SEJ posts information about the work of young journalists who are making an impact on their world, as well as items of interest about activities and events centered on young people implementing change.

• Young people will develop their written, speaking, communication and leadership skills, while learning about diversity, through the Asian American Journalists Association's J Camp in New Orleans, June 19-24, 2012. The program is not limited to Asian American students; it's open to all high school students. Deadline: March 16, 2012.
• To encourage students to sharpen their abilities to communicate the outdoor experience, the Outdoor Writers Association of America offers the annual Norm Strung Youth Writing Contest. The contest features separate categories for poetry and prose, with cash awards in each, for two different divisions, senior (grades 9-12) and junior (grades 6-8). The work must have been published in a newsletter, newspaper, magazine, literary collection, etc. during the previous calendar year. The publication can be school or club related, or commercial. Deadline: March 16, 2012.
• Kids These Days... Looking Out for Their Own Future, a panel during SEJ's 21st Annual Conference in Miami, October 2011, featured young environmental activists who discussed the initiatives they started at their schools and in their communities.

High School Journalism Initiative

The American Society of News Editors, with technical support for teachers from the Reynolds High School Journalism Institute, provides free online hosting and a content management system for youth-generated news. Read more >>>

Richard Zajac

SEJ member Richard Zajac, an 18-year-old high school senior from Missouri, was already considering filmmaking as a career before the Fukushima disaster in early 2011. Determined to document, help out and inspire, he travelled to Japan, connected with the non-profit Safecast, which was measuring radiation levels. The following month, he interviewed ocean expert Jean-Michel Cousteau in California on the effects on marine life of radiation in the waters. Later in October, he attended the Society of Environmental Journalists' annual conference in Miami. There he previewed his documentary film "New Hibakusha." Read more >>>