Announcing a Journalism Contest: The Best Coverage of Conservation in the Caucasus Region

Open to all media: print, radio and television journalists from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Russia for stories on conservation issues published or broadcast between July 1, 2006 and June 30, 2007.
 
First prize: $1 000, a plaque and certificate of recognition;
Second Prize: $ 500, a plaque and certificate of recognition;
Third Prize: $ 200, a plaque and certificate of recognition;
 
Stories may be submitted in any language. Contest organizers will translate entries into Russian for judging. Radio and television stories may be submitted on compact disks accompanied by written scripts. Print entries should be delivered as electronic files. Each applicant can submit no more than 2 stories;
 
Distinguished journalists from each country of the region will evaluate stories and select the winners. An announcement of the winners and the best stories from the Caucasus will be posted on the Internet Web site of the Biodiversity Reporting Awards, together with winners from countries in Latin America and Africa. The winners will be brought to Tbilisi to receive their awards at a ceremony in October, 2007.
 
The contest and journalism training on this topic are administered by the International Center for Journalists, Washington, D.C., USA, with local partners led by CCFJ. These activities to encourage better coverage of the conservation of biodiversity in the region are sponsored by the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF), a joint venture of the Global Environment Facility, the Government of Japan, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and Conservation International.

Questions? Contact Tiniko Dvalishvili at CCFJ, +995 (99) 58 55 71

Caucasus School of Journalism and Media Management
The Caucasus School of Journalism and Media Management (CSJMM) offers a two-year, accredited Master's level degree for up to 23 students from Georgia, Azerbaijan and Armenia. The goal is to strengthen the role of independent media in the emerging democratic societies of Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan through a high-quality graduate program in journalism based on principles of democratic governance with an emphasis on fact-based, investigative reporting and modern media management techniques.

Caucasus Center for Journalism
The Caucasus Center for Journalism is a registered Georgian non-profit organization with an office in Tbilisi and is the successor to ICFJ's now-completed ProMedia program. CCFJ will allow ICFJ to continue to work with Georgian, Azeri and Armenian print media professionals assisted under the ProMedia program and to offer training to underserved or neglected regional print media. The Caucasus Investigative Reporting Center (www.circ.ge) was established at CCFJ in 2005 under leadership of Knight International Press Fellow Jody McPhillips with a grant from the Eurasia Foundation.

Armenian School of Journalism
The Armenian School of Journalism, a two-year international master's degree program at Yerevan State University, aims to promote free, independent and professional media in Armenia through quality Western-style educational and training programs in journalism and media management. Students are being trained to assume news and management positions at newspapers, news agencies, broadcast outlets and Web-based publications. The journalism faculty and curriculum are provided by the International Center for Journalists with cooperation from Louisiana State University and Kent State University. The program is funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

Trafficking in Persons: Georgia
August 14, 2003 - August 31, 2004
A program to train journalists in techniques for covering the growing problem of trafficking in persons. This will be a two-stage program beginning with a workshop for 24 Gerogian journalists in Tbilisi, Georgia, and concluding with a second workshop in Warsaw, Poland. The Warsaw workshop will include 12 participants from the Georgia training and 12 from Azerbaijan who will have participated in a similar ICFJ program in Baku.

Investigative Reporting Development in Armenia
Ten Armenian journalists spend four weeks in the United States learning about investigative reporting. This program includes a week-long program in Washington, D.C., a two-week newsroom attachment, and one week in New York. They then return to Armenia to complete their investigative projects with the support of two American trainers.

International Journalism Exchange
Ten foreign editors will spend five weeks in the United States to learn about newspaper management. The program will include a five-day course in Washington, D.C., a month-long newsroom attachment and three days in New York City.
More information
Application Deadline: June 1

Scripps Howard Semester in Washington Internship Program
ICFJ brings three journalism students per year to participate in the Scripps Howard Semester in Washington internship program. ICFJ brings one student to Washington for the spring, summer and fall sessions.
More information
Application Deadlines: October 1, March 1 and June 1