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Young Reporters for the Environment
Litter Less Campaign
Global Student Forum`cv

Concept Note & Programme

13, 14 & 15 Febr. ‘24, each day from 1.30 to 3.30pm CET (see your local time here) via ZOOMGiving our Environment a Voice:Becoming Young Reporters for the Environment
REGISTER YOUR PARTICIPATION HERE:
https://unesco-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYkfuyrqzosHdFNFNjhSouB1lF7rABREG1F
Once registered, you will receive a link and all information to connect to the meeting via email(the link to access the meeting is the same for the 3 days)

Background
Each year the world generates over 2 billion tons of waste. Litter and waste clog our oceans, fill ourstreets and clutter huge areas of the planet. They cause great damage to our natural environment,wildlife, and people’s health and well-being.
Since 2022, with the help of your teachers, you and other students from Asia, Africa, Europe, theMiddle East and Latin America have been investigating and researching solutions to litter and waste
and campaigned to raise awareness in your schools, homes, communities and countries. The Young
Reporters for the Environment Competition provides you with a unique opportunity and platform toreport and disseminate your actions and learnings through journalistic pieces. The most inspiring andcreative entries will be assessed by an International Jury and have the chance of being recognized ona global scale in addition to winning a prize of 750 USD.
You can create one or several of the following entries to participate in the Young Reporters for theEnvironment competition: (a) ARTICLE (b) SINGLE PHOTO REPORTAGE OR SINGLE ENVIRONMENTALCAMPAIGN PHOTO OR PHOTO STORY OF 3-5 PHOTOS (c) VIDEO. You can also work with students fromother countries on one joint entry to compete in the INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATION category.

Global Student Forum

What are our objectives for this forum?
This global forum intends to give you and other students the opportunity to• learn about the YRE competition and get motivated to create high quality entries;• build your skills for environmental journalism, in particular critical thinking, researching,identifying fake news, use of video/image editing tools and media dissemination;• connect with students from other countries to share your actions and learnings, and tocreate a collaborative artwork to celebrate global collaborative action.

What do we want to create together?
We would like to co-create with you and the other students two products before and during theForum, which we will feature via a social media campaign for the Litter Less Global Action Days in
April 2024 and on the UNESCO ASPnet website:(1) a collaborative digital artwork in form of a mosaic that will show photos of your and otherstudents’ actions for the environment creating a large green hand (symbolizing your positivehandprints of care for the environment).
(2) an engagement fresco: On Day III we will invite you and all attendees to take a joint
photo/screenshot where we all put our right hand up for the environment and commit to continue
taking positive handprints of care for the environment. This image will be published on the UNESCO
website following the global student forum and to share your achievements with the wider world.

Who is participating?
•You and other students aged 11-18 committed to creating entries for the Young Reporters
for the Environment (YRE) Competition (submission deadline of entries to UNESCO: 21 April2024)•Teachers from participating schools to support students to actively participate in the Forum
discussions (and to contribute to the discussions themselves)•

Invited guest speakers, notably previous YRE winners and environmental journalists•

UNESCO staff
Countries (in alphabetical order)

1
2
3
456789101112

Dominican Republic
Finland
GambiaIndonesia

Italy
Japan
Kingdom of Bahrain

ASPnet schools (joined the Campaign since2022/23, 2023/24)
San José Obrero
Oriveden lukio
Gambia Senior Secondary School
St. Joseph's Senior Secondary School
Senior High School 1 Padang
Public Senior High School 19 TangerangAl-Izhar Pondok Labu High School
Istituto Comprensivo 1 Siniscola
Liceo Niccolò Machiavelli
Kyoto Gaidai Nishi High School
Ghazi Al-Gosaibi Secondary School for GirlsIbn Khuldoon National School

Global Student Forum1314 Namibia
15
1617 Oman
18
1920 Republic of Korea

Jidhafs secondary girls school
Coastal High School
Rundu Secondary School
Leevi Hakusembe Secondary School
Dohat ALAdab post basic school
Fatma bint Qais School
Sultan Turki bin Said School
Jungdong School

What is the Forum’s format, length and language?
The Global Student Forum will be held online via Zoom in English language. Click on this link toregister and to receive your ZOOM access information.
You meet on the 13, 14 and 15 February from 1.30-3.30pm CET each day (see your local time here).
Together with the other students you work on (a) a collaborative digital artwork and (b)engagement fresco before and during the forum to share and celebrate them on Day III.

What resources can I use to prepare myself for the Forum and YRE
competition?
••••

YRE Student-Teacher Handbook
Video tutorials for students: writing 101, photography 101, video 101
Online courses for students and teachers “Storytelling for Climate Action”: (a) Photography
with YRE, (b) Writing with YRE, (c) Filmmaking with YRE; “The Circular Economy”; “Pollution”
Flyer: 10 tips for taking a good photo

What will we do on Day I, II and III?

Become a Young Reporterfor the Environment!

Give our environment avoice!

Take global collaborative
action!

Day IDay IIDay III

Learn about thecompetition structure andparticipate in interactive
exchanges with students
who won previous YREcompetitions.

Learn about environmental
journalism and participate
in interactive exchanges
with environmental
journalists.

Share your actions andlearnings with otherparticipants through thecollaborative digital
artwork and engagement
fresco.

Global Student Forum

What is the programme for each day?
Day 1: Tuesday 13 February 2024
13:30 – 15:30

Becoming Young Reporters for the Environment
Day I will provide you with the opportunity to learn about the Young Reporters for the Environment(YRE) competition structure and to participate in interactive exchanges with students who previously
won the YRE competition.
Opening & Welcome (5min)•Julie Saito, International Coordinator, UNESCO Associated Schools Network (ASPnet)

Presentation and Q&A (30min): The Young Reporters for the Environment (YRE) Competition
You will learn how youth leadership and green skills can contribute to a more sustainable tomorrow.
You will also get concrete guidance on the YRE methodology and competition structure, including thecategories you can participate in.
You are invited to submit questions through the chat for the Q&A.
•Speaker: Lee Wray-Davis, Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE)

Ice breaker speed dating (10min)
You join a breakout room with 2-3 other participants to meet and get to know each other. Share yourname, country and what actions for the environment you have taken in your school and community.
Panel discussion and Q&A (35min): Winning the YRE Competition
Previous winners of the YRE Competition will present their journalistic pieces and provide insights,
tips and tricks on how they investigated a local environmental issue, researched a solution, created ajournalistic piece and disseminated it to raise awareness.
You are invited to submit questions through the chat for the Q&A.
Speakers:•(Kingdom of Bahrain) Halah Noor, previous winner for the article “E-waste – our forgotten
fortune” in the YRE ASPnet competition•(Malaysia) Zeidan Naqeeb bin Zulkifli, previous winner for a single photo reportage &video•(Malta) Lisa Aquilina, previous winner for the videos “an ethical wardrobe” & “my mask I
care”

Small breakout group discussions (30min): Overcoming typical challenges and pitfalls
Select a breakout room to exchange more in-depth with one of the YRE winners. Ask her/him anyquestion you have. Hint: get tips and advice on how to overcome challenges you face while creating
an article, a photo story or a video reportage, e.g. How to select a topic? How to find most pertinent
sources of information? How to debunk fake news? How to avoid plagiarism when editing text ormedia? What are good image and video editing softwares? How to disseminate my work?
•

Room 1: Speaker Halah Noor & Moderator Huda Labib, Teacher at the Ibn Khuldoon
National School Bahrain•

Room 2: Speaker Zeidan Naqeeb bin Zulkifli & Moderator Edward Escobar, Teacher atKyoto Gaidai Nishi High School Japan•

Room 3: Speaker Lisa Aquilina & Moderator Duha Sameer, Teacher at Jidhafs Secondary
Girls School Bahrain

After the small group discussion, you share one key insight with everyone via mentimeter.
Moderation & Closing Day I (10min)

Global Student Forum•

Katja Anger-Delimi, Unit for the UNESCO Associated Schools Network (ASPnet), UNESCO

Day 2: Wednesday 14 February 2024
13:30 – 15:30

Giving our Environment a VoiceDay II will provide participants with the opportunity to learn about environmental journalism bymeeting and exchanging with environmental journalists, including on topics, such as positiveenvironmental journalism and greenwashing.
Welcome Day II (5min)•Julie Saito, International Coordinator, UNESCO Associated Schools Network (ASPnet)

Panel discussion and Q&A (45min): The why, what and how of environmental journalism
Renowned journalists will share their insights and experiences on environmental journalism, why itmatters, topics and themes they cover and tips for creating high quality contents. A particular focus
will be on positive environmental journalism and greenwashing.
You are invited to submit questions through the chat for the Q&A.
Speakers:•Harry Surjadi, Independent environmental journalist & President of the World Federationof Science Journalists
Harry Surjadi began his journalism career in 1988 and specializes in environmental reporting.
He has covered several COPs since 1995, including the 15th COP in Kyoto and he wrote achapter about Indonesia for the 2004 book “Climate Change: Perspective Five Years After
Kyoto.” He was a Knight International Journalism Fellow with the International Center for
Journalists in 2007-2008 and 2011-2012 through which he launched a climate change
communication model using mobile for villagers in Indonesia to report on environmental
topics related to forestry in West Kalimantan. He was granted the Communication for Social
Change Award from the University of Queensland, Australia.

•Gulnaz Khan, Climate editor at TED Talks and former editor at National Geographic
Gulnaz Khan reports from five continents and her work appears in Popular Science, The
Economist, National Geographic, AFAR, and more. Before her journalism career, Khan
worked on neuroscience research funded by the National Institutes of Health and behavioral
psychiatry research at the University of Pennsylvania. She holds a Master of Science fromthe Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and a Certificate in Climate Changeand Health from Yale University.

•Nour Mohamed Badawy, Environmental Activist & Producer of the Award-winning
Documentary “The Mediterranean: Sea of Garments”
Nour Mohamed Badawy is a member of the UNESCO Youth Climate Action Network. She isa BA graduate in political sciences from Alexandria University (Egypt), an active member ofcivil society, and a youth empowerment and environmental advocate, the former presidentof the Mediterranean Youth Council, producer of the Award-winning Documentary “TheMediterranean: Sea of Garments”, a group leader at “Guide de Sion” and a classicalmusician, a first-aid-certified teacher and freelance content creator. She currently works forWorld Scouting (WOSM) in Malaysia where she focuses on Communications and Outreachand leveraging thought leadership.

•Rugilė Matusevičiūtė, Lithuanian Climate Activist & Environmental Journalist
Rugilė Matusevičiūtė is an audiovisual environmental journalist who has created a podcast,a tv show and a radio show on sustainability and climate change related issues. Rugilė iscurrently a European Union Climate Pact Ambassador as well as a student at Oxford
University's program for climate journalism. Rugilė has written a master's degree on thetopic of environmental journalism and has been actively working in this field for the majorityof her career.

•

Julie Saito, ASPnet International Coordinator & former journalist and jury member of theGlobal Student ForumYRE competition
Julie Saito is the UNESCO ASPnet International Coordinator since 2020. During her previous
role for UNESCO’s Education for Sustainable Development Section she focused on youth
empowerment and served as a YRE jury member for 7 years. She started her 20-year
journalistic career as Television coordinator for Nippon Television in New York and NBC
News in Tokyo, which brought her an Emmy Award in 1986 as Associate Producer of KNBC’s“Ring of Fire,” a series on earthquake preparedness in Japan. After receiving her M.S. inJournalism from the Columbia School of Journalism in New York she worked for Japanesedaily Asahi Shimbun as staff writer for 16 years. Ms. Saito was born in Tokyo and lived many
years abroad: Bangkok, Nairobi, New York, Lyon (France) and currently in Paris.
Moderator: Katja Anger-Delimi, UNESCO Associated Schools Network (ASPnet), UNESCO
Ice breaker speed dating (10min)
You join a breakout room with 2-3 other participants to meet and get to know each other. Share yourname, country and what actions for the environment you have taken in your school and community.
Small breakout group discussions (35min)
Select a breakout room to exchange more in-depth with one of the environmental journalists. Ask thejournalist any question you have based on the panel discussion and the topics treated (e.g. positiveenvironmental journalism, greenwashing…). Share actions that you have taken for the environment
in your school and community. Share your ideas for an article, a photo story or video reportage togain feedback from the journalist. Discuss challenges you are encountering to understand or treat a
specific environmental topic to get the journalist’s insights.
Report back to plenary (15min)
Share your key insight from your breakout room with everyone else via mentimeter.
Closing Day II (10min)•Katja Anger-Delimi, Unit for the UNESCO Associated Schools Network (ASPnet), UNESCO

Day 3: Thursday 15 February 2024
13:30 – 15:30

Taking global collaborative action
Day III will allow you and other students and teachers to share your actions and learnings for theenvironment with each other and to celebrate global collaborative action for the environment.
Welcome Day III (10min)•Julie Saito, International Coordinator, UNESCO Associated Schools Network (ASPnet)

Small breakout group discussions (1h)
You will join 3 consecutive breakout groups a 20min to share and exchange on your actions andlearnings for the environment based on the activities you and your peers have organised in yourschool, homes and communities. You can either use your own 5min PPT with photos to present youractions and learnings or simply use the collaborative artwork to show and share your activities.
•Moderators: Teachers from community of practice

Celebration of global collaborative action & joint commitment to continue to act for theenvironment (35min)
Share your key insights from your breakout rooms, celebrate global collaborative action and committo making further positive handprints of care for our environment by taking a group picture withyour right hand up pledging “I put my hand up for the environment, I take environmental action”.
•Moderator: Katja Anger-Delimi, UNESCO Associated Schools Network (ASPnet)

Closing Day III (15min)•Lee Wray-Davis, Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE)

Global Student Forum