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A Global Challenge for Teenage Journalists: Getting to know who is really saving the planet

Any teenage journalist anywhere in the world can profile someone who is helping — really helping — to save the planet for our new global storytelling challenge. Deadline is 1 March 2023 for the profiles: original works in English as text, a podcast, a video or multimedia. Winners get a cash prize plus coaching and publication by News Decoder. The challenge is organized by Global Youth & News Media.

 

OVERVIEW & ASSIGNMENT

 

1. CLIMATE CHAMPION PROFILES STORYTELLING CHALLENGE: Who is saving the planet?

This journalism challenge is part of The Writing’s on the Wall project, a partnership of the global educational news service News Decoder (France), The Climate Academy based at the European School Brussels II (Belgium) and the Global Youth & News Media nonprofit (France). It is co-funded by the European Union as part of its Erasmus+ initiative and by The New Earth Foundation (USA).

2. WHO CAN ENTER

The challenge is open to teenagers (ages 13-19) anywhere in the world, working individually or as a team of two. A teacher or journalism coordinator will both register for the challenge and submit the entry. The first step once the teenage journalist has confirmed a profile subject is for a teacher or journalism coordinator to REGISTER HERE.

 

 

3. ASSIGNMENT

We invite teenage journalists worldwide to profile someone who has made an impact through one or more projects taking us closer to saving the planet. These are individuals in communities across the globe who are disrupting or “moving the needle,” making a difference in stopping climate change such as by launching or carrying out projects that make real progress toward removing carbon, lowering emissions,  passing climate change legislation and doing these and other kinds of actions on a local level that, if copied elsewhere, could have major impact.

It is part of the assignment to define and defend what the teenage journalist contends it means to “move the needle” and to show how the person profiled has accomplished this.

The profile should cover how the action might have global reach or how such projects on the local level can be replicated elsewhere and contribute to systemic change.

For all entries, participants must interview the climate champion, and these interviews must be recorded (minimally audio or, preferably, with video from which images can be captured). This is necessary for verification purposes. Participants are also encouraged to speak to an expert who can independently assess the climate champion’s impact. We provide a FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS section HERE:

 

 

4. JUDGING

The winners will be the entries that best explain in an engaging and coherent profile how the individual has made a clear impact in the fight against climate change.

5. REWARD

The winners get coaching from the top editor at News Decoder, the international educational news service, with the goal of publication. The top two winners will receive a cash prize of $500 each.

6. WHAT ALL PARTICIPANTS RECEIVE

All participants have access to The Writing’s on the Wall project resources: climate backgrounders and webinars, tips about interviewing and the storytelling process, and more. See below for details.

7. ENTRY

Entries must be original reporting (not published anywhere else), in English and in any one of the following formats with links to the content submitted by a teacher or journalism coordinator on behalf of the author(s):

 

• • • TEXT – A  narrative style or a Question & Answer format with a substantial introduction. No more than 1000 words total. Winners will need to provide two publishable photos of the subject.

  
  

  • • VIDEO – No more than 5 minutes with subtitling (in English).

  
  

  • • PODCAST – No more than 3 minutes with a transcript.

  
  

  • MULTIMEDIA – No more than 5 minutes to consume.

8. REGISTRATION & ENTRY SUBMISSION

Once the teenage journalist has chosen a profile subject, the teacher or journalism coordinator representing the author(s) must REGISTER HERE. The person who registered will then receive details about how to submit the entry.

IMPORTANT: No matter what the format, entries should be stored online with password-free links to the content itself. Also, links to recording(s) of the interview(s) with the profile subject need to be available for verification purposes.

9. TIMING

 

Deadline: 1 March 2023 

Winners announced: April 2023. 

Publishing will occur after winners have been fully coached.

10. RESOURCES & PARTNERS

The Writing’s on the Wall project partners have created background content that will be very useful to those entering this challenge.  That material comes from both the nonprofit news service News Decoder (France) and The Climate Academy based at the European School Brussels II (Belgium).

THE CLIMATE ACADEMY  is providing a “Rough Guide to the Climate Crisis” by Matthew Pye, philosophy teacher and founder of the Climate Academy. He examines the science and impact of the climate crisis through psychology, philosophy and sociology in a series of compact, entertaining and informative videos [about 10 minutes each] with accompanying chapters to elaborate on the video content. A teachers’ guide will also be available.

One key instalment (video and chapter) treats the CUTx index, which offers a powerful and easy reference point to assess any nation’s climate commitment. That instalment is a must-see to get a sense of the level of the challenge for the profile subject’s country.

NEWS DECODER

 

• • • has created how-to videos about how to tell a story, how to do an interview and, especially useful for this Challenge, how to create a compelling podcast. 

  
  

  • is offering a series of climate-focused webinars in which experts young and old from around the world will discuss and debate key issues such as the energy transition, food security and climate justice, guided by questions from young people.

In addition, this nonprofit wire service also offers top-notch coverage of the climate crisis.

11. ABOUT THE PROJECT

The Writing’s on the Wall project aims to help student journalists in their climate change reporting and to offer schools new tools to integrate climate science into their teaching. The project’s name was inspired by a mural created that student activists at ESBII in Brussels and by the fact that time is running out for a climate solution. All of the project’s resources are available free of charge to teachers and students around the world.

Global Youth & News Media is administering this challenge as part of its work to bring together youth and news media through a journalistic prism for the benefit of both and to help amplify the journalism of young people.

12. QUESTIONS

First check our Frequently Asked Questions page. If the answer isn’t there, give us a shout at info@youthandnewsmedia.net