Transforming Societies: German-Eastern European Journalist Bursaries on Climate and Energy Issues

In Eastern Europe and the Baltic States, media presence and reporting of German media from these countries are capable of improvement. Most of the correspondents are based in larger cities, such as Prague or Warsaw, but not in the regions or smaller EU member states. Climate and energy issues from these countries have only become a topic of German reporting since the Russian war on Ukraine and the related energy policy issues. In this regard, there is a lot of untapped potential concerning high-quality, continuous reporting on climate and energy issues. However, promoting these topics in the media is challenging since there are no bilateral or international journalistic networks to provide journalists with research approaches and trustworthy sources.

Fellows of the German-Central Eastern European Bursary at a networking event in Prague, Photo: ©Julia Weibel

To address these issues, the project promotes cross-national journalism on climate and energy issues and, thus, raises awareness in politics and society. An international network between journalists, climate and energy experts helps to advance the media coverage of these issues and achieve long-term effects in politics and social initiatives. Journalists from Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Germany, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia receive a scholarship to work two months abroad in a media house and report as a correspondent about climate and energy issues for their host and home media. To offer support and qualification regarding contacts and content in the area of climate and energy issues, the programme cooperates with Clean Energy Wire. Subsequent to the programme, fellows stay in touch with the alumni network and build an expert network with the counterparts of their host countries. Based on the experiences of preceding projects, such as the Climate-Energy Fellowship for Journalists, the Central Eastern European Climate and Energy Policy Scholarship for Journalists as well as the Climate and Energy Fellowship for Journalists in Europe, the project contributes to broadening and deepening the coverage of climate transformation on a European level.