'Gorilla by the water' image wins international environmental photo award

The Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation has just unveiled the winners of its inaugural Environmental Photography Award. The theme for this first edition of the competition was ”Humanity & Wildlife: Crossed Destines, Shared Territories”.

Chosen from a pool of 5,600 entries, Kathleen Ricker was selected as the first-ever gand prize winner. She won the award for her entry titled Gorilla by the water, which she captured during a trek in the Ugandan mountains. 

As overall winner Ricker takes home the title of PA2F Environmental Photographer of the Year 2021 as well as a cash prize of €6,000.

Commenting on the award-winning image, photographer Jean-Michel Krief, who is a member of this year’s judging panel said, "the photographer has perfectly captured the magic of the moment when the gorilla forgets her presence to concentrate on crossing the river in the heart of the sumptuous Ugandan forest.”

The competition, which was organised with the support of Barclays Private Bank and Monaco Digital, was comprised of three thematic categories, namely: Incredible Wildlife, Wildlife in Crisis, and Reasons for Hope. 

You can see the category winners and runners-up below, as well as the winners of the People's Choice Vote in each category.

The winning and shortlisted photographs from the competition will be presented in May 2021 in the Boulingrins Gardens, in Monaco. With so many of us still unable to travel, the full exhibition of images is also available to view online here.