As part of the project “Reinforcing the role of media in addressing the climate emergency”, Mediacenter Sarajevo is organizing two-day trainings in Banja Luka and Sarajevo for journalists and editors on the topic of climate change reporting.
Journalists and editors will have the opportunity to familiarize themselves with basic terms about climate change, scientific facts about the current state of the climate crisis, climate crisis response policies at the global and at the level of Bosnia and Herzegovina, communication strategies and the fight against misinformation that is linked for climate change – everything that is necessary for better reporting on this topic. The training courses are open to all journalists, whether they are employed or freelance journalists. These are two identical training sessions, of which first will be held in Banja Luka on October 11 and 12, 2023, and the second in Sarajevo on October 19 and 20, 2023.
Trainers
Jelena Kalinić, graduate biologist, master of comparative literature, scientific journalist, scientific communicator, and fact-checker. She is the founder and author of the portal Vakcine.ba and Nauka govori. In the selection for European Science journalist of the year for 2022, she won second place.
During the first day of the training, she will lead four thematic blocks: What is climate change, Lessons learned about climate, How to report on climate change and Response to climate change: What policies are being implemented at the global and European Union level.
She will present to the participants the basic terms and the current state of climate change, their impact on the environment, economy and society also speak about the importance of media reporting in raising awareness and educating the public about this critical issue, the basics of the climate science, the ways in which relevant data is collected, analyzed and presented, and about importance of scientific research in informing regarding climate policy and media reporting. Also, she will talk about the key principles of responsible journalism, with overviews of common pitfalls and biases that should be avoided when reporting. In an overview of political efforts to respond to the climate crisis, including global agreements and domestic policies, the topic will be the role of the media in shaping public opinion and influencing political decisions.
On the second day, Samir Lemeš, associate professor of the University of Zenica and president of the Eco Forum Zenica Board, will speak in the thematic blocks Local perspective: Responses to climate change from Bosnia and Herzegovina and Communication strategies: Advocacy of correct policies against climate change. Marija Ćosić, journalist of the fact-checking platform Raskinkavanje.ba, will present the biggest disinformation about climate change – how to recognize it and which sources can be used for that purpose, as well as familiarize participants with procedures and tools for verifying disputed information before publishing content.
You can register for one of the training courses by filling out the FORM by October 6, 2023 for Banjaluka, i.e. until October 13, 2023. for Sarajevo. A detailed agenda is available HERE.
Journalists who will participate in one of the trainings in the upcoming period will have the opportunity to apply for funding to produce stories on the topic of the climate crisis with mentoring help from the organizers.
Project “Reinforcing the role of media in addressing the climate emergency” was supported by the Regional grant of the “SMART Balkans – Civil Society for Shared Society in the Western Balkans” regional project implemented by Centar za promociju civilnog društva (CPCD), Center for Research and Policy Making (CRPM) and Institute for Democracy and Mediation (IDM) and financially supported by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (NMFA).
