Green Echoes #46: ERC's 2023 Grant Programme and more
Welcome to the latest edition of Green Echoes, the monthly newsletter from the Environmental Reporting Collective. We aim to keep you informed about the latest investigative stories, data sources, reporting and training opportunities, and notable projects related to environmental issues in Asia and beyond. Thank you for joining us on this enlightening and impactful journey.
Environmental reporting to take note of
The ISSB releases groundbreaking sustainability reporting standards, including requirements for disclosing sustainability-related financial information and climate-related disclosures.
What ESG investors must demand for credible sustainability reporting: As ESG assets under management have surpassed $35 trillion worldwide, some companies use greenwashing tactics to attract investment.
Gladstone Taylor continues his compelling series on Ocean Solutions, supported by the Pulitzer Centre, focusing on Jamaica's mangroves. Explore the devastating deforestation and the remarkable efforts of the Alligator Head Foundation to restore, nurture, and raise awareness about their invaluable importance.
Jay Richardson writes how Nordic Mining’s planned Engebø project waste, set to be deposited in the ecologically protected Førdefjord in Western Norway, could smother a deep water habitat comparable in size to some of the world’s major metropolitan areas.
Discover Enkuye Yizengaw's intriguing account of flippant physicians dealing with a grave illness affecting Lake Tana.
ERC’s Collaborative Reporting Grants
The ERC is now again accepting applications for its Collaborative Reporting Grants to support journalists working together on tracing environmental crimes across borders.
In 2022, ERC supported nine teams of reporters working from more than a dozen countries to uncover environmental issues across the globe. In the latest round, ERC seeks to support similar stories as well as reports specific to sand mining as a follow-up to Beneath the Sands.
The grants are aimed at promoting collaborations to allow journalists from different countries to fill in gaps in each others’ reporting. Applications must include at least two journalists or news outlets from different countries or regions. Freelance journalists are welcome to apply.
If you’re interested and ready to apply, please prepare the following:
A one-page story proposal with details of your idea and reporting plan. The proposal must emphasize what will be new or revelatory about your story and how each reporter will contribute to the story.
A budget that lays out the anticipated expenses for the project. This may include fees for records requests, travel and lodging, and a stipend for freelance reporters. Please download and use ERC’s budget template here.
Resumes for each journalist with links to previously published reports and at least two professional references.
For media outlets, data about your reach, audience, and links to previous investigations. Note: News outlets are strongly encouraged to sign up as a partner newsroom with ERC before or when applying, but it's not required and will not jeopardize their application.
For staff writers, a letter of support from an editor in your newsroom.
For freelance journalists, a letter of interest from a news outlet willing or committed to publish your story.
Check out some of the former grant-funded stories for inspiration:
Kurdistan Regional Government likely to miss flaring phase-out deadline, satellite data suggests
How Unregulated Tourism Means for the Future of the Himalayas
Kashmir: How Glacier Melt Is Triggering a Change in Land Use Patterns
The deadline for applications for Collaborative Reporting Grants is July 31, 2023. You may contact Karol Ilagan at contact@investigative.earth for additional questions.
Or join the ERC Slack community to connect with the ERC team and also meet and engage with fellow journalists + more grants and other opportunities.
Opportunities
BBC is looking for a designer for their Visual Journalism team.
The Climate Change Media Partnership (CCMP), led by Internews’ Earth Journalism Network (EJN) and the Stanley Center for Peace and Security, has announced the CCMP COP28 Reporting Fellowship Program for journalists interested in covering the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP28).
The Centre for Research in the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences (CRASSH) at the University of Cambridge is starting a new programme of funded Visiting Fellowships for scholars from the Global South.
Data, Resources and Training
Exploring the impact of climate change on women, in this webinar, speakers shared first-hand experiences and research on the effects of climate change on women, providing examples of the challenges women face in vulnerable countries and the solutions under development to address them.
2023 Global Investigative Journalism Conference. 19-22 September 2023, Gothenburg, Sweden. Register here.
IDEA Talk, which begins a new EJN webinar series, explores the impact of climate change on women and how they are leading the charge for climate action and adaptation.
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