United Kingdom

The international competition, launched in July through a partnership between Airbus, National Geographic and the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), part of the United Nations Environment Program, encouraged young people to engage in nature and consider the global loss of biodiversity. The competition was developed as part of Airbus’ support for The Green Wave, a youth engagement program of the CBD to encourage young people to learn about the complexity of life on earth and its role in their future.

The winning images were captured by budding photographers from countries as widespread as Canada, Pakistan, Kenya and Estonia, and though divided by geography, all entrants showed a common love of photography, a passion for their natural environment and concern for their futures. Children of Airbus employees were also encouraged to enter and three internal prize winners were selected alongside the five global winners. A further 20 young people were awarded honorable mentions for their entries.

The eight talented winners will receive a once-in-a-lifetime trip to the Washington, D.C., headquarters of National Geographic in December. The winners are Anthony Avellano, 12, from La Crescenta, California., USA; Chad Nelson, 12, from Santa Domingo, Dominican Republic; Alex Marttunen, 11, from Vantaa, Finland; Clemence Bonnefous, 8, from Tournefeuille, France; Vinzent Raintung, 8, from Halstenbek, Germany; Julia Kresse, 15, from Jork, Germany; Patryk Majchrzak, 16, from Ostrow Wielkopolski, Poland; Prerona Kundu, 11, from Lawrence, Kansas, USA.

Commenting on the competition, Tom Enders, CEO and president, Airbus, said: “The standard of entries from every corner of the world has been extremely impressive and a great reminder of the variety of living species we have around us. At Airbus, we are working with the CBD and using our global outreach to raise awareness of the need to preserve the variety of life on earth. Acknowledging our responsibility for the world of tomorrow, we are relentlessly pursuing eco-efficiency through innovative technologies, processes and products.”

Executive Secretary of the CBD, Ahmed Djoghlaf, said: “We are delighted Airbus and National Geographic are working with us to inspire the next generation about the importance of protecting the rich biodiversity of the world we live in. This competition is helping to deliver that commitment, engaging and educating today’s children in the task of safeguarding the planet.”

The world is losing biodiversity at an ever-increasing rate as a result of human activity. “This is a global problem that needs to be addressed today if we want to retain the diversity of the natural world for the generations of tomorrow. It is about the food that we eat and the air that we breathe,” said See The Bigger Picture ambassador and world-renowned National Geographic photographer Joel Sartore.
Sartore was a member of a global panel of judges who were impressed by the range of subjects that engaged the entrants. Photographs featuring insects, animals, plants and landscapes were submitted by photographers as young as 6 years old.

To view the winning entries and learn more about how to get involved in The Green Wave, visit www.seethebiggerpicture.org. A gallery of the winning photographs can also be viewed at the ftp site http://ftp.nationalgeographic.com/pressroom/see_bigger_picture.

username: press | password: press

– ends -

Notes to editors

“See The Bigger Picture” honorable mentions:
Afton Carpenter, 14, Gilbert, Arizona, USA
Julian Kiesel, 12, Nyack, New York, USA
Samantha Shapiro, 14, Chappaqua, New York, USA
Alex Sorensen, 14, Lincoln, Nebraska, USA
Joshua Hartmann, 12, S. Surrey, British Columbia, Canada
Chaitra Godbole, 14, Pune, India
Arjun Shankar, 16, Chennai, India
Sachin Vijayan, 13, Thodupuzha, India
Vince Ellison B. Leyeza, 11, Laguna, Philippines
Eleanor Bennett, 13, Stockport, United Kingdom
Malik Babi, 6, Beauzelle, France
Lénaїg Allain-Le Drogo, 12, Saint Luce Sur Loire, France
Richard Guerre, 9, Blagnac, France
Zoe Hamelin, 16, Paris, France
Diego Adrados, 13, Tarifa, Spain
Sara Cuenca Uñac, 13, Alicante, Spain
Mariló Moreno Ruz, 15, Cádiz, Spain
Jonas Harms, 16, Norderstedt, Germany
Marvin Pulter, 14, Germany
Tobias Abrahamsen, 16, Sarpsborg, Norway

Competition statistics:
Total of 2,597 entries from 99 countries. This includes 247 entries from children of Airbus employees in 6 countries.
Over half of the photographs taken were of land-dwelling animals, and the greatest proportion of these were insects.
Some children experimented with underwater shots requiring a high level of skill.
Just over 40% of entrants took photographs at home, showing awareness that biodiversity can be found in our own back yard.

The Green Wave:
The Green Wave is a global biodiversity campaign to educate children and youth about biodiversity.
The CBD is a United Nations treaty promoting the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity
2010 is the United Nations’ International Year of Biodiversity. On May 22, 2010 (The International Day of Biodiversity), as part of The Green Wave initiative, young people are invited to plant a tree at 10 a.m. to celebrate biodiversity. This will create a wave of tree planting as the activity passes through each time zone across the world.
Photos and stories from the moment can then be uploaded to The Green Wave website to create a virtual wave on the Internet
Visit http://greenwave.cbd.int.

National Geographic Kids Indonesia will be published by PT Penerbitan Sarana Bobo, the children’s publishing arm of Kompas-Gramedia Group, the largest media corporation in Indonesia. Each issue will be completely bilingual in English and Bahasa Indonesia.

Content for the magazine will be drawn primarily from the award-winning U.S. magazine National Geographic Kids and also will include local Indonesian content related to the environment, animal life and other topics that will excite kids about exploring their world. There will be 12 issues a year, and the magazine will be available by subscription, on newsstands and in Gramedia bookstores throughout Indonesia.

Local editions of National Geographic’s children’s magazine also are available in Bulgaria, Croatia, Egypt, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Israel, Latin America, The Netherlands, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovenia, South Africa (two editions), Turkey and the United Kingdom. This growth mirrors the global expansion of the famous yellow-bordered National Geographic magazine, now available in 32 local-language editions and read by more than 35 million people each month. The children’s magazines, which accept advertising, also sport the familiar yellow border.

“The growth spurt of our children’s publications allows National Geographic and the local-language publishers to reach an untapped youth market with this best-loved brand,” said Society President John Fahey. “Giving young people in Indonesia a window to the world in their own language through National Geographic’s incomparable photographs and storytelling is a compelling way to spread geographic knowledge and to extend the Society’s mission to inspire people to care about the planet.”

Founded in 1973, PT Penerbitan Sarana Bobo is the largest publishing company and market leader for children’s magazines in Indonesia, with publications for children of all ages from toddlers to secondary school students. With a focus on information, communication and education, the Kompas-Gramedia Group has in the past four decades diversified its media business to include regional newspapers, books, magazines, a television channel, radio, bookstores, hotels, real estate development, travel bureaus and tissue paper production.

English-language-edition readers in Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand, Republic of Ireland, South Africa, the United States and the United Kingdom are eligible to enter up to a total of six photographs across three categories: People, Places and Nature. Entries should be submitted electronically to www.ngphotocontest.com. The contest began Wednesday, Aug. 5, and ends Saturday, Oct. 31, 2009, 11:59 p.m. U.S. Eastern Time (ET). Photos can be black-and-white or color, shot with a digital camera or with conventional film, and must be submitted digitally. Each entry consists of an entry form, a single image and an entry fee. The entry fee is U.S. $12 per photo for entries received before 11:59 p.m. ET Oct. 15, 2009, and $22 per photo for entries received between Oct. 16 and Oct. 31. For details and official contest rules, visit www.ngphotocontest.com. Void where prohibited.

English-language-edition entries will be judged at National Geographic headquarters by a panel of three judges: National Geographic staff photographer Mark Thiessen; design editor of the international editions of National Geographic magazine Darren Smith; and White House photo editor Jenn Poggi. First-place category winners of the English-language-edition competition will win a digital camera kit.

The participating international local-language editions will submit their winning entries in each category to National Geographic headquarters to be judged alongside the winning English-language entries by Thiessen, Smith and Poggi. The judges will announce three international grand-prize winners in December 2009.

“We are thrilled to continue our annual photography contest,” said David Griffin, National Geographic’s director of photography. “The work we have been seeing in recent years is truly astounding and speaks to the truth that photography is a worldwide, universal language — one that everyone can appreciate and enjoy.”

Each team will comprise three students who excelled in their national geography competition. The teams will meet to answer questions on physical, cultural and economic geography in two levels of competition. Current world champion Mexico will defend its title against teams from Australia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chinese Taipei, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, the United Kingdom and the United States.

The students will arrive in Mexico City on July 11. The teams will take a written test on July 12 and explore some of the historic areas of Mexico City; the following day, they will battle each other in a challenging hands-on activity in the morning and visit the ancient city of Teotihuacan that afternoon. On July 14 they will explore Chapultepec Park, one of the largest urban parks in the world, and the nearby museums. The three teams with the highest scores from the written test and geography activity will meet at the National Museum of Anthropology and History for the championship finals on July 15. They will answer questions in a game-show format, moderated by Alex Trebek, host of the popular U.S. television quiz show “Jeopardy!”.

The National Geographic World Championship takes place every two years. The first contest, held in London in 1993, was won by the United States, which beat teams from the United Kingdom and Russia. The Australians, competing against four other teams, won the 1995 competition at Epcot at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Fla. The third championship, held in 1997 in Washington, D.C., was won by Canada, which bested teams from eight other regions. The fourth competition, held in Toronto, in 1999, was won by the United States, which also won the 2001 contest in Vancouver, the 2003 contest at Busch Gardens, Tampa Bay, Fla., and the 2005 contest in Budapest, Hungary. The 2007 competition at SeaWorld, San Diego, was won by Mexico.

“Promoting knowledge of our world, its cultures and the environment is at the heart of the mission of the National Geographic Society,” said John Fahey, Society president and CEO. “The National Geographic World Championship provides a forum for top geography students from all corners of the globe to compete and to determine which team is the international geography champion. By participating in their region’s competition and advancing to the international level, each student learns so much about our planet and becomes a better global citizen for the experience.”

Arturo Elías Ayub, CEO of Telmex Foundation, said, “At Telmex Foundation we are convinced that the best tool to fight poverty, to ensure a more just society and to guarantee a better future for Mexico’s youth is education. Therefore, we are proud to support this ninth National Geographic World Championship, because it motivates the young participants to learn more about and expand their vision of the marvelous world that surrounds us and to appreciate its wealth and diversity. The team members also will have the priceless experience of establishing relationships with other cultures, from which, undoubtedly, we all have many things to learn.”

The National Geographic Society developed the National Geographic Bee in 1989 and the National Geographic World Championship in 1993 in response to concern about the lack of geographic knowledge among young people in the United States. And the problem is not yet resolved: The National Geographic-Roper Public Affairs 2006 Geographic Literacy Study showed that Americans aged 18 to 24 still have limited understanding of the world within and beyond their country’s borders. Even after Hurricane Katrina, one-third could not locate Louisiana and almost half could not locate Mississippi on a U.S. map. Only four out of 10 were able to find Iraq on a map of the Middle East.

More information about the National Geographic World Championship is available at www.nationalgeographic.com/worldchampionship.

About National Geographic
The National Geographic Society is one of the world’s largest nonprofit scientific and educational organizations. Founded in 1888 to “increase and diffuse geographic knowledge,” the Society works to inspire people to care about the planet. It reaches more than 360 million people worldwide each month through its official journal, National Geographic, and four other magazines; National Geographic Channel; television documentaries; radio programs; films; books; DVDs; maps; and interactive media. National Geographic has funded more than 9,000 scientific research projects and supports an education program promoting geographic literacy. For more information, visit nationalgeographic.com.

About Telmex Foundation
In 1996 Telmex Foundation initiated activities to help solve problems that affect social development in Mexico and to support victims of natural disasters in Mexico and other Latin American countries. In order to carry out this mission, Telmex Foundation works in seven core areas: Education, Health, Nutrition, Justice, Culture, Human Development and Support in Natural Disasters.

With permanent programs designed and focused on these core guidelines, Telmex Foundation confirms each day its commitment to building a Mexico that offers better living standards to its people and allows its inhabitants to build a better future for themselves, their families and their communities, for the benefit of the country.

NOTE: Up-to-date information about the competition will be posted in the National Geographic online press room at nationalgeographic.com/pressroom.

Simon van Lierde of the Netherlands is the grand-prize winner for his photograph of a child swinging, in the People category. The first runner-up is Lilla Balajthy of Hungary for her photograph of ants on a beach, in the Animals category; second runner-up is Carolyn Faye Twersky of Connecticut, for her photo of pipe art, in the Scenery category. As grand-prize winner, van Lierde will receive an all-expenses-paid trip to National Geographic headquarters in Washington, D.C. The runners-up will receive a certificate of merit from National Geographic.

The three winning images were chosen from more than 15,000 entries from the participating editions. Each edition held local contests, and in the final round they sent one photograph from each of the three categories to National Geographic’s headquarters for judging by National Geographic Kids Editor in Chief Melina Bellows, National Geographic photographer Annie Griffiths Belt and National Geographic Kids Photo Director Jay Sumner.

The local-language editions of National Geographic Kids that took part in the contest along with the U.S. edition were Bulgaria, Croatia, Egypt, Greece, Hungary, Israel, Latin America, Montenegro, the Netherlands, Russia, Serbia, Slovenia, South Africa, Turkey and United Kingdom.

National Geographic Kids, geared towards children ages 6 to 14, is an interactive, multi-topic magazine covering animals, entertainment, science, technology, current events and cultures from around the world. It is now published in 18 local-language editions.

National Geographic is synonymous with unparalleled photographic excellence. The magazine draws on the best photographers around the world and devotes more resources to photography than any other general- interest magazine. Since the 1890s, National Geographic photographers have captured images where readers could not go themselves: places too far, too deep, too dark, too dangerous. Recent advances in photographic technology have illuminated and captured much of the previously unknown.

Through the lenses of National Geographic’s photographers, readers have been able to view unique life forms on the ocean floor, visit sunken ships, explore Egyptian tombs, “see” the temperature ranges of a star, discover the hidden world inside our bodies, observe the microscopic world of molecules and subatomic particles, and savor the perfect structure of a snowflake.

Today, National Geographic’s photographic archive contains 10.5 million images; a selection of these is available for advertising use. National Geographic offers photography workshops and expeditions and publishes photography field guides as well as signature coffee-table photo books.

More than a traditional retail environment, the Regent Street store will feature compelling interactive visual displays and state-of-the-art design dedicated to stimulating, educating and inspiring visitors to celebrate global cultures. In addition to its retail marketplace, the store will feature an exhibition area, auditorium, tapas café, travel desk and photography studio, set across three floors and approximately 1,800 square metres (19,375 square feet).

The auditorium will offer public lectures from some of National Geographic’s most renowned explorers, authors and photographers, as well as free film screenings. The exhibition hall will display a rotating showcase of curated exhibits inspired by content from National Geographic’s international channels, magazines and mission-oriented projects, such as the Genographic Project.

Visitors can stop by the café to sample a selection of tapas, composed of slow food, organic food, fair trade and other specialty items. They can also peruse National Geographic’s travel and cartographic library, book National Geographic Expeditions and local tours, and try out apparel and accessories for their upcoming adventures. The photography studio will allow visitors to test equipment and consult with National Geographic’s optics specialists.

The marketplace will feature a wide selection of National Geographic products featuring its award-winning magazines, books and DVDs, as well as newly created products and unique, hand-crafted items sourced from global artisans and not typically offered in the United Kingdom. Locally sourced collectables from Africa make up a portion of these items and include original artifacts and tools found in indigenous tribes. Custom jewellery and hand-stitched camel hide bags from Kenya are among the authentic and sustainable items on offer.

Key product lines in the store will include apparel, footwear, eyewear, stationery, maps, watches, home furnishings and a wide selection of children’s products.

The store will also offer items designed for the rigours of adventures and exploration, from casual travel gear to expedition-quality apparel, including hi-tech waterproof bags and innovative, multi-layered apparel suitable for diverse climates and activities. Consumers can road-test their apparel in the store’s product-testing area, featuring wind gusts, extreme temperature changes and other conditions that simulate the often challenging environments that National Geographic explorers experience in the field.

Eclectic furniture and home décor items will be featured in displays and will be available for sale. They include a variety of pieces constructed of wood reclaimed from old furniture, buildings, bridges and railways. Sample furniture and home décor items include armchairs, tables, lamps and glassware available in a variety of colors, textures and finishes.

Drawing from its mission to inspire people to care about the planet, National Geographic has built its flagship store with eco-friendly design elements and plans to incorporate additional sustainable practices in its daily operations.

National Geographic’s net proceeds support the Society’s exploration, conservation, research and education programs.

Target will launch a range of National Geographic titles this fall, including the release of several Blu-ray discs, which will showcase the quality and substance of National Geographic’s programming. The first Blu-ray titles scheduled for release are “Amazing Planet,” “Stonehenge Decoded,” “Incredible Human Machine” and “Into the Wilderness.” Other DVD titles out by year-end include “Sea Monsters: A Prehistoric Adventure,” “Forces of Nature,” “Into the Great Pyramid” and “Planet Carnivore.”

“The U.K. is an extremely important market for us, and we are delighted to have Target representing National Geographic’s award-winning DVD products in this region. Target’s expertise in documentaries and distribution makes them a great partner for our titles as we continue to expand our Home Entertainment DVD business in the U.K.,” said Julie Bellonte, senior vice president, National Geographic International Home Entertainment.

“We are excited and proud to be representing one of the most recognized and trusted media brands in the world. National Geographic has a vast catalogue of amazing programming, which we are looking forward to bringing out on DVD and Blu-ray for the first time,” added Duncan Sibbald, director of U.K. DVD at Target Entertainment Group.

About National Geographic
National Geographic Ventures (NGV) is a wholly owned, taxable subsidiary of National Geographic Society, one of the largest nonprofit scientific and educational organizations in the world. Founded in 1888 to “increase and diffuse geographic knowledge,” the National Geographic Society works to inspire people to care about the planet. NGV includes National Geographic Television (NGT) production and distribution, National Geographic Television International, National Geographic Films and National Geographic Cinema Ventures, Kids Entertainment, National Geographic Home Entertainment, Digital Media including Digital Motion (formerly the Film Library) and Nationalgeographic.com, as well as National Geographic Maps. NGV creates and distributes content across multi-platforms and media providing outlets for the hundreds of scientific and expedition-based grants awarded each year. For more information, go to www.nationalgeographic.com.

English-language-edition entries in three categories — People, Places and Nature — will be judged at National Geographic headquarters in Washington, D.C. The local-language editions will each submit the winning entries in each category to headquarters to be judged with the winning English-language entries. National Geographic judges will announce three international grand-prize winners in December 2008. The panel of judges will be composed of professional photojournalists, including one from National Geographic.

The contest is open to eligible adult participants. Winning entries from each territory will be featured in local editions of National Geographic magazine. First-place category winners of the English-language-edition competition will win a digital SLR camera kit. The international grand-prize winners will receive a trip to National Geographic headquarters, and their winning entries will be published in the English-language and other editions of National Geographic magazine.

“We are thrilled to continue our annual photography contest,” said National Geographic Director of Photography David Griffin. “The work we have been seeing in recent years is truly astounding and speaks to the truth that photography is a world-wide, universal language — one that everyone can appreciate and enjoy.”

For English-language-edition contestants, up to a total of six photographs across the three categories should be submitted electronically to ngphotocontest.com. Entries must be received between midnight (12 a.m.) U.S. Eastern Daylight Time on Friday, Aug.1, and
11:59 p.m. U.S. Eastern Daylight Time on Friday, Oct. 31. Photos can be black-and-white or color, shot with a digital camera or with conventional film, and submitted digitally. For details and official contest rules, visit ngphotocontest.com.

The presenting sponsor of this year’s international contest organized by the National Geographic Society was Telmex Foundation, with supporting sponsorship from the Mexican Academy of Sciences, CONACYT, JW Marriott Mexico City and Televisa Foundation.

The Canadian team comprised Peter Brandt, 15, of Sainte Anne, Manitoba; Christopher Chiavatti, 15, of Burnaby, British Columbia; and Graham Tompkins, 16, of Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. The U.S. team members were Kenji Golimlim, 11, of Southgate, Michigan; Milan Sandhu, 15, of Bedford, New Hampshire; and Eric Yang, 13, of The Colony, Texas. Poland’s team members were Piotr Byrski, 16, of Łodygowice, Ślaskie; Wojciech Kaczmarczyk, 16, of Racibórz, Ślaskie; and Gabriel Stachura, 16, of Lublin, Lubelskie.

In an Olympics-style ceremony, medals were awarded to the first-, second- and third-placed teams. Alex Trebek, host of the U.S. television quiz show “Jeopardy!”, moderated today’s finals.

Canada, the United States and Poland qualified for the final round after obtaining the highest combined scores in a written contest on Sunday and in Monday’s preliminary activity that included a hands-on map activity. Canada was the highest scorer in these earlier rounds.

Students were eligible to take part in the World Championship competition by winning or being a top finisher in the national competitions of their home regions. The 12 other teams competing this year were from Australia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Chinese Taipei, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Mexico, Romania, Russia, Slovakia and the United Kingdom.

John Fahey, president of the National Geographic Society, said the competition was a great way for talented young geographers around the world to match wits against each other and to enjoy a rewarding cross-cultural exchange. “The competition enhances international dialogue and understanding and promotes friendships around the globe,” he added.

The World Championship is held every two years. The first contest, held in London in 1993, was won by the United States, which beat teams from the United Kingdom and Russia. The Australians, competing against four other teams, won the 1995 competition in Orlando, Fla. The third championship, held in 1997 at National Geographic headquarters in Washington, D.C., was won by Canada, which bested eight other teams. The United States won the next four competitions: against 11 other teams in Toronto, Canada, in 1999; against 12 other teams in Vancouver, Canada, in 2001; against 17 other teams at Busch Gardens, Fla., in 2003; and against 17 other teams in Budapest, Hungary, in 2005. The 2007 competition at SeaWorld, San Diego, was won by Mexico, which beat 16 other teams.

NOTE: Up-to-date information about the competition will be posted in the National Geographic online press room at nationalgeographic.com/pressroom.

Each team will comprise three students who excelled in their national geography competition. The teams will meet to answer questions on physical, cultural and economic geography in two levels of competition. Current world champion Mexico will defend its title against teams from Australia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chinese Taipei, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, the United Kingdom and the United States.

The students will arrive in Mexico City on July 11. The teams will take a written test on July 12 and explore some of the historic areas of Mexico City; the following day, they will battle each other in a challenging hands-on activity in the morning and visit the ancient city of Teotihuacan that afternoon. On July 14 they will explore Chapultepec Park, one of the largest urban parks in the world, and the nearby museums. The three teams with the highest scores from the written test and geography activity will meet at the National Museum of Anthropology and History for the championship finals on July 15. They will answer questions in a game-show format, moderated by Alex Trebek, host of the popular U.S. television quiz show “Jeopardy!”.

The National Geographic World Championship takes place every two years. The first contest, held in London in 1993, was won by the United States, which beat teams from the United Kingdom and Russia. The Australians, competing against four other teams, won the 1995 competition at Epcot at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Fla. The third championship, held in 1997 in Washington, D.C., was won by Canada, which bested teams from eight other regions. The fourth competition, held in Toronto, in 1999, was won by the United States, which also won the 2001 contest in Vancouver, the 2003 contest at Busch Gardens, Tampa Bay, Fla., and the 2005 contest in Budapest, Hungary. The 2007 competition at SeaWorld, San Diego, was won by Mexico.

“Promoting knowledge of our world, its cultures and the environment is at the heart of the mission of the National Geographic Society,” said John Fahey, Society president and CEO. “The National Geographic World Championship provides a forum for top geography students from all corners of the globe to compete and to determine which team is the international geography champion. By participating in their region’s competition and advancing to the international level, each student learns so much about our planet and becomes a better global citizen for the experience.”

Arturo Elías Ayub, CEO of Telmex Foundation, said, “At Telmex Foundation we are convinced that the best tool to fight poverty, to ensure a more just society and to guarantee a better future for Mexico’s youth is education. Therefore, we are proud to support this ninth National Geographic World Championship, because it motivates the young participants to learn more about and expand their vision of the marvelous world that surrounds us and to appreciate its wealth and diversity. The team members also will have the priceless experience of establishing relationships with other cultures, from which, undoubtedly, we all have many things to learn.”

The National Geographic Society developed the National Geographic Bee in 1989 and the National Geographic World Championship in 1993 in response to concern about the lack of geographic knowledge among young people in the United States. And the problem is not yet resolved: The National Geographic-Roper Public Affairs 2006 Geographic Literacy Study showed that Americans aged 18 to 24 still have limited understanding of the world within and beyond their country’s borders. Even after Hurricane Katrina, one-third could not locate Louisiana and almost half could not locate Mississippi on a U.S. map. Only four out of 10 were able to find Iraq on a map of the Middle East.

More information about the National Geographic World Championship is available at www.nationalgeographic.com/worldchampionship.

About National Geographic
The National Geographic Society is one of the world’s largest nonprofit scientific and educational organizations. Founded in 1888 to “increase and diffuse geographic knowledge,” the Society works to inspire people to care about the planet. It reaches more than 360 million people worldwide each month through its official journal, National Geographic, and four other magazines; National Geographic Channel; television documentaries; radio programs; films; books; DVDs; maps; and interactive media. National Geographic has funded more than 9,000 scientific research projects and supports an education program promoting geographic literacy. For more information, visit nationalgeographic.com.

About Telmex Foundation
In 1996 Telmex Foundation initiated activities to help solve problems that affect social development in Mexico and to support victims of natural disasters in Mexico and other Latin American countries. In order to carry out this mission, Telmex Foundation works in seven core areas: Education, Health, Nutrition, Justice, Culture, Human Development and Support in Natural Disasters.

With permanent programs designed and focused on these core guidelines, Telmex Foundation confirms each day its commitment to building a Mexico that offers better living standards to its people and allows its inhabitants to build a better future for themselves, their families and their communities, for the benefit of the country.

NOTE: Up-to-date information about the competition will be posted in the National Geographic online press room at nationalgeographic.com/pressroom.