The European Journalism Centre (EJC) is proud to announce the winners of the 2024 Climate Journalism Award, which celebrates outstanding reporting on climate change and its effects. The award ceremony, held at the News Impact Summit in Copenhagen, recognised the best in innovative and impactful climate journalism, showcasing the role of the media in driving climate action and raising public awareness about the climate crisis.
Winners of the 2024 Climate Journalism Award
The winners, chosen from hundreds of submissions, represent a diverse range of climate journalism that spans different formats and approaches to storytelling. The award’s categories include Data-driven Visualisation, Fighting Climate Misinformation, Pinpoint Award for Investigations, Storytelling & Solutions, and Emerging Talent. Each category highlights a different facet of climate reporting, from investigative pieces to visual storytelling, and aims to encourage journalists to address the climate crisis with creativity and urgency.
- Data-driven Visualisation: Hot nights by Süddeutsche Zeitung explores the growing threat of rising temperatures across Europe, shedding light on the societal and economic impacts of extreme heat events.
- Fighting Climate Misinformation: How big finance greenwashes climate crisis culprits by VoxEurop uncovers how large corporations and financial institutions use misleading environmental claims to distract from their role in the climate crisis.
- Pinpoint Award for Investigations: Greenwashing made in Europe by Michelin and BNP Paribas in Indonesia by VoxEurop reveals how European companies like Michelin and BNP Paribas have been involved in environmental greenwashing practices that harm both people and the planet.
- Storytelling & Solutions: In the Swedish Arctic, a battle for the climate rages by Coda and The Economist highlights the conflict between climate change and the local communities in the Swedish Arctic, blending human stories with environmental challenges.
- Emerging Talent: Santander arranged billion-dollar oil bond after making a green pledge by The Bureau for Investigative Journalism dives into how financial institutions continue to fund fossil fuel projects despite making public commitments to sustainability.
Each winner received a cash prize of €2,400, recognising their contributions to climate journalism. These stories are critical in shaping the public’s understanding of climate change, and their innovative approaches have played an essential role in challenging the status quo and advocating for systemic change.
The Power of Climate Journalism
Lars Boering, Director of the European Journalism Centre, remarked, “The goal of the award is to highlight the critical role of journalism in addressing the climate crisis. These winning stories exemplify how journalists can use their platform to inform, educate, and advocate for meaningful change. The work demonstrated by this year’s winners is a testament to the power of climate journalism as a public service.”
The 2024 Climate Journalism Award received 197 eligible entries from 24 countries, all of which showed exceptional engagement with climate issues. The awards continue to inspire more journalists to bring climate stories to the forefront, ensuring the issue remains central in global media coverage.
Partnership with Google News Initiative
The Climate Journalism Award is organised in collaboration with the Google News Initiative, reflecting both organisations’ commitment to promoting high-quality journalism that addresses climate issues. The initiative seeks to spur media organisations to give greater attention to climate-related reporting, while also fostering innovation in how these stories are told.
The Role of Journalists in Climate Action
The awards and the News Impact Summit highlighted the essential role of journalists in combating climate misinformation and promoting action. By documenting both the challenges and solutions around climate change, these journalists play a crucial part in shaping public opinion and influencing policy change. This year’s awards have set a benchmark for the future of climate journalism, one that will continue to inspire and inform on this critical issue.
