Through the Lens of Tomorrow’s Eyes – Under 18

1st Place

Islanders Neglect – Nila Thomas

This photo was taken in Chaguaramas, behind Five Islands, a place where people come to bond with family, relax, or just enjoy some quiet time. Every day you can see boats passing, whether party boats or fishermen. This place has been split into two and everywhere you look you can see the neglect and the absence on respect left behind by the islanders. No matter where you look, one thing stands out: neglect. Piles of tires and metal have been dumped here, along with many piles of trash floating in the waters. Why can’t we have fun and still clean up after ourselves? It shouldn’t be one or the other. This photo doesn’t just show pollution, it shows carelessness, and it asks a simple question: if we love our island so much, why are we treating it like this?

2nd Place

Through the Lens of Erosion, Comes Hope and Resilience of a New Day – Nathan Ali

The magnificent coast line of Trinidad is showcased in the photo, along one the scenic beaches of the north coast. There is a vast ecosystem of life just below and above the waves. Coastal Erosion is a main problem caused by the strong waves and winds. However, in this photo the morning view of the rising sun together with the newly rooted tree symbolise hope for a new, brighter beginning even after negativity strikes as represented by erosion. Thus, this photo depicts beauty and resilience in nature.

3rd Place

Sun, Sea, and Sargassum – Amara Bhim

Taken on the shore at the Maracas Bay Fishing Village, this photo showcases both the beauty and challenges of coastal life. Visitors come for the sun, sea, sand and relaxing scenery. Coastal communities immensely benefit from the income generated through fishing and tourism. However, within the last decade, the Caribbean has seen a surge in Sargassum quantities, evolving from a rare seasonal event into a persistent crisis. Once pristine beaches, can quickly become covered with foul smelling Sargassum mats, repelling beachgoers and tourists. Sargassum also disrupts fishing activities as the seaweed can become caught in nets, lines, and boat propellers.
While there may be some positive uses of Sargassum, it remains a direct challenge to the identity, economy and resilience of Coastal communities and requires mitigation strategies to protect livelihoods and ecosystems.

Honorable Mentions

Through the Lens of Time’s Embrace – 18 & Over

1st Place

Where Fun Meets Destruction – Colleen Edwards

2nd Place

Whispers of the Bay – Leisha Joseph

3rd Place

The Mangroves Between Worlds – Chuma Isi

No Section Title – 3926 No Column Title – 3927

Honorable Mentions

Shoreline Sustenance – Simone Ganpat
Tobago Oil Spill 2024 – Nandani Bridglal
If Is Not Trash, Is Sargasso – Rol-J Williams
No Bite – Nathan Nancoo
Reflections – Ashleigh Chee Hing

Congratulations once again to all the winners, and thank you to everyone who shared their vision with us. Your photos remind us why protecting these coastlines matters. We also extend our sincere gratitude to our sponsor, CCRIF, for making this competition possible.

A major shift occurred from 2009 to 2010, when changes in wind and ocean currents pushed sargassum out of the Sargasso Sea and into the tropical Atlantic. Warmer waters and nutrient-rich runoff from rivers like the Amazon created perfect conditions for rapid growth. While sargassum can cause serious problems when it washes ashore, it also plays an important role in the marine environment. At sea, the floating mats act as a drifting ecosystem, offering shelter, food, and breeding grounds for a wide variety of marine species. Additionally, sargassum can absorb heavy metals from the surrounding water, contributing to bioremediation processes in the ocean.

To better manage its impacts, a clearer understanding of how sargassum moves across the ocean surface is essential. Our camera system set up at Pigeon Point is an important tool for monitoring sargassum activity along the coast. It captures continuous footage that helps track the movement of sargassum mats and record the timing of beaching events. This data can be used to identify patterns and support the development of predictive models, ultimately improving early warning systems and guiding more efficient response strategies. By understanding when and where sargassum is likely to arrive, we can better prepare for cleanups and reduce the impacts on local communities and ecosystems. The video below shows our camera system in action, capturing the movement of sargassum as it beaches at Pigeon Point.

Theme: Young Voices of the Coast

📅 Competition Dates

Competition runs from July 1 – August 15, 2025

Prizes to be won!

📜 School Art Competition Rules

The School Art Competition will run from 1st July 2025 to 15th August 2025. The School Art Competition will be judged by a panel for selection of winners which will be announced in early September 2025.

Guidelines for the Competition:

• The submission must be the own work of the participant; contributions by persons other than the participant must be acknowledged.
• Artificially Intelligence (AI) must not be used to generate submissions i.e., AI generated images or text are not allowed.
• The submission must not breach any national, regional or international laws.
• The Participant retains copyright of all submitted images and descriptions. However, by submitting an entry, the project team and its partners have non-exclusive, royalty-free, irrevocable licence to publish images for any purpose directly connected with the competition. Activities may include publishing on the project website and on the websites of partners or funders, on social media and use in marketing and communication purposes. The team will always mention the entrant’s full name on any publication of the submitted images.
• The project team can refuse any entry deemed inappropriate or unsuitable.
• The decisions of the judging panel are final.
• All Winners will be notified by email and through the participant’s school.
• The project team reserves the right to amend the competition rules at any time.

Importance of Wave Data

Wave data plays an important role in understanding how energy moves through coastal systems. It provides direct measurements of wave height, period, and direction, helping us determine how much energy reaches the shore and how it changes when waves interact with natural or man-made features.

This information is essential not only for studying wave behavior but also for monitoring erosion and flood risk, as it helps link wave energy to changes in the shoreline or inland flooding.

Additionally, wave data is a key input for calibrating and validating numerical models, helping ensure that simulations of coastal processes accurately reflect real-world conditions.

Mayaro Shoreline

Magdalena Grand Shoreline

Manzanilla Shoreline

Pigeon Point Shoreline

Collecting Wave Data

There are many tools that can be used to measure waves, like wave buoys, pressure sensors, and radar systems. One of the most popular is the Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler, or ADCP.

These instruments use sound waves to measure both how fast the water is moving and the size and direction of the waves. ADCPs are often placed in the ocean at nearshore and offshore locations.

Collecting wave data in this way is important for understanding how natural features like coral reefs and seagrass beds affect wave behavior as they move toward shore. By placing ADCPs before and after these features, we can better assess the level of protection they provide to the coastline. This setup helps capture and quantify how much wave energy is reduced as it passes through these ecosystems.

Two of the most commonly used ADCP models are the Teledyne RDI Workhorse (Top Image) and the Nortek AWAC (Bottom Image).

Deployment

The way an ADCP is positioned affects the type of data it collects. When mounted on the side of a boat, it typically measures current data only. However, when placed upright on the seafloor, it can collect both wave and current data. In this setup, the ADCP is secured to a weighted frame that provides stability and protects the instrument, helping to ensure accurate measurements. Before deployment, the water depth at the site is measured, and divers survey the area to confirm that there is a flat, sandy surface suitable for the frame. The ADCP and frame are then carefully lowered from the boat to the seabed, where divers position and anchor it securely. The video below shows the deployment of a Nortek AWAC unit.

Maintenance

The ADCPs are self-contained units meaning they have everything built in to operate on its own during deployment. The batteries are stored in a waterproof housing which usually lasts around six weeks. Maintenance of the units typically involves downloading the recorded data, checking the instrument’s condition, and replacing the batteries to prepare for the next deployment cycle. The video below shows the Teledyne RDI Workhorse being redeployed after servicing.