangered from us humans. Whether it’s from habitat loss, pollution, diseases, or climate change..

3-5 Grade Winner:

Chloe Wang (Sonoran pronghorn)

The Sonoran pronghorn is an endangered subspecies of the pronghorn and one of the fastest runners on feet. Sonoran pronghorn one of the 10 species at greatest risk of extinction due to droughts, climate change, and water shortage. I am looking forward the recovery of these beautiful, amazing animals.

K-2 Grade Winner:

Eamon O’Neill (Red panda)

I love the Red Pandas because they are cute and fluffy. It would make me sad if they were extinct or not at the zoo anymore.

2024 Honorable Mentions:

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