Celebrating Youth Voices: Winners of the 2026 Environmental Photo Contest

This year, Tri-Valley CAREs had the privilege of hosting our first ever Youth Environmental Photo Contest! We invited young people ages 10-25 to share how they see and experience the environment and environmental justice issues in their communities.

Our team of judges were truly blown away by the submissions. Each photograph offered a unique perspective: some captured the beauty of the natural world, others highlighted pollution, climate impacts, or inequities that often go unseen. Together, they tell a powerful story about how young people are thinking about the environment today.

After careful review by our judges, we are excited to announce the winners of this year’s contest:

🏆 First Place ($750): Jacob Dartez – Deep Blue

🥈 Runner-Up ($250): Willow Yundt – Life Behind the Gates

🌟 Community Award for Tracy & West San Joaquin County ($500): Ellie Creighton – Inconvenient Placement

We also want to recognize all of our participants. It takes creativity, thoughtfulness, and courage to share your perspective, and every submission contributed meaningfully to this project. All participants will receive a certificate in recognition of their work and an 11×14  print of their work on canvas.

Join Us for the Exhibit & Award Ceremony!

To celebrate these incredible young artists (and Earth Day), we invite you to join us for a community exhibition and award ceremony:

Venue: Tracy Library, Wadsworth Room, 20 E. Eaton Ave, Tracy

Date: April 21, 2026

Time: 5:30 – 6:30 PM

During the event, all submitted photographs will be on display, and we will celebrate the winners and present awards and certificates. We’ll also have food and time to connect with others in the community.

If you’re not able to attend that evening, the exhibit will remain on display at the Tracy Library Display case throughout the month of April.

This exhibit is part of our broader work in Tracy and West San Joaquin County to support community awareness and engagement around environmental issues. We hope you’ll join us in celebrating this work.

This project was partially funded by CalEPA.

Inconvenient Placement- Ellie Creighton

As I've started walking more around the city of Tracy, I've noticed a connection. Street side litter, especially in parking lots, can be traced back to fast-food establishments. For example, the photograph I took was a funnily placed jumbo soda I stumbled upon, right in the middle of the sidewalk. I looked around and found its point of origin, a Jack in the Box just a few hundred feet away. Somehow it made its way here. After the soda's photo shoot, the time came to throw it away. I looked around, but I struggled to find a trashcan anywhere in sight. The soda's placement was inconvenient, but I found no convenience to its disposal either. I walked around searching for a trashcan, making me cynically think, No wonder someone dropped it there! Jokes aside, there is no excuse for littering; however, an absence of accessible options to dispose of waste is an underlying cause of it. When I finally found a trash can at a nearby bus stop and threw the litter away, I came to a conclusion: If we want to keep our community and neighborhoods clean, increasing trash can accessibility could be a small change with a meaningful impact for the city of Tracy!

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