The second annual Concurso Internacional on-line de cortos por la Cultura de la Sostenibilidad ["international on-line contest for short films on the culture of sustainable development"], an initiative of the Fundacion Norte ["North Foundation"] and the Fundacion Ecologia y Desarrollo ["Ecology and Development Foundation"] is underway. The contest is designed to use artistic and cultural production to provide artistic materials as instruments to provide environmental information and training to the public. One of its goals is to influence the creation of a future vision of the concept of "culture", finding a new acceptance of it which surpasses the traditional meaning of the word referring to the exercise and contemplation of artistic works, encompassing an integral way of seeing life, relating to the environment, etc. The contest uses the Internet as a platform for taking advantage of its potential for disseminating ideas. The experience of the first contest, with 20 works of Latin American artists, showed the Web to be an accessible medium which facilitates the participation and interaction of individuals in Spain as well as in Latin America. Any individual or collective film-maker who wishes can participate in the contest, with the only requirement being that they are legal-age adults. Video or animated works must be submitted in the digital format. The final size of the file (with .WMV, .MPG and .FLV extension) must be between a minimum of 5 MB and a maximum of 10 MB, and with a width of 320 px. The short films should be no longer than 90 seconds. The short films can combine image and sound, with assessment being of the concepts of sustainable development contained in them, allowing for the possibility of making artistic videos. The main thread of the works submitted should be linked to this concept, subjects related to efficient water and energy use, recycling, solidarity, the commitment of future generations, cooperation with Third World countries, sustainable consumption, etc. The contest has a single award for the winning work of 3,000 euros. An ad hoc jury will be created, which will be charged with choosing the winning work among those submitted, bearing in mind the artistic value of the work, its conceptual content and the extent to which it fits the objective of the contest defined at the outset as well as its originality and creativity. Works can be submitted between 9th July 2007 and 10:00 PM on 30th November 2007. They can be delivered by electronic mail to concurso@ecodes.org, along with the completion of a participation application form which can be obtained from the website. They can also be sent via mail or currier to the offices of the Ecologia y Desarrollo foundation, including a DVD which only contains the submitted work and the participation application form. All admitted works will be able to be seen on the Web via a link to them. Ecologia y Desarrollo is a non-profit and independent organization made up of a group of professionals working to create the establishment of a sustainable development via the generation and implementation of socially just and economically viable ecologically sustainable development alternatives, both in Latin America and Spain.

www.ecodes.org/concurso