17 Journalists Selected for EJN STRIDES’ Second Journalist Fellowship for Infrastructure Reporting in Southeast Asia
Internews’ Earth Journalism Network’s STRIDES project has selected 17 journalists to participate in the second Journalist Fellowship for Infrastructure Reporting in Southeast Asia. The 17 participants are from Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines and will play a crucial role in STRIDES’ efforts to increase public awareness of the communities and environments affected by the infrastructure projects in their countries.
Richaldo Yoelianus Hariandja, Mongabay Indonesia, Indonesia
Ryan Dagur, Floresa, Indonesia
Muhammad Iqbal Bin Fatkhi, Cilisos Media, Malaysia
Didit Hariyadi, bollo.id, Indonesia
Joan Aurelia, Project Multatuli, Indonesia
Rjay Z. Castor, Daily Guardian, Philippines
Jauhn Etienne Villaruel, ABS-CBN News, Philippines
Rhick Lars Vladimer Albay, Eco-Business, Philippines
Leoni Alvionita Susanto, Katadata, Indonesia
Yuli, Project Multatuli, Indonesia
Mochammad Asad, Mongabay, Indonesia
Teguh Suprayitno, Mongabay Indonesia and Project Multatuli, Indonesia
Walter I. Balane, MindaNews/Bukidnon State University – Development Communication Dept., Philippines
Gerard Axl Beelt, Kelung, Indonesia
Rabul Sawal, Mongabay Indonesia, Indonesia
Risna Halidi, Dewiku.com, Indonesia
Suwandi Wendy, Kompas.com, Indonesia
As part of the fellowship, this cohort will receive training from EJN staff, senior journalists, and legal experts to report on some of the most pressing but underreported environmental stories stemming from infrastructure projects in their countries, from a new international airport in the Philippines to the hundreds of miles of toll roads being built throughout Indonesia. Their stories will continue EJN’s efforts to improve reporting on the environmental impacts of infrastructure development in the Southeast Asian region, which began in early 2024 when it convened 14 journalists for a similar training.
“The journalists were selected because they have a demonstrated ability to produce compelling environmental journalism,” said STRIDES Project Manager Philip Gassert. “The journalists will benefit from EJN mentorship and we’re including an emphasis on physical and digital security throughout their fellowship.”
The five-day online and two-day in-person training will equip early- to mid-career journalists with skills to report on infrastructural development and its impacts on the environment and human rights. The online sessions will begin on October 28, with the in-person training scheduled to take place on November 5 and 6 in Jakarta, Indonesia. The training will look at the financing and policies that enable the projects to deepen their approach to covering such stories.
With grant funding and 1-1 mentoring support from EJN, journalists will report on a diverse range of projects, including some of the biggest in the region, focusing on environmental and human rights issues. By increasing public awareness, STRIDES aims to strengthen accountability mechanisms to lessen negative impacts and create more equitable positive impacts.
Look out for the fellows’ stories, which will be published in local media outlets and republished on the EJN website from February 2025 onwards.
Banner image: A toll road under construction in Jakarta, Indonesia / Credit: Yasunari Goto via Flickr.
