No, this is not spam . Since there are a few people here that like to write, I thought you might be interested in this. Shell (yes, the oil company) and The Economist magazine run a competition each year, which involves a 1700 word essay on a particular theme. This year it is the question 'Do we need nature'. First prize is US$20,000, and the total prize pool is US$65,000. The best part is, they are not looking for 'academic' style essays. So go to http://www.shelleconomistprize.com/index2.html if you are interested, check out the terms and conditions to see if you are eligible, and get writing .