UPDATE - Media has great responsibility in shaping climate discourse: Anadolu Agency editor-in-chief

ADDS REMARKS FROM MORE PANELISTS

By Dilan Pamuk

ISTANBUL (AA) - The power of media must be put to use to shape the public discourse on climate change, Deputy Director General and Editor-in-Chief of Anadolu Agency Yusuf Ozhan told the Environment Forum in the Turkish metropolis Istanbul on Thursday.

The first session of the forum, Media Responsibility on Climate Change, moderated by Ozhan, focused on the responsibility of media concerning the climate crisis, aiming to discuss the critical points in the way media organs convey stories especially in the fields of economy, technology, and trade as the developments might have links to issues such as mitigation of greenhouse gases, carbon leak, or other environmental impacts.

Noting that disasters related to climate change are wreaking havoc in many parts of the world, Ozhan asked: “So are we just reporting these stories as an inactive agent or are we a part of the story?”

“Obviously we are a part of the story. We, as journalists, are highly motivated to take a deeper understanding of the role that media plays and the responsibilities with the goal in mind of reshaping the narrative to how we can do our job better and how we can actually make use of the power that the media has to shape the public discourse," he added.

"As the saying goes, with great power comes great responsibility. So that's the reason why we are here today," Ozhan concluded.

The panel was also attended by General Director of Italy-based ANSA Stefano De Alessandri, Director of Climate News of Philippines News Agency Lilybet G. Ison, Director-General of Somali National News Agency Ismail Mukhtar Omar, and CEO of Zimbabwe-based agency New Ziana Rangarirai Shoko.

- 'Logic of sustainability the essence of future'

In his speech, De Alessandri touched on issues such as sustainability and green finance, saying the main responsibilities of media as part of the combat against climate and environmental crises include promoting a culture of sustainability, raising awareness, promoting cultural change, reliable, clear, distinctive, relevant, pertinent, and pervasive info about climate change, and sustainability as a transversal theme rather than a "niche" topic.

He said: "The logic of sustainability is the essence of the future. A sustainable society is fully aware of the resources available and makes the best possible use of that to respond to future generations."

"We all know that this is not the case currently. On a global level, almost double the resources that can be regenerated are exploited.

"In other words, it means that each year, we consume more than the planet produces in two years," he added.

"Being aware of this means, having understood how to move, to put our development back on the right track, and all the major international governments have adopted the principle of sustainability and it's not only at the same political level, but it's a necessity for companies and media to keep competing on the market and investors."

- Collective and determined action necessary to combat climate change

Director of Climate News of Philippines News Agency​​​​​​​ Ison started her speech by noting that climate change is having serious impacts such as increased frequency and severity of natural disasters, sea level rise, extreme rainfall, and environmental degradation in the Philippines.

“The Philippines is being visited by about 20 typhoons per year and as such is considered the third most disaster-prone country in the world,” she said.

Ison added: “To mitigate the impact of climate change, the Philippines government has implemented some policies such as gradual phasing out of coal-fired power plants" and, instead, is investing more in renewable energy, reducing the use of plastics and implementing a natural tree planting program to rehabilitate the country's forests.

She said climate resiliency is now “the core of all programs and activities attributing roughly 24 billion pesos (over $407 million) for climate change in this year's national budget.

“The Philippines know that or the president knows that the fight against climate change would only be successful if everyone is committed and determined to steering our practices and systems towards a greener direction,” she concluded.

Meanwhile, head of the Somali National News Agency Omar voiced his belief during his speech that the discussions on the forum would have a positive impact in reshaping the narrative of climate change in the media as well as moving toward a global solution.

Referring to challenges Somalia is encountering due to climate change, Omar said many lives have been lost so far and climate-driven displacement has been a growing problem.

Beginning his speech by saying climate change has an added impact on Zimbabwe due to its geographical position, Shoko, the head of Zimbabwe-based agency New Ziana Rangarirai noted that land issues deriving from its history as well as political sanctions on the country have posed further challenges.

Shoko said Zimbabwe had its share of devastating droughts and destructive floods like many other parts of the world. This further exacerbated the economic problems in the country where over 70% of the livelihood depended on agriculture, he added.

In their speeches, the speakers evaluated the means to promote environment- and climate-related stories and how to use the sources of media organs for this purpose. They also touched on the challenges faced in conveying climate stories.

As the forum advanced, the speakers went on to explore the critical points that should be considered while presenting climate-related stories to avoid misinformation, disinformation, and mal-information.

The one-day forum aims to tackle issues such as the need to create a new media language on environmental and climate issues, international news agencies raising global awareness, the duties of traditional and new media outlets, and the pursuit of environmental awareness in new news areas.

Among the forum’s international participants are Portugal’s former Minister of Europe Bruno Macaes, Deputy Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change Ovais Sarmad, global climate and environment news editor at Associated Press (AP) Peter Prengaman, climate director of Spain’s EFE Agency Arturo Larena.

The Environment Forum can be followed live by registering at its website at environment.aa.com.tr.