Zimbabwean media benefits from Climate Change Training
UNESCO Office in Harare collaborates with British Council Zimbabwe in media training for Climate Change adaptation and mitigation.
Twenty-five media professionals from electronic and print media outlets across Zimbabwe benefited from a Climate Change Training Workshop organized through a joint initiative between the UNESCO Office in Harare and British Council- Zimbabwe from 15 – 18 June, 2009 at the Kadoma Hotel and Conference Centre.
Drawn from five radio stations, the country’s one and only television station, nine newspapers and the country’s only news agency, media professionals who attended the workshop included editors, bureau chiefs, reporters, producers and presenters - each with a distinct and strategic role to convey Climate Change messages to the public .
The Climate Change Training for Media Professionals sought to:
- Raise the awareness level of media professionals in Climate Change, causes, effects/impact and issues surrounding it with the goal of sensitizing them on the need to report extensively and intensively on the same;
- Equip the media professionals with information, knowledge and skills to understand the science and facts around Climate Change with a view to demystifying the same for their audience;
- Provide the media professionals with an opportunity to conceptualise and practise reporting on Climate Change from the perspective of various scenarios and angles.
Training focus was on the production of news, stories, pictures, audio/video programmes for newspapers/magazines, TV, Radio and the Internet. Training content was adapted from the UNESCO Manual entitled “Media as Partners in Education for Sustainable Development: A Training And Resource Kit”. The training workshop resulted in the formation of a network of Climate Change journalists, the compilation of a roster of experts and resources, the production of articles as well as the generation of TV and Radio programme ideas and concepts on Climate Change.
The workshop was part of the “Our Climate, Our Future - A British Council- UNESCO Initiative” - a three year project which started in February 2009 and will continue till 2011. The Initiative seeks to raise awareness on the effects of Climate Change in Zimbabwe. The Initiative supports youth, professionals, networks and relationships leading to adaptation and mitigation policies.
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