In honor of this year’s Earth Day theme, “Protect Our Species,” EJN is launching our pangolin project, a special reporting initiative that looks at the growing illegal trade of this endangered mammal. Check out our two latest stories highlighted below and follow us on Facebook and Twitter to learn more about these efforts and to read investigations aimed at addressing wildlife crime throughout the world.
In other news, EJN was recently the focus of a story on Inside Philanthropy, a website dedicated to philanthropic work. The in-depth piece looks at EJN’s foundations, the important role facts and data play in environmental reporting, the strength of EJN’s network and why the type of work it does continues to need support. In this piece published by the Global Investigative Journalism Network, EJN Executive Director James Fahn explores the many investigative paths journalists can take to cover what some in the media industry are calling the “story of the century.” Climate change, Fahn writes, “is not just an environmental issue but also a social and economic one, making it fertile ground in which investigative journalism can flourish.”
EJN Kicks Off Pangolin Series on Earth Day
Found in parts of Asia and Africa, the pangolin is considered by conservation organizations as the most heavily trafficked mammal in the world. The first story in our pangolin series by Wang Yan explores how rising demand for its meat and scales, which are used in traditional Chinese medicine, is pushing the pangolin to the brink of extinction. Efforts are underway by conservationists and wildlife authorities in China to rescue and breed this shy creature, Yan writes, but poaching and the illegal trade of its parts persists. Meanwhile, in the Philippines, Imelda Abano brings us a story on how researchers and conservationists are working to involve indigenous groups and local communities as wildlife wardens in an effort to save the Palawan pangolin from extinction. Read more>>
EJN Grantee Receives Top Young Environmental Reporter Award
Philippines-based journalist Fatima Arkin, the recipient of a 2016 grant from EJN, was recognized as the best young environmental journalist of the year at the Asian Environmental Journalism Awards (AEJA) held last month in Singapore. “EJN’s support helped me gain new perspective as an environmental reporter by giving me the resources to report on the ground in Myanmar,” she said. Read more>>
EJN Training of Trainers Explores Climate and Data Journalism, Eco-Tourism and Safety Challenges
EJN held its annual Training of Trainers (ToT) at the end of March in Palawan, the Philippines, bringing together more than 30 participants, including staff, media grantees and partners. This is the seventh time in its 15 years that EJN has held this type gathering as a way to bring together leaders and managers of the network, learn about techniques and opportunities to improve environmental media, and share plans and ideas for future work. Read more>>
Media Workshop in Bangladesh Highlights Struggles Faced by Fishing Boat Communities
In early March, the EJN’s Bay of Bengal Project partnered with the rights-based research and advocacy organization VOICE to host a media workshop in Bhola, Bangladesh, focused on climate change and its impact on marginalized communities. Twelve reporters from around the region attended the workshop where they heard from experts on environmental reporting, conservation, sociology and creative art. They also met with representatives of communities feeling firsthand the effects of rising seas, changing weather patterns and river erosion. Read more>>
(Banner Photo: Participants at EJN’s Training of Trainers in the Philippines unwind with some beach frisbee after a long day. Credit: Anh Le Van)