Internews Celebrates Earth Day

Protecting the Planet with the Power of Information

Many of the people in developing countries who are most vulnerable to climate change have never heard of global warming. They are also under-informed about a host of other environmental concerns like species loss and deforestation, even though these processes may already be affecting them directly. To remedy this knowledge gap, Internews and its Earth Journalism Network (EJN) provide journalists in developing countries with the skills and resources to educate and engage their audiences on the environment. In honor of Earth Day, this e-newsletter highlights a few of Internews' environmental media projects around the world.

• China’s Top TV Journalists Learn to Report Green
• Element and MTV Roll Out Climate Change Series
• Vietnamese Journalists Expose Illegal Wildlife Trading in Southeast Asia
• From China to South Africa, Reporters Investigate Local Impacts of Climate Change

China’s Top TV Journalists Learn to Report Green

With audience ratings that reach as high as 800 million people, China Central Television (CCTV) is one of the world’s largest broadcasters. It is also the predominant media organization in a severely environmentally challenged country that has the most people on the planet. Now CCTV’s reporters and producers will be better able to cover those challenges, thanks to the broadcaster’s first ever environmental workshop, carried out and supported by Internews’ Earth Journalism Network (EJN) in collaboration with Environment News Trust (ENT) in Beijing in March. (More)

Element and MTV Roll Out Climate Change Series

Element, an Internews-partnered television series produced for MTV Europe that addresses big picture issues like the environment and poverty, is starting a new series on the theme of climate change. Element profiles young people working on environmental projects and is designed to inform and inspire the 16- to 34-year-old television demographic around the world.

The new stories include profiles of a carbon offsetting project manager en route from Beijing to an Oxford University boxing ring; the Australian Young Designer of the Year, whose 'green' car design was inspired by a near-fatal crash; and the kick-off of a rubber plantation/carbon mitigation scheme dreamed up by a cowboy from the Khasi tribe. (More)

Vietnamese Journalists Expose Illegal Wildlife Trading in Southeast Asia

In May of 2007, a group of journalists affiliated with Internews' Earth Journalism Network partner, the Vietnam Forum of Environmental Journalists, approached EJN with a proposal to support their research into the alleged smuggling of long-tailed macaques between Cambodia and Vietnam using what appeared to be false Lao permits as cover. These stories – first published in several Vietnamese newspapers in October, 2007 – are the first results of the investigative EJN fellowships, and more stories are to come. (More)

From China to South Africa, Reporters Investigate Local Impacts of Climate Change

As a result of support and mentoring in covering climate change issues, reporters from the Philippines, the Caribbean, China, Uganda and South Africa have produced five in-depth new stories about issues affecting their local environment. The reporters wrote these articles as a result of fellowships awarded by the Climate Change Media Partnership, a collaboration of Panos, Internews and the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) that supports journalists to investigate climate change issues. (More)