Design the New Grand Canyon Arizona Specialty License Plate

A Grand Canyon Plate for the Grand Canyon State! 

Grand Canyon Conservancy, the official nonprofit partner of Grand Canyon National Park, is inviting artists of all ages who are legal residents of Arizona to submit original designs for the new Grand Canyon specialty license plate.

This is a rare opportunity to create a piece of art that may travel across Arizona and beyond while helping protect one of our nation’s most iconic landscapes.

A Grand Canyon specialty license plate is simple, voluntary, and powerful. Every plate purchased allows Arizonans to carry a symbol of Grand Canyon wherever they go—and, more importantly, to invest directly in its future.

Proceeds from the specialty plate will support Grand Canyon Conservancy’s work with Grand Canyon National Park, including:

• Protecting the canyon through scientific research and conservation efforts that address water scarcity, wildfire resilience, and the protection of native plants and wildlife.
• Preserving history by restoring historic buildings, safeguarding archaeological sites, and protecting the cultural stories woven throughout this extraordinary landscape.
• Honoring tribal co-stewardship by supporting Indigenous partnerships that protect sacred places, elevate traditional knowledge, and ensure tribal voices help shape the future of Grand Canyon.
• Expanding unforgettable visitor experiences through educational programs, school field trips, distance learning, artist and scientist residencies, and other opportunities that inspire deeper connections to the canyon.

We are seeking artwork that captures the spirit, beauty, and significance of Grand Canyon while translating effectively to the unique format of an Arizona license plate. Designs should celebrate what makes Grand Canyon meaningful to people across Arizona and around the world.

Whether your inspiration comes from the canyon’s breathtaking landscapes, its incredible wildlife, the Colorado River, its rich cultural heritage, or the awe it inspires, we encourage you to submit your vision.

Submission Details

Designers are invited to submit original artwork that embodies the following thematic elements and guidelines below. For more information, see License Plate Design Guidelines and the Existing Arizona Department of Transportation Specialty Plates. 

• Image Across Entire Plate: Depicts recognizable Grand Canyon National Park-inspired design. 
• Color and Visibility: Uses colors and contrast that ensure legibility of plate numbers.  
• Wording/Title: ARIZONA must be at the top; Lower Legend Area should say Grand Canyon Conservancy 
• Audience Appeal: Appeals to Arizona drivers and Grand Canyon enthusiasts. 
• State Standards: Follows ADOT License Plate Design Guidelines. It is extremely important that all designers follow these guidelines in order to have their design considered. 
• No AI: Final designs must be original and not AI-generated, and must be 100% original work that does not violate any third-party copyrights or trademarks. 
• See example below: 

Contest Details

• The selected artist will receive a prize consisting of:
  • A $1,000 cash award
  • Note: The artist will not receive any ongoing royalties from plate sales, and the $1,000 prize is subject to federal and state income tax reporting. Prize will be disbursed after the winner provides a completed IRS Form W-9.
• Submissions open: Monday, August 10, 2026, 8:00 a.m. MST 
• Deadline: Wednesday, September 30, 2026, by 5:00 p.m. MST 
• All contest entries must be submitted to Crowdriff in either JPEG, PNG, or PDF file format. The minimum resolution should be 72 ppi, with a maximum file size limit of 16 MB. 
  • The winner will need to submit a layered, editable file once informed. ADOT prefers vector-based artwork (Adobe Illustrator). Order of preference: ai, psd, jpeg. All digital images must be at least 300 DPI at actual size.
• Note: Final design is subject to review. ADOT and law enforcement require strict readability standards. Grand Canyon Conservancy reserves the right to alter, edit, or crop the winning design to meet ADOT regulatory guidelines.
• Winner grants exclusive, perpetual, worldwide license to Grand Canyon Conservancy and the Arizona Department of Transportation to use, reproduce, and market the selected license plate design in any way and in any medium.
• The winning artist (1) will indemnify and hold harmless Grand Canyon Conservancy against any legal claims of plagiarism or IP theft, and (2) agrees that Grand Canyon Conservancy shall not be responsible or liable for, and is hereby released from, any and all costs, injuries, losses, or damages due to participation in the contest or from acceptance, awarding, receipt, and/or use or misuse of the prize.
• Non-winning artists retain 100% ownership of their submitted designs upon completion of the contest. 

Timeline

• Submissions Due: Wednesday, September 30, 2026, by 5:00 p.m. MST 
• Public Voting: Monday, October 5, beginning at 8:00 a.m. MST to Sunday, October 11, 2026, ending at midnight MST 
• Winner Announced: Winner notified on or about the week of October 12, 2026, using the contact information provided at the time of entry. Failure to respond to any notification within the time required may result in disqualification and selection of an alternate winner.

Judging Process

A panel of Grand Canyon Conservancy staff will judge all submissions, using the bullet points in the Submission Details above, as the criteria. Up to the top four designs will be voted on by the public via social media. Fewer than four designs may be selected for public voting if fewer entries of sufficient quality are received. The Grand Canyon Conservancy judging panel may take into account the results of the public vote with as much or as little weight they deem appropriate on the factor of audience appeal. 

The selected artist may be required to execute a Declaration of Eligibility, a Liability Release, an assignment of rights, and a Publicity Release (where legal) prior to being declared the winner. If the artist is a minor, his/her parent or legal guardian may be required to ratify and sign all required documents. If the artist fails to comply with requests for documents within the time required by the Conservancy, is found to be ineligible, or cannot or does not comply with these rules, he/she may be disqualified, and an alternate winning design may be selected, time permitting. 

Data

By entering, you agree to the Conservancy’s manner of collection and usage of any personal information you submit, all of which is subject to the Conservancy’s privacy policy located at https://www.grandcanyon.org/legal/privacy-notice.

No purchase necessary. Entries are limited to individuals (not agencies). GCC reserves the right to disqualify entries featuring inappropriate, offensive, or politically partisan themes. All decisions made by the judging panel are final and binding in all matters.