Skip to the content
We live in a world grappling with complex environmental challenges. As a journalist, I’ve always believed in the power of words and stories to make a difference. Journalism is not just about reporting facts; it’s about shining a light on issues that are often hidden in the shadows.
In the context of environmental crises, journalism plays a crucial role. By raising awareness, informing key decision-makers, improving transparency and accountability, and inspiring action, journalism acts as a catalyst for change. Mongabay’s strategy is to assemble a collaborative journalism network at multiple scales to help meet the challenge during this pivotal decade.
Our journalism is most impactful when audiences understand new information and use it to make better decisions. In this way, each of the stories we’ve published is an opportunity to have an impact from the individual level, such as a personal choice, to as big as a societal response to halt imminent deforestation.
When I started Mongabay, my goal was simple: to inform people about tropical rainforests and inspire them to care about their fate. In short, I wanted to make an impact, not money. And I quickly discovered that I’m not alone in this because sharing knowledge through stories can inform, inspire and sustain effective action worldwide.
But I certainly never imagined the scale of growth that would unfold over the next 25 years and the impacts that we would collectively achieve.
Today, we have more than 100 staff and 1,000+ contributors who report from Nature’s frontline. As a global newsroom, Mongabay makes science accessible on a wide range of topics and elevates the voices and knowledge of people directly impacted by environmental change.
From this vantage point, we can see that addressing the global environmental crises of climate change and biodiversity loss is daunting. We are bombarded with alarming statistics and predictions that often lead to despair. These numbers are staggering and can easily lead to feelings of hopelessness and inaction.
Mongabay documents this degradation and destruction daily. It can take a toll. However, every problem presents an opportunity for a solution. Responding to the planetary emergency necessitates sustained and collective action worldwide premised on accurately conveyed facts.
At Mongabay, we are increasingly using solutions journalism as a mechanism to approach these environmental crises through the lens of potential solutions. We need stories that go beyond the doom and gloom to explore effective, innovative strategies that make a real difference. Hope and optimism are powerful motivators, and maintaining them in the face of daunting challenges is crucial because they fuel the creativity required for new technologies, strategies and approaches.
An example that demonstrates how journalism can directly contribute to positive change in the world comes from Gabon, after Mongabay reported on the plight of the Massaha community, whose ancestral forest was slated to be logged by a Chinese company.
Our story rallied public awareness of the situation, garnering the attention of the country’s environment minister, who visited the site and revoked the company’s permit, setting in motion the forest’s permanent protection. The decision was important because it was the first time an area will be declared protected in Gabon at the request of the resident community. Now in our 25th year, I’m more optimistic than ever before about our capacity to contribute to real-world progress, whether it’s inspiring action or shedding light on the often uncomfortable truths that are necessary for change.
This example from Gabon illustrates the profound impact that journalism can have on environmental conservation. It serves as a testament to the power of informed storytelling in driving positive change and highlights the critical role that Mongabay plays in this process.
Now in our 25th year, I’m more optimistic than ever before about our capacity to contribute to real-world progress, whether it’s inspiring action or shedding light on the often uncomfortable truths that are necessary for change.
This text is a abbreviated version of the “founders message” from the beginning of the annual report. It incorporates text from the lecture I gave at the Biophilia Award ceremony in February.
