The importance of powerful and accurate reporting on climate
With the world facing multiple crises including, COVID-19, conflicts, climate crisis, and biodiversity loss, our forests can help us recover from their impact, but only if we step up action to unlock their potential.
In the recent report of the State of the World’s Forests Report 2022, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) sets out three pathways for doing that: halting deforestation; restoring degraded land, and expanding agroforestry and sustainably using forests and building green value chains.
A big part of setting the pathway to restore forests is to communicate ethically about their state. Therefore it is important for journalists to break down barriers between scientists and the media to write about forests in a truthful way.
This Q&A live stream brings together former BBC Science editor David Shukman and FAO Senior Forestry Officer Malgorzata Buszko-Briggs to discuss reporting on forests to diverse audiences.
This discussion is part of an online media seminar hosted by the Global Landscapes Forum and the Food and FAO, Building a green, healthy and resilient future with forests, ahead of the XV World Forestry Congress.
A media shaped for the future
Shukman and Malgorzata elaborate upon the power media hold in reporting on forests and climate to diverse audiences. They highlight the urgency to shift to a transparent media that promotes:
- Emphasis on sustainable agriculture and Green Recovery.
- Being on the ground and reporting from the frontlines of forest realities. It’s important to communicate both narratives and storytelling from both forest extractive and conservation activities.
- Journalists must bridge scientific language to the average community. Shukman points out that every community has its own language and lexicon and therefore communicating climate is about working together through discussions to spread the message of science.
- Building relationships with the scientific community to report in a truthful and transparent way.
Learn more about the way Forests help us build resilience 🌳
