2025 Conservation Poster Contest theme:
Home is Where the Habitat is
Engage your Kindergarten through 6th Grade students with this year’s poster contest because all living things need to have a good “home” in order to survive and thrive.
Knox-Lincoln SWCD Staff visit participating classrooms (30-45 minutes) free of charge to introduce the contest to students. Classroom visits can be scheduled Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from January 3 through January 31.
Posters due by Friday, February 14.
Questions? Contact Louisa at louisa@knox-lincoln.org or (207) 596-2040.
Register Now
Register your classroom(s) for the 2025 contest: Home is Where the Habitat is.
If requesting an optional classroom visit by Knox-Lincoln SWCD staff, register by Wednesday, December 18, 2024. Classroom visits start on January 3, and are available on a first-come, first-serve basis.
If forgoing the optional classroom visit, register by Friday, January 24, 2025.
Resource Guide
All participating teachers will be provided a 2025 Poster Contest Teacher Resources Guide similar to this poster resource guide from 2024 compiling several relevant resources for teaching students about habitat.
About the Annual Conservation Poster Contest
The annual National Association of Conservation Districts Conservation Poster Contest provides K-6 students with the opportunity to convey their thoughts about soil, water, and related natural resource issues through art. Each year, the contest theme follows the annual stewardship theme of the National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD). The contest highlights the educational outreach efforts of conservation districts and their state conservation associations, and is co-sponsored by the NACD and the NACD Auxiliary. It is open to all public, private, and home-schooled students.
Students first enter their posters into their Soil & Water Conservation District’s local contest. Winning posters then advance to the State and National contests.
Check out the 2024 Knox-Lincoln SWCD Local Conservation Poster Contest winning posters
Registration, Entry, and Poster Requirements
This information is available in PDF format. Educators should read this information carefully in order to understand requirements for registration, entry, and poster design.
Registered teachers will receive a free 2025 Poster Contest Resource Guide, specially curated by Knox-Lincoln SWCD education staff! See the last year’s 2024 Teacher Resource Guide.
Registration and Entry
Please register your classroom(s) or student group(s) online for the poster contest. Educators are encouraged to register as soon as they know they are participating:
Register on or before Wednesday, December 18, if you would like a complementary classroom visit. Visits are offered on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, from January 3 to January 31 by Knox-Lincoln SWCD Staff, who will spend 30-45 minutes introducing the poster contest theme and key content ideas related to the contest to your classroom through interactive activities.
Please note classroom visits are limited and available on a first-come-first-serve basis.
Register on or before Friday, January 24, if you choose to forgo the classroom visit and introduce the contest and poster theme to your students yourself.
A resource guide with lesson plans, suggested activities, books, and videos will be provided to all teachers who participate.
Posters are due on Friday, February 14. Posters can be:
Picked up from your school office on February 14 by Knox-Lincoln SWCD staff. If you choose this option, the posters must be in your school office by 8 am.
Dropped off on February 14 by 5 pm at the Knox-Lincoln SWCD office.
Sent by mail to arrive by February 18 at the Knox-Lincoln SWCD office.
Please attach a 2025 Poster Contest Entry Form to the back of each poster using masking tape.
Winners of each Local category (K-1, 2-3, 4-6), will be announced by March 3, 2025. Local category winners will automatically be entered into the State Competition. All other submissions will be returned via mail or dropped off at local schools by March 5, 2025.
Poster Criteria
Poster size is flexible depending on what teachers and students have available to them. Posters must be at least 8.5”x11”. Do not use neon-colored paper.
Any media may be used, including paint, crayon, colored pencil, charcoal, stickers, paper, or other materials.
Posters must include the poster theme Home is Where the Habitat is.
Entry must be the contestant's original creation. Although younger students will most likely receive help in planning from parents or teachers, NACD encourages each student to do their own work.
Each poster must be created by an individual student, rather than a team of students.
Student names must only be written on the back of the poster, not on the front. Please attach a 2025 Poster Contest Entry Form to the back of each poster using masking tape.
Students in grades K-6 are eligible to participate in the Knox-Lincoln SWCD Local Contest.
Poster contest registration and entry instructions can also be downloaded in PDF format.
2024 Poster Contest Results
May The Forest Be With You Always
Thank you to all the schools, teachers, and especially the students who participated in this year’s National Association of Conservation Districts annual poster contest: “May The Forest Be With You Always”. We had students representing 61 classrooms and 15 schools, with over 580 posters submitted. It was exciting to see so many students engaging with watersheds, water quality, and conservation.
We would also like to thank our three poster contest judges, Allyssa Gregory (District Forester, Maine Forest Service), Rebecca Jacobs (Natural Resource Program Manager, Boothbay Region Water District), and volunteer BJ Dobson. Judges carefully evaluated the conservation message, visual effectiveness, and originality of each poster to select class and category winners and honorable mentions.
2024 Poster Contest Category Overall Winners
