Your lens can inspire action! A single image can inspire someone to care, act, or believe in a future where both nature and people thrive. The Rewilding Europe Award celebrates talent and empowers photographers to influence change, create dialogue, and reimagine a Europe that is wilder and richer. Are you ready to make a difference with your lens?
Capture the essence of rewilding
Rewilding is more than a conservation approach; it’s a bold vision for the future—a movement that allows nature to reclaim its vitality, restores natural processes, and redefines the relationship between people and the wild. It’s about witnessing forests regrow, rivers run free and wildlife return.
The Rewilding Europe Award is part of the prestigious GDT European Wildlife Photographer of the Year contest and your chance to shine by showcasing Europe’s wild side. We seek photographs that illustrate rewilding in motion — scenes that evoke passion, curiosity, and wonder.
Tips from the team
The following themes are central to rewilding and will guide your submissions:
- Restored natural processes: Show how rewilding breathes life into landscapes and nature is taking the lead, with rivers carving their own paths once again, forests regenerating naturally, meadows bursting with biodiversity, or the dynamic circle of life taking centre stage.
- Wildlife shaping the landscape: Capture the transformative role of keystone species like beavers building wetlands, large herbivores sculpting landscapes, or predator-prey interactions that drive ecosystem recovery.
- The return of iconic species: Celebrate Europe’s native species reclaiming their habitats—wolves, lynx, bison, sturgeon, or black storks thriving in their natural European habitats.
- Harmony between people and nature: Illustrate coexistence—wildlife corridors, shared spaces, or moments of mutual respect between humans and nature. Showcase how rewilding benefits communities whilst restoring balance.
- Active rewilding efforts: Focus on the human role in rewilding—reintroducing species, removing barriers or restoring ecosystems whilst leaving space for natural processes to take over.
Your images should reflect nature taking the lead, wildlife as architects of change, iconic species reclaiming their former spaces, and people and wild nature thriving together.
We look forward to receiving your entry!
Closing date: 1st of March 2025
Meet the Jury
Peter Cairns
Jury member
Jen Guyton
Jury member
James Shooter
Advisor
Laurien Holtjer
Advisor
Stories about rewilding photography
“Photography has the unique power to bridge the gap between nature and people, evoking emotions that words alone cannot. Through powerful images, we can unveil the beauty and resilience of wild nature, inspire someone to care and even influence positive change. The Rewilding Europe Award is a call for photographers to become storytellers of Europe’s rewilding journey, capturing moments that bring hope and a vision of a wilder future to life.”
Laurien Holtjer
Director Engagement & Public Relations