There were many presentations from various experts during the camp. The one that stands out for me the most was delivered by a journalist, Mr Edwin David. He works for The Local newspaper which has as its strap line, ‘A unique perspective of the Nilgiris’. It was not just his interactive style of delivery, but also his first hand experience of the Nilgiris and the stories that he shared with us which made it so special.
Mr David gave an insight into the fundamentals of what makes a newsworthy story. This was pertinent for us climate champions as we have a story to tell. At schools, university campuses and local communities, young champions are pursuing projects to mitigate and combat climate change. From the conservation of a forest in Bangladesh to encouraging a move from plastic bag usage to fabric bags in Libya, ICC projects are making a difference on the ground all over the world. This social movement of young people needs to reach out to a wide audience.
Mr David shared a story of two poachers who between them killed 300 elephants. He showed a picture of an elephant that was ruthlessly hacked down. The image was shocking but it brought home the reality of wild animals being slaughtered recklessly for their hide, meat and ivory. He recently met the two poachers who began life by collecting wood in the forest and then moved onto killing elephants when the need to earn more money arose. This revealed wider socio-economical problems of poverty and lack of education which often lead such poachers into this illegal trade.
Mr David gave an insight into the fundamentals of what makes a newsworthy story. This was pertinent for us climate champions as we have a story to tell. At schools, university campuses and local communities, young champions are pursuing projects to mitigate and combat climate change. From the conservation of a forest in Bangladesh to encouraging a move from plastic bag usage to fabric bags in Libya, ICC projects are making a difference on the ground all over the world. This social movement of young people needs to reach out to a wide audience.
Mr David shared a story of two poachers who between them killed 300 elephants. He showed a picture of an elephant that was ruthlessly hacked down. The image was shocking but it brought home the reality of wild animals being slaughtered recklessly for their hide, meat and ivory. He recently met the two poachers who began life by collecting wood in the forest and then moved onto killing elephants when the need to earn more money arose. This revealed wider socio-economical problems of poverty and lack of education which often lead such poachers into this illegal trade.
Throughout his presentation, Mr David spoke passionately and ably conveyed the message that there is a journalist in all of us. My story to address climate change may inspire others if I pick up the pen and write about my efforts. My project is to work with British Bangladeshi youth raising their awareness and inspiring them to take action about Bangladesh as reportedly the ‘ground zero’ of climate change. It is predicted that by 2050, 17% of Bangladesh will disappear under water displacing at least 20 million people.
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