‘Imaginative and entertaining’, ‘top quality’ and ‘skilfully composed’ — these are the judges’ words to describe the incredible creative work of our rangatahi (from more than fifty schools) who entered the 2020 Smart Alex competition. Entrants drew on current experience of COVID-19 pressures as well as responding to emotive issues such as climate change and the environment, Māori and Pasifika traditions, social inequality and unrest.

The winners, runners-up and highly commended entries will receive cash prizes and book tokens totalling more than $3,000.

See 2020 Competition Results for full details and all the prize-winning entries.

This was the third and final year of the competition, attracting nearly 120 tamariki from secondary schools around Aotearoa who were asked to respond to an image found in Alexander Turnbull Library’s online collections. They could showcase their creative talent through writing or a graphic drawing.

The competition has been organised by Friends of the Turnbull Library (FoTL) in conjunction with the Alexander Turnbull Library and the Services to Schools branch of the National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa. It was developed to celebrate the centenary of the Turnbull Library, which first opened its doors to the public on 28 June 1920.