Diverse Perspectives

SEJ is committed to supporting diversity in environmental journalism. Here you'll find posted opportunities, news, views, and more.

Read the mission statement and objectives of SEJ's Diversity Task Force (DTF).
Contact DTF co-chair Ayana Meade.
Know of a good resource for this page? Email your suggestion to SEJ's web content manager Cindy MacDonald.

Events & Opportunities

Upcoming:

RTNDF Fellowships
This Radio Television Digital News Foundation program offers cash awards to beginning radio and television journalists who are employed in electronic journalism and have 10 years or less experience in the field. Both the Michelle Clark Fellowship and N.S. Bienstock Fellowship are given to promising minority applicants. Minority fellowship winners also receive an expense-paid trip to the RTNDA International Conference. Deadline: May 31, 2013.

Native American Journalists Association Annual Convention
Phoenix, AZ, July 18-21, 2013

National Association of Black Journalists Annual Convention and Career Fair
Orlando, FL, July 31-August 4, 2013

Asian American Journalists Association Annual Convention
New York, NY, August 21-24, 2013

National Association of Hispanic Journalists Annual Convention
Anaheim, CA, August 24-26, 2013

Past and/or Ongoing:

NABJ's Salute to Excellence National Media Awards
The National Association of Black Journalists annually awards prizes for journalism that best covers the black experience or addresses issues affecting the worldwide black community. Includes a specialty environment/health/medical sub-category. Deadline was February 6, 2013 (extended from January 25th).

McCormick Foundation's New Media Women Entrepreneurs Program Offers Funding for Women-Led Projects
Up to $14,000 in funding will be provided to eight women-led new media start-up projects (four in 2012 and four in 2013) that offer interactive opportunities to engage, inspire, and improve news and information in a community. 2013 deadline was January 23rd. Background information. Proposal guidelines.

Jefferson Fellowships
The Fellowships comprise one week of dialogue with professional colleagues and experts at the East-West Center in Hawaii, followed by a two-week study tour to cities in Asia or the U.S. Open to mid- and senior-level print, broadcast, and online journalists from the U.S. and Asia Pacific. Theme of the Spring 2013 Program is "New Leadership in the Asia Pacific: Resolving Old Problems, Managing New Realities." Deadline was February 28, 2013.

AAAS Minority Science Writers Internship
This paid summer internship is for students who are interested in journalism as a career and who want to learn about science writing. It takes place at the Washington, DC headquarters of the American Association for the Advancement of Science's Science magazine, the largest interdisciplinary journal in the world, under the guidance of award-winning reporters and editors. Includes travel to D.C.; living accommodations and expenses are the responsibility of the intern. Deadline was March 1, 2013.

Scotiabank/CJFE Journalism Fellowship
This Sep-Apr fellowship is for mid-career Latin American journalists, held at Massey College, the Graduate Residential College in the University of Toronto, Canada. Enroll in any graduate or undergraduate courses and use the full facilities of the University. There are no educational prerequisites for a fellowship; nor does the fellow receive credits or degrees for work done during the year. Accommodation is provided by Massey College. The objective of the fellowship is to enhance inter-American understanding and promote dialogue through an exploration of current issues in journalism and free expression in the Americas in an academic setting. Deadline was March 1, 2013.

Fund for Investigative Journalism
Offers grants averaging $5,000 three or four times each year for proposals that break new ground and expose wrongdoing relating to government accountability, local or regional investigations, climate change. Reporting for ethnic media is also strongly encouraged. Deadline was March 11, 2013.

NAJA Media Awards
The Native American Journalists Association annually celebrates the quality and professional work done by Native journalists. Deadline was March 15, 2013.

AAJA National Journalism Awards
The Asian American Journalists Association is now accepting applications for the 2012 National Journalism Awards. Established in 1989, the awards recognize and encourage excellence among journalists and outstanding coverage of Asian American and Pacific Islander issues. Deadline was March 22, 2013.

6th Annual State of Environmental Justice in America Conference
Arlington, VA, April 3-5, 2012

3rd East-West Center International Media Conference
Seoul, South Korea, June 22-24, 2012

First Stewards Symposium
A first-of-its-kind national event, took place in Washington, DC, July 17-20, 2012, examining the impact of climate change on indigenous coastal cultures.

UNITY: Journalists of Color Inc. 2012 Convention
A coalition of the four alliances — the Asian American Journalists Association, the National Association of Hispanic Journalists, the Native American Journalists Association, and the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association — meets every four years. Last time was in Las Vegas, August 1-4, 2012.

Climate Change Adaptation Forum Focusing on Food Security and Traditional Plant Use
An interactive forum presented by the Centre for Indigenous Environmental Resources in the Village of Kanatakon (St. Regis) in Akwesasne (near Ontario, Quebec, New York borders), September 18-20, 2012.

News, Views, Publications and More

"8 Dynamic Black Women Editors in New Media"
"Chosen from a mix of media outlets, these women reveal the importance of diversity in such a powerful industry." EBONY, March 28, 2013, by Patrice Peck.

"Within Mainstream Environmentalist Groups, Diversity Is Lacking"
"Fred Tutman was a lonely man when he picked up the telephone that day. He was the tough-talking protector of Maryland’s Patuxent River, a courtroom brawler who took on anyone who contaminated water, but he couldn’t shake a nagging hurt that he was nearly invisible within his own profession." Washington Post, March 24, 2013, by Darryl Fears.

International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED)
IIED, a policy research organization based in the UK, has published four new briefing papers: "Reshaping contracts for quality natural resource investments" (Mar 2013), "Urban poverty, food security and climate change" (Mar 2013), "Carbon rights legislation: not yet ready for private sector REDD+" (Feb 2013), and "Ringing the changes with a new approach to forest investment" (Jan 2013).

"A Helping Hand: The Ford Foundation Reaches out to Broaden Minority Coverage"
"It's a two-year deal, $1.04 million to be exact, and renewable, with no strings attached beyond the foundation's larger goal of using journalism to address inequality and injustice." By the Editors, Columbia Journalism Review, July/August 2012.

"Native Americans and a Changing Climate"
"They're among North America’s most vulnerable population groups, and their 95 million acres of tribal lands present Native Americans with a complex array of challenges and opportunities as they confront a warming climate." By Julie Halpert, The Yale Forum on Climate Change & The Media, June 21, 2012.

Killings of Mexican Journalists Prompt Mexican Environmental Journalists Network Demands for Protection
In light of the growing list of journalists in Mexico who have disappeared or been killed, the Mexican Environmental Journalists Network (REMPA) would like to thank its sister professional association, the Society of Environmental Journalists, for publishing our consensus on demands for protection of freedom of the press. We are grateful for your solidarity. // Ante el aumento de asesinatos y desaparicion de periodistas en México, la Red Mexicana de Periodistas Ambientales agradece a la hermanada asociación profesional, Sociedad de Periodistas Ambientales, su publicación de las exigencias que hemos consensado para lograr las garantia de la libertad de expresión. Gracias por su solidaridad. June 2012. En Español.

"Pollution, Poverty, People of Color," a series of stories examining environmental justice issues by Environmental Health News, June 2012.

"An Eye on Environmental Justice: EHN Series Focuses on an Under-covered Angle on Toxics," The Observatory, Columbia Journalism Review, June 7, 2012, by Curtis Brainard.