31st World Press Freedom Day Conference
The 3rd African Media Convention: Journalism in the face of the Environmental Crisis in Africa
31st World Press Freedom Day Conference
Concept note
The African Media Stakeholders have in the last two years marked the World Press Freedom Day through annual media conventions, which took place in Arusha in 2021 and in Lusaka in 2022. Ghana takes pride in hosting the African Media Convention from May 13-16 2024[GL1] , reminiscing the World PressFreedom Day Global conference held in the Accra in May 2018.
Taking forward the global conference discussions on Journalism in the face of the Environmental Crisis which will be held in Santiago, Chile from May 2-4, 2024, the African media stakeholders are cognizant of the fact that while the environmental crisis is an important issues affecting the entire world, the greatest challenge that connects our world is Climate Change, with Africa bearing the blunt of it, yet the media is not well equipped to communicate these concerns adequately.
Yet, Africa, which is comprised of 55 Member States with a population of over 1 billion people is the eleventh largest economy in the world with a nominal GDP of about US$2,3 trillion. Agenda 2063 calls for united efforts, self-reliance, Africa financing its own climate smart, all-inclusive, people-driven development and Africa speaking with one voice in global fora.
To address the environmental crisis in Africa, The African Union has developed the AU Climate Change and Resilient Development Strategy and Action Plan to guide, coordinate and support the Continent’s response to Climate Change for the period 2022-2032. The Commission also launched a new five-year continental Green Recovery Action Plan 2021-2027
The Assessment Report (AR6) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), confirmed that Africa is warming faster than the rest of the world and if unabated, climate change will continue to have adverse impacts on African economies and societies, as well as hamper growth and wellbeing.
Furthermore, according to the Nairobi declaration following the Africa climate change summit, many African countries face disproportionate burdens and risks arising from climate change-related, unpredictable weather events and patterns, including prolonged droughts, devastating floods, wild/forest fires, which cause massive humanitarian crisis with detrimental impacts on economies, health, education, peace and security, among other risks.
It is for this reason and many other related concerns, that the Africa Climate Summit requested the African Union Commission to develop an implementation framework and roadmap for the Nairobi Declaration and to make Climate Change an AU theme for the Year 2025 or 2026.
The African media stakeholders are therefore concerned that as environmental concerns grow in the African continent, the need for a well-informed public becomes more critical- yet the media’s focus on these challenges are not adequate.
As the world marks the press freedom day, a major challenge in Africa is how to convey complex environmental concepts and impart a sense of the urgency of these challenges in a way that engages the public, while upholding the right to freedom of expression, access to information and the safety of journalists.
Climate change, for instance, is a fascinating and important story—but one that has not been well told by traditional media in Africa. While today’s communities must understand the interconnections between resource conservation, energy use, climate, and food to make the transition to an efficient, resilient, and sustainable society, this has not been communicated as it should. It requires a well capacitated media, capable of informing the public, providing access to a wide range of articles of trustworthy information relating to local and global environmental issues. This in turn require knowledgeable and skillful online and offline African media, telling the story of Africa with data and information generated by the continent.
Therefore, the 3rd African Media Convention marking the 31st WPFD celebrations is a good opportunity to rally the media in Africa to play its role in communicating on the environmental crisis while guarding freedom of Expression, press freedom, access to information and the safety of journalists. The third convention will align to the global theme with focus on the following thematic areas.
FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT, AND ENVIRONMENTAL CRISES
Sustainable development is in jeopardy. The triple planetary crisis—climate change, biodiversity loss, and air pollution—along with their connections to public health issues, the need to strengthen democracy, to tackle dis-/misinformation on digital platforms, among other issues have become major challenges for humanity.
The information ecosystem has a key role to play in responding to this existential crisis. The
access to reliable information and the importance of strengthening independent environmental and scientific journalism is more critical than ever. It is important to be very clear: independent journalists as well as scientists are crucial actors in helping our societies to separate facts from lies and manipulation in order to take informed decisions, including about environmental policies. Investigative journalists are also shedding light on environmental crimes, exposing corruption and powerful interests, and sometimes paying the ultimate price for doing their job.
That is why, in 2024, World Press Freedom Day will be dedicated to the importance of journalism and freedom of expression in the context of the current global environmental crisis. We aim to highlight the significant role that the press, journalism, access and disseminationof information play to ensure and secure a sustainable future that respects the rights of individualsand their diversity of voices, as well as gender equality.
CURRENT CHALLENGES
Awareness of all aspects of the global environmental crisis and its consequences is essential
to build democratic societies. Journalistic work is indispensable for this purpose, along with
the recognition of various primary sources of information required for comprehensive, accurate, and historically grounded reporting. Journalists encounter significant challenges in
seeking and disseminating information on contemporary issues, such as supply-chains problems, climate migration, extractive industries, illegal mining, pollution, poaching, animal trafficking, deforestation, or climate change. Ensuring the visibility of these issues is crucial for promoting peace and democratic values worldwide. The various threats (physical, economic, political, psychological, digital, and legal) to which journalists are subject reflect a complex context in which there is a constant struggle for information control.
1. Dis-/misinformation on the Climate Crisis
At the 2021 celebration of World Press Freedom Day, UNESCO highlighted the impact of
disinformation and misinformation on societies while promoting the idea of information
as a “public good.” In the context of the world’s triple planetary crisis, dis-/misinformation
campaigns challenge knowledge and scientific research methods. Attacks on the validity of
science pose a serious threat to pluralistic and informed public debate. Indeed, misleading
and false information about climate change can, in some cases, foster doubt and incredulity
about environmental issues, their impact and urgency, and undermine international efforts
to address them.
Dis-/misinformation about environmental issues can lead to a lack of public and political
support for climate action, effective policies, and the protection of vulnerable communities
affected by climate change, as well as of women and girls, as climate change tends to exacerbate existing inequalities.
In this context, to achieve sustainable development, it is necessary for journalists and scientists to report accurately, timely, and comprehensively on environmental issues and their consequences, as well as on possible solutions. This requires a comprehensive strategy that includes:
- Preventing and protecting against crimes committed against journalists.
- Ensuring the rights to freedom of expression, freedom of scientific research, and
- access to key sources of information, in addition to combating dis-/misinformation through journalism.
- Promoting the plurality, diversity, and viability of media, especially regional, local,
- indigenous, and/or community-based media.
- Ensuring that the governance of digital platforms foster the transparency of technology companies, their accountability, due diligence, user empowerment, and content moderation and curation based on international human rights’ standards, as indicated in UNESCO’s Guidelines for the Governance of Digital Platforms.
- Promoting Media and Information Literacy programs to empower users with skills to engage and think critically in the digital environment.
The International Decade of Sciences for Sustainable Development (2024-2033), proclaimed
by the United Nations General Assembly, provides an ideal framework to highlight freedom
of expression, particularly of environmental and scientific journalists, as well as of scientists
who are key actors in knowledge production. These actors are all indispensable in the fight
against dis-/misinformation and the promotion of a sustainable future.
2. Environmental journalism: fighting threats of violence and promoting diversity
Journalists and communicators covering environmental issues face many threats and forms
of violence due to the sensitive nature of their reporting. These range from physical violence,
surveillance, pressure, or intimidation by national and transnational companies that could
be affected by their activities, to the imposition of official controls and the pernicious use of the State apparatus (administrative and judicial), as well as filters and content moderation to restrict access to information. All share the same objective: to prevent the public’s access to critical information and limit people’s ability to make informed decisions for their communities and well-being.
The latest UNESCO Director-General’s Report on the Safety of Journalists and the Danger of
Impunity, (2022), highlighted a steady increase in the percentage of journalists killed outside
of armed conflict zones in recent years, with many of them working on environmental issues.
Indigenous, local, and independent journalists and communicators are particularly affected
by this type of violence as they operate on the front lines to gather information and often lack adequate protection to carry out their work safely.
In addition to these challenges are a lack of pluralism and diversity, conflicts of interest, economic capture, and challenges to the viability of the media. The various threats faced by
journalists and communicators are often intimidating and can lead to self-censorship, as journalists may prefer to remain silent rather than risk their jobs, or their own and their families’ safety.
Moreover, the risk posed by these various threats to press freedom is twofold. On the one
hand, they weaken the role of journalists as watchdogs of democracy and reduce their ability
to hold the powerful to account – both public and private actors. On the other hand, censorship can erode people’s trust in journalism and affect their right to access information,
creating a vacuum conducive to the proliferation of dis-/misinformation.
3. Journalism, Gender Equality and the Environment
Women and men journalists and communicators alike play a key role in covering environmental issues, but women journalists often face particular challenges and risks in carrying out their tasks. In addition to cases of sexual harassment, gender-based discrimination, online harassment, and threats with sexist and misogynistic connotations, they may also be subject to various forms of gender-based discrimination in association with their journalistic investigations.
On the other hand, in the digital environment, women are constant targets of gender-based
violence, being attacked for the simple fact of being online and being women. UNESCO’s research “The Chilling” found that women in prominent and visible positions, such as journalists, tend to attract more virulent abuse. In a survey of 901 journalists, nearly three-quarters (73%) said they had experienced online violence.
In addition to the risk related to their work, all women often face greater risks and disproportionate burdens due to the impacts of climate change, notably women in situations of poverty and due to existing roles, responsibilities, and cultural norms. Undoubtedly, the battle to install a gender perspective capable of confronting violence is urgent, advancing in the existence of media which promote professional journalism that discusses the eradication of all types of discrimination and biases. Beyond protection, it is essential to also involve and empower women as change leaders, in particular indigenous women, in building climate resilience.
THE OPPORTUNITIES: SAFEGUARDING JOURNALISM IS PROTECTING THE PLANET
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (1992) and the Paris Agreement (2015) are important instruments to call for a recognition of the importance of public access to information as a key element to empower citizens to engage in climate action and to highlight the fundamental role of journalists in presenting scientific findings, data, and expert opinions in an accessible way. I
In the same vein, the Aarhus Convention (1998) and the Escazú Agreement (2018) further strengthen the importance of access to information and public participation in environmental decision-making and access to justice.
The international community should make it a priority to protect journalists and communicators in general and environmental journalists in particular. As part of that task, it is important to train the media to report more effectively on climate and environmental issues to protect the planet and inform the public so that they have a better understanding of these issues.
Various international organizations, governments, NGOs, and advocacy groups are using public interest information to redouble their efforts for a more sustainable future in line with the Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The unprecedented level of awareness of environmental issues among younger generations,
including journalists, is a very positive indicator for the search for solutions to today’s environmental challenges.
Youth are paving the way for sustainable development and are demanding concrete and effective action on climate and biodiversity emergencies, the impacts of climate change and its effect on people’s lives. As highlighted in the 13th edition of the UNESCO Youth Forum that focused on the social impacts of climate change and the need to achieve an equitable climate transition, the lives of future generations hang in the balance as those most affected by climate change will be the young people of today.
In this context, media and information literacy programs are an opportunity to strengthen critical thinking around these issues, in particular among the youth. It is clear that continued inaction will lead to the aggravation of existing problematic phenomena such as climate-forced migration, displacement, democratic breakdowns, and water scarcity, which risks inducing and further exacerbating social tensions and conflict.
OBJECTIVES OF THE 3rd AFRICAN MEDIA CONVENTION
The 3rd African Media Conference marking the World Press Freedom Day 2024, is an important opportunity for the international community to collectively reflect on these multidimensional challenges, the fundamental role of journalism, and the transformative power that reliable information has to protect our planet, achieve sustainable development, and consolidate democracies.
It will serve as a platform to:
- Assess and discuss the situation of the right to press freedom globally, identifying areas where journalists face repression, violence, or censorship.
- Establish and strengthen ties between different actors, such as media organizations, NGOs, governments, and international bodies, to work together to promote and protect the right to press freedom.
- Reaffirm our commitments to freedom of expression and press freedom as human
- rights enshrined in various international instruments, recognizing their importance for the strengthening of democratic societies.
- Call for the importance of reliable and accurate information, especially that which denounces and investigates the environmental crisis and its effects.
- Raise awareness on the urgency to defend the media from attacks on their independence, freedom, and pluralism and recall the Windhoek+30 Declaration on information as a common good.
- Pay tribute to journalists who have lost their lives and those who fight for their freedom in the line of duty.
- Raise awareness about the violence faced by journalists and communication workers when promoting sustainable development and environmental protection, encouraging a gender-responsive perspective that promotes non-sexist journalistic discourse.
- Promote professional journalism that discusses the eradication of all types of discrimination and biases against women.
- Call for greater support for the media to strengthen their institutional capacities to report on climate change and environmental crises, paying special attention to the viability of the media.
- Accelerate people’s media and information literacy to foster critical and informed thinking skills as the main tool to combat the problem of dis-/misinformation and its effects on our democracies.
- Take advantage of the International Decade of Sciences for Sustainable Development to highlight the fundamental role of freedom of expression for science journalists, emphasizing the need to protect this freedom while actively combating disinformation in science.
- Promote stronger policies as well as national and international cooperation in support of memory institutions as custodians of primary sources of environmental information for journalistic practice.
