Let's make this happen!
I am Abdulkareem Mojeed from Nigeria. I am a Business and Environment reporter with Nigeria's only Pulitzer-winning newspaper, Premium Times. I am a graduate of Botany and Ecological Studies turned-journalist. I became a journalist because I see the profession as one that can be used to drive sustainable development across communities in Nigeria and Africa at large. This is why my journalism focus is development journalism; reporting on Agriculture, Food Security, Climate Change and the Environment. In this role, I conduct investigations into developing stories; Carry out special news and features reporting; Conduct follow-up stories; Execute delegated content editing and administrative functions. From these beats, I have accomplished excellence in producing highly impactful and consequential reports that questioned authorities and transitioned into significant impacts.
Before joining Premium Times three years ago, I worked as an agriculture researcher with the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development. I was one of the three fellows selected globally to participate in the Y. Eva Tan Conservation Reporting Fellowship with Mongabay last year. These experiences were instrumental to my selection as one of the 2024 SEJ Diversity fellows in Philadelphia in April this year. My participation in the SEJ fellowship was an eye-opener, and an experience other journalists like me should have.
As a journalist from this part of the world, I have worryingly noticed a huge gap between the reporting of environmental stories and comprehension by the audience. Today, in several newsrooms in Nigeria, a country of over 200 million people, the inability of journalists to confidently report environmental stories from an evidence-based context has increasingly made reporting not fill the knowledge gap of the audience. Although some media innovation organisations are trying to upscale capacity building workshops for journalists amidst efforts to bridge this gap, I have observed that these trainings are not conducted with objective data that is informed by research. Amidst my curiosity to understand these dynamics and bridge this gap, I believe joining the SEJ board of directors will provide a platform for the voice of journalists from the global south to be heard and further motivate journalists from this region to be members of SEJ.
My declaration to participate in this election is motivated by my burning passion to create impacts and the realisation that lots of environmental journalists from Africa aren't involved with the SEJ. I'm eager to join and bring/spread the SEJ's incredible mission and vision to this region. It's not just about me — I want to explore training opportunities and really ignite a passion for impactful environmental journalism across Africa through the SEJ network. So we can make a difference and create significant impacts together! Encouraging African journalists to join the SEJ network will expose them to opportunities to gain more knowledge and skills in their chosen career on how to tell original and true stories for positive societal awareness.
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