What About Peace?, the contest that asks youth ages 14 – 20 to answer this question creatively is pleased to announce the 2012 winners!

After months of jurying, judging and photographing we are ready to show you the inspiring work of  this year’s contestants, as they think about what peace means in 2012.

A big congratulations goes to our 2012 Grand Prize winner, 17 year old Amanda McKenna from Sacramento, California with her Peace is in Our Hands entry sponsored by Deborah George of Sheldon High School.

As Grand Judge, Rae Abileah of CODEPINK, said about the winning piece,

"This piece makes creating peace personal, doable, and obtainable. It puts the responsibility on us to create peace. We aren’t waiting anymore for governments or unobtainable powerful people to affect change...

...If the goal of the winning piece in the What about Peace? contest is to convey a creative, potent message about peace, this piece nails it."

More congratulations go to our First Place winners for the Visual Arts and Written categories:

First Prize Visual Arts: Release More Peace Paisley Hiefield, 16 years old from Portland, Oregon sponsored by Annarose Pandey of West View High School

First Prize Written: Reality Check Emily Council, 17 years old from Wiliamsburg, VA sponsored by Moncia Schauffler of Lafayette High School.

Please go to www.whataboutpeace.org to see the rest of the winners and the first installment of all of our amazing and inspiring entries. We will continue to showcase the creative work through the end of the school year.

Also be sure to visit our blog for more photos and the whole story behind the What About Peace? contest.

Peace,