Covering Environment

26/10/2021

Some details on an upcoming course by on coral reefs, their importance and how to look after them 🐠

The course will be in DHIVEHI and is FREE.

For further info ➡️
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1NBK5mR-9CFjqo0uZuMaOenIqS86oS4CI?usp=sharing

This is the first of an educational series on ocean governance related to Maldives, that will be conducted by the IOI Ocean Institute, Maldives.

It has been designed for ANYONE who has an interest in the subject and has internet access. Participants do not require formal education.

Please share and spread the word!

11/07/2021

Attn: Maldivian journalists!
You can now apply for media accreditation for COP26 in Glasgow this year (31 Oct to 12 Nov 2021), organized by the UNFCCC at https://onlinereg.unfccc.int/index_media.html

For more info:
https://unfccc.int/about-us/press-and-media/accreditation

Thanks to the UK in Maldives for sharing this!

Media accreditation for COP 26 is not yet open. Please let us know if we can add your e-mail address to our mailing list so you will be notified when ac...

05/06/2021

On 2021, the weight of the climate crisis feels heavier than ever.

It is imperative, we believe, that change-makers in media, academia, civil society, governance etcetera, rally together and empower the people.

So that together we can hold our leaders accountable and ensure that they do in fact, abide by their pledges.

So that we may all, world over, have an opportunity to survive and thrive.

26/05/2021

Visit our new website for access to training material, viewing of the panel and so on!

Head over to www.coveringenvironment.com today!

23/05/2021

One last round of applause! 👏🏾 reached over 20 journalists, from regions across the archipelago. Sessions were powered by leading experts in the field, positively bursting with their genuine energy and passion!

Implementation Partner - Maldives Journalist Association, under their IRUVAI initiative which receives funding from American Center Maldives
Digital Partner - Ooredoo Maldives
Activity Partners - Moodhu Bulhaa Dive Centre & Save Our Waves

Trainers were from The Maldives Resilient Reefs Project, Save the Beach Maldives, Parley for the Oceans (Maldives), Zero Waste Maldives, Climate News Network, Ministry of Environment, Climate Change and Technology, Maldives, Environmental Protection Agency of Maldives and Aisha Niyaz Consulting.

We are so proud to work with all of you. So again, thank you to everyone who made this happen!!

Big love to our coordinators Shaahunaz & Hassan Ahmed (Beybe) and especially our volunteers Aru, Jau, Shaadu, Thanzy, Ashraf & Naju 💚💙💚

23/05/2021

Huge thank you to all our speakers for their engaging and inspiring talks!!

Special appreciation to Douglas Mann & American Center Maldives for their support to Maldives Journalist Association and initiatives like IRUVAI, which fuels training events like these.

Thanks also to the Maldives High Commission in the UK, for putting us in touch with Alex Kirby from Climate News Network! And of course, Media4democracy for helping us take a small dream and turn it to reality.

(L to R) Ministry of Environment, Climate Change and Technology, Maldives State Min Dr Naseer, Lisama (also from Environment Ministry), Beybe from Save the Beach Maldives, Shaha from The Maldives Resilient Reefs Project, Douglas Mann, Environmental Protection Agency of Maldives Dep DG Dr Ibrahim , Afrah from Zero Waste Maldives, Shaahina Parley for the Oceans (Maldives) , Shaahunaz (Journalist Coordinator / Covering Environment), Alex Kirby, Rae Munavvar (Lead Organizer / Covering Environment) & Aisha Niyaz from AishaNiyaz Consulting.

23/05/2021

Huge thanks to our panelists; Minister Aminath Shauna - Ministry of Environment, Climate Change and Technology, Maldives, Dr Ibrahim Mohamed - Environmental Protection Agency of Maldives , Mr Ken O’Flaherty- COP26 UK Ambassador to Asia-Pacific & South Asia, Dr Mizna Mohamed - ENDEVOR, Maeed Zahir - EcoCare Maldives , Hudha Ahmed - Renewable Energy Maldives, MP Ahmed Haitham - Maldives’ 19th Parliament (Representive for Machangoalhi South, Vice Chair for Parliamentary Committee on Environment and Climate Change), Humaida Abdul Ghafoor - Independent Researcher & Volunteer at Save Maldives, Hussein (Sendi) Rasheed - PADI Maldives Dive Veteran as well as Shaziya Ali - Transparency Maldives.

This panel discussion was moderated by Save the Beach Maldives Co-Founder Thanzy Naeem & ‘s own Lead Organizer Rae Munavvar. It took place on 22 May 2021 from 2000 hrs till 2215 hrs via Zoom. Journalists presented 10/30 questions to the panellists, spurring lively debates.

22/05/2021

Special thanks to our digital partner Ooredoo Maldives for ensuring that our two-day training programme ran smoothly without any complications!

22/05/2021

The panel discussion will take place at 7PM. We‘ve already gotten over 30 questions - the best 10 will be presented to the panel by our participants.

Are you looking forward to our final event? We sure are! You can catch us LIVE on FB tonight 🎤

22/05/2021

With three 30 - 45 min lectures, Day 2 participants will delve deeper into the Climate Crisis before the ‘Eco Reporting’ sessions, which discusses investigative techniques and ways to create meaningful content 📷🎥💻🖊
Here’s to another successful day of !

21/05/2021

Counting down the final hours! We are very excited to meet the participants of . Let’s get this training started!

19/05/2021

Some wonderful news for our participants!

’s partners Moodhu Bulhaa Dive Centre and Save Our Waves are offering complimentary surfing, snorkeling or diving at discount rates for everyone who signed up for the training programme!

We’re very grateful for our partners’ collaborative efforts in ensuring that our journalists have a well-rounded experience and an opportunity to physically apply the knowledge gained from this training.

19/05/2021

Here is the full panel for the ‘Covering Environment’!

Each participant will be given the opportunity to present a question, out of which ten best questions will be vetted and selected based on a criteria delivered to all participants two days prior to the event.

In terms of composition, the panel features two individuals from the state, one from the legislative body, one from the international community, two from civil society, two from related business and two persons able to speak for the academic community.

— Ms Aminath Shauna, (Incumbent) Cabinet Minister of Environment, Climate Change and Technology
— Dr Ibrahim Mohamed, Deputy Director-General, Environmental Protection Agency of Maldives
— Mr Ahmed Haitham, MP for South Machangoalhi (Male City), Vice-Chairperson at the Parliamentary Committee on Environment and Climate Change
— Mr Ken O’Flaherty, UK Government’s COP26 Ambassador for South Asia and Asia-Pacific
— Ms Aishath Hudha Ahmed, Director at Renewable Energy Maldives
— Mr Maeed Zahir, Advocacy Director at NGO Ecocare Maldives
— Dr Mizna Mohamed, Executive Director at the International Center for Environment, Development and Operational Research (Endevor)
— Mr Hussein (Sendi) Rasheed, Veteran Diver, Founder of the Faculty of Marine Studies at Villa College
— Ms Humaida Abdul Ghafoor, Independent Researcher and Volunteer at Savemaldivesmv
— Ms Shaziya Ali, Grants and Outreach Manager at Transparency Maldives

15/05/2021

Co Founder of Climate News Network, Alex Kirby is a former BBC journalist, and the 2017 winner of the ‘Environment Journalist of the Year’ at UK Regional Press Awards (for a series of science features published in the weekly Cambridge Independent). ��A Reuters stringer in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso before joining BBC World Service, he later served as BBC’s Cairo bureau chief. Overall, he spent 20 years in domestic radio, TV and online before branching out on his own. ��Alex will deliver the second portion of the session ‘Reporting on Environment’. �

15/05/2021

Rae Munavvar (L) has worked in conservation for as long as she’s been a reporter, writing about the environment is her a way of merging two passions. This programme was initially developed under an EU ‘Media4 Democracy’ Fellowship granted to Rae, and these guidelines were crafted in collaboration with international journalists whom she is proud to call friends, colleagues and mentors.

Fathmath Shaahunaz (R) has worked in news for over five years, starting at ‘Haveeru’ as a Translator, before moving up the ladder to Journalist at Mihaaru English. Additionally, she holds a BA in Teaching, which she put to use teaching the sciences. Across editorial duties, she tapped into her educational background to provide various training to interns and new reporters entering the newsroom.

Both Rae and Shaahunaz were last associated with The Edition as Managing Editor and Assistant Editor, respectively. Together, they will deliver the 1st part of the ‘Reporting on Environment’ session.

15/05/2021

State Minister at the Ministry of Environment, Climate Change & Technology, Dr Naseer brings with him a wealth of knowledge and experience. His speciality being coral reefs, he is well poised to offer invaluable insights on the unique geographical makeup of the Maldives. ��Since his postgraduate days at Dalhousie University, he worked at the Marine Research Centre, then the Ministry of Fisheries until making a move to Environment in 2016. Dr Naseer is also well known for his time as a Senior Lecturer at the Maldives National University.

14/05/2021

Dr Ibrahim Mohamed has been working as Deputy Director General of Environmental Protection Agency of Maldives since 2011, focusing on climate change adaptation, with priority on resilience and adaptive capacity of island communities.

With an interest in salty urbanism and building island communities for several sea-level rise scenarios, Dr Ibrahim's vision for Maldives involves creating buoyant ecologies as a transformative adaptation.

12/05/2021

To everyone celebrating, have a blessed Eid 🌼

12/05/2021

Sustainability Consultant at AishaNiyaz Consulting and Co Founder of Samiyya's Choice, Aisha Niyaz is an advocate for urgent action to address the climate crisis.

With technical expertise in Environmental Management, Natural Resource Management and Sustainable Development, Aisha has been in practice in the spheres of Environment, Development and Climate Change for the past two decades. She also has hands-on, multi-sector experience working across all the atolls of the Maldives.

09/05/2021

Only 5 more days left to sign up and complete applications for the training!

We’re looking forward to great discussions with amazing journalists and content creators 👌🏾

This programme is run under Maldives Journalist Association’s IRUVAI initiative, which recieves funding from American Center Maldives and takes place completely online with support from our digital partner Ooredoo Maldives.

So, if you missed it before, fill out the form at this link ASAP:
https://forms.gle/cPpNcTwR7fFdmVyo6

08/05/2021

Shaha Hashim is the Chairperson of The Maldives Resilient Reefs Project (MRR) and the Maldives Project Manager at Blue Marine Foundation (BLUE), working to restore coral reefs in the Maldives as climate resilient ecosystems for the benefit of nature, people and businesses that depend on them.

She has been involved in facilitating research, partnerships and community awareness and education activities. Shaha also played a leading role in the success of the , and campaigns.

07/05/2021

Lisama Sabry, Conservation Officer at the Ministry of Environment, is currently leading national work under the Commonwealth Blue Charter Action Group on Mangrove Ecosystems and Livelihoods.

Lisama has been involved in policy formulation for biodiversity conservation, protection of ecologically significant areas and species, designing biodiversity conservation projects, and representing Maldives in international negotiations of biodiversity-related multilateral environmental agreements.

07/05/2021

Co-founder and President of Save the Beach Maldives, Hassan Ahmed (Beybe), has been an active ocean advocate for the past 13 years.

He worked at the forefront of coral revival programmes carried out by STB, to successfully relocate corals from reclamation sites, in addition to conducting reef surveys, completing waste audits and heading conservation efforts.

06/05/2021

Executive Director of Parley Maldives Shaahina Ali established the nationwide interception program implementing the Parley AIR (Avoid. Intercept. Redesign.) program to reduce the country’s single use plastic footprint on the ocean environment.

An experienced diver, she has also served 8 years in the national Environment Commission as a member of the President, and is currently a member in the committee for phasing out plastic.

05/05/2021

Afrah Ismail is a co founder of local NGO Zero Waste Maldives, which promotes a zero-waste lifestyle, endorsing alternatives to single use disposables available in Maldives.

An engineer by profession, he is currently working on laying the groundwork to facilitate the Maldives to move towards a circular economy.

03/05/2021

Happy Press Freedom Day!

02/05/2021

Great news! The dates for have been finalised as May 21 and 22 (Friday and Saturday).

Also, the application deadline has been extended to May 15 — if you missed it before, fill out the form at the following link ASAP:
https://forms.gle/cPpNcTwR7fFdmVyo6

01/05/2021

Arguably the best ways to learn is by teaching someone else, and putting knowledge into practice.

aims to provide a space where participants can do both. Following the conclusion of the training, each participant will have a period of 30 days to produce their own environment story with their newly acquired knowledge and tips.

30/04/2021

Participants of will have the chance to personally question experts in the field and clarify any doubts they already have, or develop during the training programme!

The questions can range from environment issues to contextual reporting, getting the most out of data and writing stories that will connect more closely with the community.

30/04/2021

It’s clear - when journalists are better informed, so becomes the general public.

That is why so strongly believes that when reporters are provided with essential knowledge and when access to information is made easier, then the whole country benefits as a result.

A better informed public is better able hold the three branches of government accountable, thereby bolstering democratic function.

24/04/2021

On “Why we need a new local language of climate change reporting”:

https://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/risj-review/why-we-need-new-local-language-climate-change-reporting

A Kenyan farmer holds maize harvested from a farm insured by an agricultural insurance company that helps small-scale farmers to manage the risk associated with climate change. REUTERS/Monicah Mwangi

22/04/2021

The 2-day training program, held online, will aim to increase the quality of reporting on environmental issues by Maldivian journalists, featuring the input of several knowledgable and experienced individuals in the eco-sector.

Interested participants can sign up for the workshop from April 22 onwards! The application form is available here: https://forms.gle/hSQ8wCeuhB5hD2E6A