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Mekong in Deep Water

This special report digs into the data to reveal the forces and complex dynamics driving decisions about dams, droughts and diplomacy in the Mekong River Basin.
Mekong in Deep Water
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Coal Power
Hydropower
Solar Power

Coal Power Generation

Hydropower Generation Mekong Countries

Solar Power Generation in Mekong Countries

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Mekong Delta
Featured Story

In the Mekong Delta, sand mining means lost homes and fortunes

Known as the rice basket of the country, the delta now sees houses tumbling into rivers and livelihoods lost.
Le Dinh Tuyen
rare earth mine

Myanmar’s environment hit by rare earth mining boom

Pristine parts of northern Kachin State are under threat as demand grows for high-tech devices that rely on rare earth.
Vietnam’s fishermen

Vietnam’s fishermen battle a lack of fish and China

Depleted coastal fishing grounds and Chinese incursions have made life harder for Vietnam’s struggling fishermen.
Cambodia’s land grab endangers people, forests, and the climate

Cambodia’s land grab endangers people, forests, and the climate

Bunong people’s sacred forest becomes a rubber plantation in another land concession for the government.
CamboJA News
buying rice at the river

Floods and Migrants of Vietnam's Mekong Delta: 25 Lessons from the Data

Data on agricultural, hydropower, saltwater intrusion and rainfall patterns in Vietnam Mekong Delta explains where the country's food comes from, why it’s disappearing and what can be done about it.
farmer watering canal

Data Exposes Flaws in Mekong Delta Resilience Plans

Resilience plans focus on exploiting Vietnam’s scarce water resources instead of shifting agriculture away from water-intensive crops and practices.
The Third Pole
dam in Laos

Unraveling the Mystery of Laos' U-Turn from Renewables to Coal to Power the Battery of Southeast Asia

FM100 CMU

About the 2021 Mekong Data Journalism Fellowship

Cambodia has lost more than a quarter of its forests over the last 20 years. Thousands of Vietnamese are fleeing their homes in the Mekong Delta. Residents in Laos are shocked by the price of electricity, despite living in the “battery of Southeast Asia.” In Thailand, droughts and floods wreak havoc on crops.

What’s driving these changes? Who is most affected? How are environmental issues connected to social and economic trends? And what’s being done to protect residents and their livelihoods

These were some of the many questions explored by 30 journalists from Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam during the 2021 Mekong Data Journalism Fellowship, held from May to December 2021.

Fellows learned to access and analyze public data sets on topics such as renewable energy, dams, fish catches, salt intrusion, mangrove forests, erosion and more. About 250 million people live in the Lower Mekong River Basin, which has seen dramatic change and development over recent decades.

After several weeks of online training, the Fellows dug deep into topics of interest. Their data-driven stories sought explanations from experts, accountability from government officials, and solutions from all levels of society. They then applied story-telling techniques to make their data findings relevant.

The 2021 Mekong Data Journalism Fellowship is a collaboration between the Internews Earth Journalism Network (EJN), the East-West Center and the Stimson Center to provide journalists from the Mekong region the opportunity to gain an increased understanding of the issues relating to water security along the Mekong River Basin, the availability of open data and step-by-step guidance to produce impactful and data-driven media stories that will raise awareness of water security challenges and solutions in the Mekong region.

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