Funding

Grant · Free

Program dates

TBA

Fellowship•Remote

Skills in Action Photo Competition 2026

UNESCO-UNEVOC International Centre for TVET

Application Deadline

August 31, 2026

Official Page

The Skills in Action Photo Competition is run each year by the UNESCO-UNEVOC International Centre for TVET, the UNESCO centre dedicated to technical and vocational education and training, based at the UN Campus in Bonn, Germany. It asks photographers anywhere in the world to show what technical and vocational education and training looks like in practice, and how it prepares young people for work. The 2026 edition follows the theme of World Youth Skills Day 2026, Skills for a shared future, and is organised around four categories covering inclusion, green skills, digital technology and innovation in training. Entries are sent by email, so there is no fee and no travel involved. The competition has run since 2017 and has named three winners in each of its nine editions up to 2025; the 2025 round drew more than 200 submissions, with the top three photographers coming from India, the Philippines and China.

Benefits & funding

  • First prize: USD 750.
  • Second prize: USD 500.
  • Third prize: USD 350.
  • A certificate for each winner.
  • Winning photographs are published on the UNESCO-UNEVOC Flickr account and promoted through its social media channels.
  • Entry is free; the competition page sets no submission fee.

Eligibility

  • Open to photographers of any nationality and any country of residence; the competition page states no geographic restriction.
  • Entrants must be at least 18 years old.
  • Entrants must be the owner or copyright holder of every photograph they submit.
  • Both amateur and professional photographers may enter.
  • No degree, field of study or minimum work experience is required.
  • Anyone identifiable in a submitted photograph must have given consent.
  • Each entrant may submit one photograph per category, up to four photographs in total.

Can you apply?

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  • Age requirement

    ≥ 18 yrs

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Application process

  1. 1
    Pick one or more of the four categories: equity and inclusion in skills development; green skills and sustainability; digital transformation and artificial intelligence; innovation and excellence in TVET.
  2. 2
    Prepare the photographs. JPEG is required, with RAW and TIFF also accepted, at a minimum of 3,000 pixels on the longest side at 300 DPI. Collages and combined images, watermarks, logos, signatures and overlays are not allowed, and neither are AI-generated photographs or AI-assisted manipulation. Any digital adjustment must be disclosed.
  3. 3
    Write a title, a description of no more than 75 words, and the location and date for each photograph.
  4. 4
    Download the submission form linked on the competition page and fill it in.
  5. 5
    Email the completed form and the photographs to unevoc.skills@unesco.org, using the subject line format LastName - SAPC26 Submission.
  6. 6
    Send everything by 31 August 2026.
  7. 7
    UNESCO-UNEVOC announces the winners on its own digital platforms. Submitted photographs become the property of UNESCO-UNEVOC and may be used in future publications, media campaigns and promotional materials.

Program timeline

  1. World Youth Skills Day 2026, whose theme this edition follows

    Jul 15, 2026

  2. Submission deadline

    Aug 31, 2026

  3. Winners announced on UNESCO-UNEVOC digital platforms; no date is published