EJN Virtual Media Workshop on the 30×30 Target and Marine Protected Areas 2025: (Deadline 16 January, 2025)

Applications are open for the EJN Virtual Media Workshop on the 30×30 Target and Marine Protected Areas 2025. As part of EJN’s Ocean Media Initiative, they are pleased to announce two virtual media workshops for journalists in coastal countries globally seeking to deepen their knowledge of the 30×30 target, to improve their reporting on solutions being implemented to reach the target and equip their audiences with the information they need to hold governments accountable to their commitments.

The workshop will cover topics such as:

• How MPAs are designated using marine spatial planning.
• The stages of establishing an MPA and the different levels of protection.
• Participatory approaches in implementing and monitoring MPAs.
• Cultural landscape approaches and the role of Indigenous peoples and local communities in marine conservation.
• MPAs and the High Seas Treaty.
• Debates on the effectiveness of protected areas for conservation.
• Technologies such as satellites, remote sensing, eDNA and artificial intelligence for the effective management of MPAs.
• National and international policy negotiations and instruments to achieve the 30 x 30 target.
• Best practices in accountability, data and solutions journalism to enhance reporting on this issue.
• Approaches to improve audience engagement with marine conservation issues.

The sessions will be structured as part-presentation and part-discussion. Journalists will learn from researchers, policymakers, civil society organizations and local communities working on marine conservation and the 30×30 target. The final agenda of the workshop will be shared with selected participants in February 2025.

Benefits

• To ensure these workshops are accessible, EJN will offer a limited number of communications stipends to those with an unstable internet connection in remote areas.
• Participants who attend all sessions will receive a certificate of completion from EJN.
• Participants who attend all three days of the workshop will also be eligible to apply for a story grant to produce journalistic work following the workshop, which will be awarded to 16 journalists.

Eligibility

• Applicants can be from coastal countries anywhere in the world. They will not accept applications from countries with a freshwater coast; only coastal countries with a marine border will be considered.
• For the purposes of this training opportunity, they will only be accepting applications in English. Unfortunately, they do not have the capacity to consider applications in other languages at this time. Applicants must have a working understanding of English to participate in and fully benefit from the workshop.
• Applications are open to journalists working in any medium (online, print, television, radio) and other media practitioners with experience covering ocean issues.
• They welcome applications from freelance reporters and staff from all types of media organizations – community-based, local national and international. They especially encourage women, rural, Indigenous and early-career journalists to apply.
• Applicants are required to be transparent about the use of generative AI tools, if any, to revise their proposals. EJN reserves the right to disqualify applicants from consideration if they have been found to have engaged in unethical or improper professional conduct, including, but not limited to, submitting AI-generated content as their own.

Application

Application deadline is January 16, 2025, 11:59 AM (Pacific/Niue).

Click here to apply

For more information, visit EJN Virtual Media Workshop.