On November 14–16, 2019, the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard hosted “Covering Climate Change,” an intensive training workshop for journalists on covering climate change and related issues. Our goal was to bring together a diverse group of reporters, academics, researchers and practitioners in order to help journalists deepen their reporting skills and expand their thinking around climate-related issues and how they intersect with all beats.
The workshop was made possible with the generous support of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and in partnership with the Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health (Harvard C-CHANGE).
Session Videos
Keynote Conversation
- Introduction: Sean Harder, communications officer at the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation
- Gina McCarthy, director of the Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health (Harvard C-CHANGE) and former administrator of the EPA (2013-2017)
- Moderator: Vanessa Hauc, senior correspondent for Noticias Telemundo and co-founder of Sachamama, a nonprofit that educates the Latino community about climate issues and sustainable behavior
Communicating About Climate Change
- Dr. Aaron Bernstein, co-director of the Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health (Harvard C-CHANGE), pediatrician at Boston Children’s Hospital and assistant professor of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School
- Cristine Russell, science journalist, adjunct lecturer in public policy and a senior fellow at Harvard Kennedy School and in the Environment and Natural Resources Program and the Arctic Initiative at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
- Lori Weigel, principal and founder of New Bridge Strategy
- Moderator: Susan Joy Hassol, director of Climate Communication
Climate Issues Through a Health Lens
- Natalia Linos, executive director of the FXB Center for Health and Human Rights at Harvard University
- George Luber, epidemiologist and former head of the CDC’s Climate and Health Program
- Dr. Mary Rice, pulmonary and critical care physician at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
- Moderator: Martha Bebinger, WBUR health care reporter and a 2010 Nieman Fellow
Climate Issues Through a Community Lens
- Elliot Diringer, executive vice president of the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES)
- Peter Shumlin, former governor of Vermont and a fall 2019 Menschel Senior Leadership Fellow at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
- Chris Wheat, director of strategy and city engagement for the American Cities Climate Challenge at the Natural Resources Defense Council, a program supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies
- Moderator: Ashley Smart, associate director of the Knight Science Journalism Program at MIT
Keynote conversation with youth climate activists/organizers of the Boston climate strike
- Saya Ameli Hajebi, a climate activist in Boston and co-leader of media for the Boston chapter of the Sunrise Movement, a youth-lead organization confronting climate change
- Amalia Hochman, co-leader of the Massachusetts Youth Climate Strike
- James Healy, member of the 2019-20 cohort of the Harvard Climate Leaders Program and co-leader of media for the Boston chapter of the Sunrise Movement
- Moderator: Aleszu Bajak, a science and data journalist and graduate programs manager at Northeastern University’s School of Journalism
Resources and Strategies for Climate Reporting
- Susan Joy Hassol, director of Climate Communication
- Sean Sublette, meteorologist for Climate Central’s Climate Matters program
Collaborations and Innovations in Climate Reporting
- Alex Harris, climate change reporter for the Miami Herald
- David Bornstein, co-founder and CEO of the Solutions Journalism Network
- Lisa Friedman, climate change reporter at The New York Times
- Moderator: Jeff Brady, NPR national desk correspondent based in Philadelphia
Showing and Telling Climate Stories
- John D. Sutter, National Geographic Explorer, CNN climate analyst, “BASELINE” director
- Rosanna Xia, environment reporter for the Los Angeles Times
- Emily Atkin, founder of the newsletter HEATED
