Six independent newsrooms across English-speaking Africa stand to benefit from grants of up to US$8,000, specialised training and expert mentorship under a new initiative aimed at strengthening climate solutions journalism across the continent.
The Climate Beacons Newsroom Initiative, launched by the Media for Environment, Science, Health and Agriculture (MESHA) in partnership with the Solutions Journalism Network (SJN), will run for seven months from August 2026 to March 2027 and support six selected media houses.
The programme seeks to transform how newsrooms report on climate change by shifting coverage from highlighting climate-related disasters to producing evidence-based stories that examine practical responses, lessons learned and their impact on communities.
Participating newsrooms will receive a comprehensive package that includes training in solutions journalism, regular coaching by climate journalism experts, audience and community engagement training, impact tracking, specialised workshops and monthly mentorship sessions led by MESHA and SJN.
In announcing the initiative, SJN Africa Initiative Manager Caroline Karobia said the programme is designed to help journalists in sub-Saharan Africa tell more balanced climate stories by showcasing adaptation and resilience alongside the challenges posed by climate change.
"We are excited to partner with MESHA to launch the Climate Beacon Newsrooms initiative for sub-Saharan Africa. This region is experiencing escalating climate impacts and we believe newsrooms will play a key role in broadening climate solution journalism, highlighting not just disasters and crises but also adaptive responses taken by impacted communities," she said.
MESHA Chief Executive Officer Aghan Daniel described the collaboration as recognition of the association's long-standing efforts to strengthen science and climate reporting across Africa.
"This is a testimony that the work we have been doing on training and empowering journalists to report on climate change is being recognised by well-established organisations such as our partner, Solutions Journalism Network," he said.
MESHA Vice Chairperson Nduta Waweru said the programme would empower editorial teams to produce compelling, human-centred climate stories that simplify scientific issues for the public while promoting accountability among policymakers.
She added that the initiative aligns with MESHA's mission of building an informed and empowered population through quality reporting on environment, science, health and agriculture.
Founded in 2005, MESHA has spent more than two decades supporting journalists covering climate change, health, agriculture, science and technology through training, networking opportunities and collaborations across Eastern and Southern Africa.
The organisation says the new initiative builds on its existing network of climate journalists by extending support to entire newsrooms.
Selected newsrooms will be expected to produce at least eight in-depth climate solutions stories, develop an inception work plan, submit audience impact reports and account for the use of project funds.
The opportunity is open to independent print, broadcast, digital and radio media organisations from English-speaking African countries with a proven interest in climate reporting, editorial commitment to the project and the legal capacity to manage grant funding.
Applicants are required to submit a one- to two-page editorial concept, four climate story ideas, profiles of the reporting team and a budget not exceeding US$8,000. Applications must be emailed to the MESHA Secretariat by July 31, 2026, with successful newsrooms expected to begin the programme in mid-August.
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