The winner of the 2023 Nina Mason Pulliam Award is "The Amazon, Undone" by Terrence McCoy, Júlia Ledur and Cecília do Lago, with photos by Raphael Alves and Rafael Vilela, for The Washington Post. Honorable mention goes to a team of students at Arizona State University's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication for "Gaslit."
The devastation caused by the Amazonian palm oil industry was at the heart of an investigation by Mongabay reporter Karla Mendes. But first she had to face hostile sources, intransigent regulators and a robbery attempt. Ultimately, the project not only won a reporting prize from the Society of Environmental Journalists but brought global awareness and government action. Her experience, in Inside Story Q&A.
"A withering drought has turned the Amazonian capital of Manaus into a climate dystopia with the second worst air quality in the world and rivers at the lowest levels in 121 years."
"The Negro River, the Amazon’s second largest tributary, on Monday reached its lowest level since official measurements began near Manaus 121 years ago. The record confirms that this part of the world´s largest rainforest is suffering its worst drought, just a little over two years after its most significant flooding."
"Crop failures are one reason an unprecedented number of migrants are heading to the U.S. border."
"Thick smoke has enveloped extensive areas of the Brazilian Amazon on Thursday as the region grapples with a surge in wildfires and a historic drought."
"Communities dependent on the Amazon rainforest’s waterways are stranded without supply of fuel, food or filtered water. Dozens of river dolphins perished and washed up on shore. And thousands of lifeless fish float on the water’s surface."
"A few days ago, hundreds of Xokleng Indigenous people gathered around a screen in Ibirama-La Klãnõ territory in southern Brazil to watch the Supreme Court vote on Indigenous land rights."
"Colombia was the deadliest country for environmentalists in 2022, with at least 60 environmental and land rights defenders killed there, British advocacy group Global Witness said in a report on Tuesday."
Meet SEJ member Emilio Godoy! Emilio has been a journalist since 1996. Based in Mexico, since 2007 Emilio has focused his work on the socio-economic and environmental effects of the climate crisis, the need to move towards a low-carbon economy, and sustainable development modalities in Mexico and Latin America.
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