The European Journalism Centre has launched an International Summer School in Environmental Journalism and Communication (ISSEJC), which will take place from July 21 to 30, 2014. This is in collaboration with the School of Journalism and Mass Communications of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece; the School of Communications, Dublin City University, Ireland; and the Regional Press Institute, in Greece.
The intensive training programme at graduate level in Chania, Island of Crete, in Greece aims to advance the public awareness and understanding of environmental issues and policies by enhancing the quality, range, depth and validity of communication and journalistic coverage. The programme brings together a wide range of stakeholders, including scholars, students, professionals, policy-makers and environmental scientists. It seeks to improve the knowledge, abilities and skills of both professional and emerging journalists. Students attending the programme will be trained to report on environmental issues based on the methodical understanding of the connections between media, economy, culture and environment, as well as between local, peripheral and global contexts. Special emphasis will be given to the media’s role in shaping social values and attitudes in relation to the environment, as well as to its critical contribution in advancing civic awareness and engagement with the issue of sustainable development.
According to the organizers, the International Summer School on Environmental Journalism and Communication provides a unique opportunity for training in small, friendly groups, while at the same time enjoying the sights and culture of Crete in summer. The organizers explained that the participants will produce journalistic reports on what they observe and experience. They said, “Participants will engage in group discussions, question and answer sessions, seminars and workshops, and will be given the opportunity to network with researchers, professionals and practitioners in the field”. The ISSEJC’s actions and derivatives will be publicized in an electronic volume that will include all of the papers and applied exercises produced and presented by the participants.Upon completion of the ISSEJC, the participants will receive a Certificate of Attendance and Participation.
For more information, contact: Dr Antonis Skamnakis, Assistant Professor, SJM AUTh (askamnak@jour.auth.gr) and Dr Clio Kenterelidou, Tenured Senior Teaching Fellow and Instructor, SJMC – AUTh (ckent@jour.auth.gr).
