J O I N N O W !

The GAIA and BFFP mediafellowship offers mediaprofessionals, media organizations,and academic institutions theopportunity to learn aboutenvironmental issues affecting theAsia Pacific region.12-15 Fellows from different mediaoutlets are provided the opportunityto strengthen their understandingof core issues such as Zero Waste,plastic pollution, and wasteincineration aka waste-to-energy.Instructors and facilitators areexperts in the fields and provideFellows the data that help identifythe false solutions offered by bigcompanies and industries. By theend of the Fellowship, Fellowswould have gained the experience inframing and reporting the region’senvironmental concerns.

First launched in 2019 and held in Dumaguete City, Philippines and Penang,Malaysia. Fellows came from countries such as Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, thePhilippines, and Vietnam. The selected Fellows previously covered environmentand human rights issues and presented the tenacity and proficiency in presentingthe interlocking issues.

GAIA-BFFP ASIA PACIFIC

MEDIA FELLOWSHIP

A B O U T T H E F E L L O W S H I P

B A C K G R O U N D

T H E P R O G R A M

Encourage media professionals,media organizations, andacademic institutions to exploreand communicate environmentalissues in creative and innovativewaysRecognize and highlight theimportant role of mediaprofessionals in communicatingenvironmental issues in the region Value the role of journalists andthe media in addressing the falsenarratives of the plastic andincineration industriesSupport journalists in telling thestories of affected communitiesand other underrepresentedsectors Open the channel for journalists tomeet other journalists and shareexperiences and insightsGive students and academicinstitutions the chance to learnfrom media professionals

While the Fellowship’s primary aim isto reach out to media professionalsand create a sense of urgency ontopics rarely discussed or covered bythe media, the Fellowship also aimsto:

The program is designed to maximize the participation of thejournalists. As such, for face-to-face sessions, the Fellowship is heldfor five days jam packed with information and skills sharing, lectures,workshops, site visits, mentoring sessions, and camaraderie with otherjournalists.

Meanwhile, our current virtual set-up is composed of weekly 1.5 hourssessions for 7 or 11 weeks. The program is still packed with lectures,sharing of previous Fellows, and mentoring sessions. However, insteadof actual site visits, Fellows are familiarized with Zero Waste conceptsthrough virtual site visits. From time to time, exclusive deepdives/media briefings are also included in the program. After the Fellowship, selected Fellows are awarded with a modest storygrant to report their chosen story through one or all of their preferredmedia platforms: may it be print, video, broadcast, or digital media.

Aside from the story grants, GAIA and BFFP AP Fellows are also invitedand occasionally requested to participate in media briefings/deep divesessions (Greenwashing and Other False Solutions with TarraQuismundo, PH, Mar 2021, The Unwrapped Project hosted by AdiMarsiela, ID, Apr 2021, The Plastic Atlas Deep Dive, Apr 2021, Trash Landing On You hosted by Ian McIntyre, MY, May 2021), presslaunches, and serve as mentors in communications training for GAIAand BFFP AP members.

F E L L O W S H I P O B J E C T I V E S

T H E F E L L O W S

Aditya Heru Wardhana, Society of Indonesian Environmental

Journalist and CNN Indonesia

Adi Marsiela Wartawan, freelance journalist

Erda Khursyiah Binti Basir, Bernama

Ian McIntyre, The Vibes

Imelda Abano, Environment Journalist Network

Jhesset Enano, The Philippine Daily Inquirer

Julius Joe Embina, Association of Young Environmental Journalists

Mary Judaline Partlow, Philippine News Agency

Mevin Gascon, The Philippine Daily Inquirer

Batch 1 (Dumaguete City, Philippines, April 2019)

Ardilla Syakriah, Jakarta PostAnthony Esguerra, GMA News/Vice AsiaArulldas Sinnapan, Penang Hyper Local /Malay MailDeck Villanueva, The Philippine StarDoris Lim, blogger (smartdory.com)Duong Nguyen Khan - Viet Nam NewsFina Nabilah - CNN Indonesia Jessica Rey, RapplerPurple Romero , Mongabay/Asia Sentinel/Eco-BusinessRio Tuasikal, Voice of America, Indonesia CorrespondentTarra Quismundo, ABS-CBNTherese Reyes, Vice AsiaTri Joko Her Riadi, Pikiran Rakyat DailyYogi Tujuliarto, CNN IndonesiaWinnitha Jitkree, Thai Public Broadcasting Service

Batch 2 (Penang, Malaysia, October 2019)

Batch 1 Fellows, Melvin Gascon (PH) and Adi Marsiela (ID) also joined the second batch as speakers.

O N - G O I N GF E L L O W S H I P

Batch 4 (Philippines, October toDecember 2021)

Batch 4 of the Fellowship isexclusive to Economic, Finance,and Business journalists. Co-organized with Plastic-FreePilipinas and Ecowaste Coalition,the 11-week Fellowship will focuson the relationship of economicsand the environment and willparticularly zoom in on the impactof waste incineration on cityeconomies and will have a specialsession on False Solutions.

Batch 5 (Southeast Asia, Januaryto February 2022)

Batch 6 (South Asia, February toMarch 2022)

Cao Thi Ly Ly, Việt Nam News Nguyen Dinh Chinh, Vietnam Investment Review (VIR) Do Thi Thanh Huong, The Hanoi TimesTrinh Bao Tram, Voice of VietnamNguyen Thi Lan, VTC Digital TelevisionDo Huu Phu, Capital Women's NewspaperVu Bich Ngoc, Science and Development NewspaperLam Thi Bich Ngoc, VnExpressTran Nguyen Quynh Nhu, Thanh Nien NewspaperNguyen Cong Khanh, Dai Doan KetPham Xuan Hung, Vietnam Television (VTV)Ly Bich Phuong, A Family News

Batch 3 (Vietnam, July to September 2021)

The Vietnam Media Fellowship was made possible with the assistanceof the Vietnam Zero Waste Alliance, Pacific Environment, and the RMITMass Media Club.

U P C O M I N G F E L L O W S H I P S

S T O R Y G R A N T S

A N D O T H E RP R O J E C T S

Relevance to the campaign (35%) Uniqueness of the story (20%)Platform (TV, radio, broadsheet,online, multi-platform) (20%)Mileage (reach of the journalistsoutlet) (15%)Budget (cost-efficiency of theproject) (10%)

Criteria for the story grant are asfollows:

Costly, dirty and unfair: Indonesia at crossroads in embracing

incinerators - National - The Jakarta Post

Hội An residents turn organic waste into compost and detergent -

VietNam News

(1) Organic Wastes into Detergent - VietNam News

First refill station in Hội An strives to reduce plastic waste -

VietNam News

(1) Plastic Ban in Cham Islands - VietNam News

Inside Zero Waste Efforts in Countries Overwhelmed with Trash

After the four-day sessions, the Fellows of the second batch were

asked to pitch their stories and those selected were awarded with a

small story grant to produce their story.

From Zero Waste communities to an investigative piece on

Indonesia’s move towards waste incineration, the following pieces

appeared in the following media outlets: The Jakarta Post, Viet Nam

News, and Vice Asia.

S T O R Y G R A N T C R I T E R I A

Interested media professionals,organizations, and academicinstitutions may contact GAIA AsiaPacific’s Communications Officer,Sonia G. Astudillo (sonia@no-burn.org) or#breakfreefromplastic's SeniorCommunications Officer, JedAlegado(jed@breakfreefromplastics.org)for more information.

G E T I N T O U C H W I T H U S !