Residents are being urged to think local when entering a competition aimed at encouraging more people to get involved in the political process in Wales.
The National Assembly for Wales’ inaugural “Democracy in Action” photography competition aims to illustrate that politics is not just something that happens at the Senedd in Cardiff Bay.
Entrants have to submit an image of an issue that affects them and one that they might want to see changed.
“I started out my political career as a local councillor in Newport,” said the Assembly’s Presiding Officer, Rosemary Butler AM.
“I got involved because I wanted to address certain problems and issues that affected the community I lived in.
“And that is really at the heart of what politics is all about; it’s standing up for yourself, your family and your community to create more opportunities for everyone by improving the environment and services that are available.
“There are many issues facing South Wales and we are inviting you all to capture them in a photograph.
“You don’t need to be a photographer or even have a camera – we’re keen to see amateur action pictures taken with phones as we are to look at images from digital cameras.
“As long as they illustrate an issue that is close to you or your community, send them to us.”
The competition is being organised in conjunction with Ffotogallery, Wales’s champions of lens-based media and University of Wales Newport’s School of Film, Photography and Digital Media.
Participants are invited to submit their images of “Democracy in Action in Wales” at www.democracyinactioninwales.org before August 31.
The successful entry will win a digital SLR camera (donated by the University of Wales Newport’s School of Film, Photography and Digital Media) and a photography course run by Ffotogallery.
Twenty shortlisted entries will be displayed in The Senedd during September, and the overall winner will be announced in a prize-giving ceremony on October 3, 2012.