The Climate and Environmental Challenges for Journalists today (and how to overcome them)
Report on the International Journalism Festival 2025 in Perugia, Italy
By Gary Spinks
The 5 big topics around climate and environment coverage at the 2025 International Journalism Festival were:
- Climate Change in the run-up to COP 30 in Amazonian Brazil
- The Role of Journalists and Content Creators in Redefining Environmental Journalism
- How to Make Climate Science Shine on Social Media
- Making Climate Training Right for Newsrooms
- The Challenge of Covering the Climate Crisis in a Fractured World
More on each topic below but first an observation on #IJF25.
Climate and Environment Slipping Down the Media Agenda?
I was not able to get to the Festival but have seen the full programme.
One feature of the event this year was that topics around climate and environment did not feature as in 2024. The festival in Perugia, Italy, saw just six sessions on this theme – half as many as a year ago.
Some may be surprised by that.
Was this downturn due to other issues or challenges (such as AI, funding, the Trump Factor or journalist safety) pushing their way to the forefront of media professionals’ minds?
Has the media reporting of climate change reached saturation point?
Is it a signal that the general public have become bored or more sceptical about the reported damage we are doing to the planet?
Do people feel overwhelmed by all the data, science and arguments? Is eco-anxiety on the up?
It will be interesting to see how highly climate and environment features at #IJF26 next April.
Here’s a summary of what was talked about on this theme at the festival this year.
The Top 5 Climate and Environment Sessions at the International Journalism Festival, Perugia, 2025
These are the recorded sessions on climate and environment journalism which you might want to check out. In no particular order:
1. Earth shorts: the role of journalists and social media content creators in redefining environmental journalism
In this recorded session (52 minutes) the discussion is about what content creators and journalists can learn from each other, about making potentially complex environmental topics accessible to their audiences.
Panellists:
2. Climate in Context: Covering the Climate Crisis in a Fractured World
As the introduction to this session says, climate crisis is not just about carbon emissions or melting glaciers. It is interconnected with global issues like mass migration, armed conflict and corporate abuses of people’s rights.
A panel of reporters and editors explore how to keep climate and environment front and centre of people’s minds, create coverage that goes beyond solutions journalism, and how to keep readers engaged and inspired. (49 minutes)
Panellists:
3. How Can We Make Climate Training Effective and Engaging for a Sceptical Newsroom?
As Europe and other parts of the globe face a rising tide of AI-channelled disinformation and people turning their back on the news, newsrooms face big challenges.
How do media outlets, news organisations and newsrooms stand firm against climate and science deniers – and learn how to meet audiences where they are?
That’s at the core of this panel exploration (52 minutes) which includes case studies for journalists from every beat, not just specialist correspondents.
Panellists:
4. How to Make Climate Science Shine on Social Media
If you want a change from panel discussions, this shorter session (21 minutes) is an interview with Dr Adam Levy, a journalist and climate communicator who talks about how he turns complex facts into compelling stories online.
Panellists:
5. Climate change and the Amazon: the run-up to COP 30 Belem – and Beyond – While Amplifying Local Voices
If you are a journalist covering the Amazon or preparing to cover COP 30 in Brazil, this expert overview of some key topics will probably be of interest to you (52 minutes).
The session covers understanding local dynamics in play, the paradox of natural wealth alongside human poverty, the value of deeper connections (with local leaders, scientists, indigenous peoples and traditional communities) and getting local voices into the media.
There is also an introduction to the Amazonia Vox Platform, a database of Amazonian sources and freelancers.
Panellists:
Asking for Feedback and Deepening Connections from #ICF25 in Perugia
If you watch any of these recorded sessions, let me know what you think of the discussions or interviews.
Q: What was your biggest takeaway?
Q: What fact or opinion surprised you the most?
Q: What will you change or do as a result of what you saw, heard and learned in the session(s)?
Were you there at the International Journalism Festival in Perugia this year?
If you attended the festival, please share in the comments what it was like for you:
- Was it your first visit or have you been several (or many) times?
- What were the 3 best things about the festival?
- What was the best event you attended – and why?
- Best place for coffee, gelato or a meal?
And finally...
What tips do you have for someone planning to visit the festival, for the first time, in 2026?
Would love to hear your thoughts.
