This year’s NEAR Youth Contest marked the 4th year of the contest which was started in 2013. The annual contest is open to youths aged from 14 to 18 from the member regions in Northeast Asia. This year, in addition to the former competition format which involved essay writing only, an art contest component was combined. Under the topics of ‘Culture of Northeast Asia,’ ‘Conservation of Cultural Heritage’ and ’Environmental Issues and Proposed Solutions in Northeast Asia,’ a total of 46 entrees from five countries were submitted to the contest.