"Where in the World?!" Co-op Photo Contest, 2019

2019 Winner Selections

2019 marks the 10th anniversary of the "Where in the world" photo contest that CEE hosts every year. This year, we had two new additional categories: "Black and White" and "Slogan". Thank you everyone for your submissions! Be sure to check out all the photos below and the stories behind them.

Winners of "Where in the World?!" Co-op Photo Contest

1st Place: Darynne Hagen, Environmental Engineering, on her work term in Austria

Photo taken by Darynne of a foggy forest of a trail marker in Austria

"This is a photo of a trail marker at the base of a mountain near Innsbruck Austria. I took the photo because the trail marker illuminated perfectly in the foggy forest almost as it had its own spotlight. I chose to submit this photo because it shows the other side of alpine hiking. Everyone has seen photos of beautiful mountain ranges on a clear day, but they may not know that those views are often preceded by equally beautiful, gloomy, foggy and complex terrain like what is shown here."

2nd Place: Abiramy Srirangan, Health Studies, on her work term in Indonesia

photo taken by Abiramy at the infamous Pura Lempuyang temple in Indonesia

"This is a photo of myself in front of the infamous Pura Lempuyang temple. My co-op placement was in Singapore and this gave me the opportunity to travel to countries in Southeast Asia. Bali was my favourite trip out of them all. The beauty of the island as well as the hospitality of the people made this place magical. This country will always have a special place in my heart and this trip would not have been possible if it was not for my amazing international co-op placement."

Black and White Winners

1st Place: Laurel Pilon, Biomedical Engineering, on her work term in Tanzania

Photo taken by Luarel visting Mikumi National park in Tanzania

"This photo shows several zebras that my coworker and I saw while visiting Mikumi National Park in Tanzania. We had the opportunity to visit this national park one weekend during my co-op. It was amazing to see such spectacular animals in such a beautiful place."

2nd Place: Nada Mansour, Biology, on her work term in the Netherlands

Photo taken by Nada while watching the tides change drastically in the Netherlands

"Living in Vlissingen has been such an amazing experience for me, but what was so unique about Vlissingen was it’s proximity to the North Sea. Living so close to the water, watching the tides change so drastically and the gorgeous sunsets were one of my favourite pass times. Where this picture is taken is usually covered in water when the tides are high. Another reason this picture is special to me was because of the different types of algae seen growing on the wooden pillars that were of interest to me as I was working with microalgae in the Netherlands."

Slogan Winners

1st Place: Trenton McNulty, English Literature, on his work term in Hong Kong

Photo taken by Trenton walking the streets in a crowd in Hong Kong

"Hong Kong taught me civil responsibility - June 16th, 2019. Two million people took to the streets of Hong Kong in protest of the city’s proposed extradition law, which would allow the government to detain and extradite criminals to China, violating the region’s autonomy and civil liberties. It was the largest protest ever recorded since Hong Kong was returned to China by the British in 1997, and only the beginning of a mass-scale civil disobedience campaign that rocks the city even now, worsening each day. As a coop student, I never expected to be taking part in history. I am grateful – and remorseful – for that opportunity."

2nd Place: Hyunjin Lee, Computer Science, on her work term in Kenya

Photo taken by Hyunjin of a lion in the field hunting in Kenya

"Kenya made me wild - This is a photo of a lion with a fresh kill during the Great Migration in Kenya's Masai Mara National Park. I was inspired to submit this photo because Kenya and East Africa as a whole is a wild and incredible place that captures the hearts of the people who get the chance to live there."

All finalist photo contest submissions

Sydney Opera House at sunset
Valley View in Yosemite National Park
Rotenboden stop on the Gornergrat Bahn train in Zermatt, Switzerland
Suzhou, a popular, old city near Shanghai
Vessel at New York City
A view of a bridge and city scape in Bosnia
Sydney Opera House at sunset
1 / 6
"At the end of my work term, I had the opportunity to visit Australia. Pictured here is a sunset viewed from the iconic Sydney Opera House. I found myself mesmerized by the beautiful colours in the sky and warm glow of the sun. With everything that goes on during a co-op or school term, life can get pretty hectic at times; the peace and tranquility of this sunset offered a nice contrast."
Valley View in Yosemite National Park
2 / 6
"This was taken at Valley View in Yosemite National Park. I wanted to submit this photo because it taught me to make the most out of what I'm given. I initially went to Yosemite in the hopes of doing some astrophotography. However, the weekend I was there just so happened to be a full moon which masked all of the stars. I still decided to shoot because this was one of the only chances that I'd get to go and this photo was the result of that."
Rotenboden stop on the Gornergrat Bahn train in Zermatt, Switzerland
3 / 6
"Have you ever felt on top of the world? One might feel this way when standing 2815 meters above sea level surrounded by massive mountains. This photo was taken at the Rotenboden stop on the Gornergrat Bahn train in Zermatt, Switzerland. I hiked from the stop down to Riffelsee lake where I spotted the picture perfect moment - a happy dog enjoying the flowers with the Matterhorn in the background (You can almost taste the Toblerone). There is nothing quite like inner peace and happiness I felt while listening to the blissful silence and whisper of the wind."
Suzhou, a popular, old city near Shanghai
4 / 6
Just like any other learning opportunity, doing co-op in a country I've never even stepped foot on made anxious in ways I never imagined. Although I did my work term abroad in Shanghai, this photo was taken in Suzhou, a popular, old city near Shanghai. I had taken my cousin, who at the time was visiting from Taiwan, on a mini day trip to this beautiful city. She has always been a big sister and never fails to be there for me. It could have been time or personal adjustment but after her visit, I stopped feeling anxious for the remainder of my time in Shanghai."
Vessel at New York City
5 / 6
"Often times we are too focused on reaching a goal in life that we often forget to stop and reflect on the things we have experienced, the people we have met and the accomplishments we have made. When I was climbing the Vessel at New York City, I was so focused on getting to the top, I forgot to breath and enjoy the scenery around me. When I finally reached the top, completely out of breath, I realized that the beauty of the Vessel is not what you saw at the top, but what you see when you looked down."
A view of a bridge and city scape in Bosnia
6 / 6
"I was inspired to submit this photo because Bosnia is gorgeous despite their tragic history of a recent war. I saw videos of the war and this bridge was completely destroyed and then rebuilt. The bridge signifies the connection between the two sides of the city - Muslim (left side) and Christian side (right side). Today it is a multicultural city with Muslims, Serbians, and Croatians. To take the photo I visited a mosque and was astonished by the colours and culture. I climbed up one foot wide, winding steps to reach the peak of the mosque and took this photo."