Sustainable Development Goals in Journalism Reporting

#SUSTAINABLE

Nottingham Advantage Award (NAA) Course

NAA course: Reporting Sustainable Development Goals (Level I)

The intensive module introduces up-to-date concepts and best practices in SDGs journalism. This will involve discussing the role of journalism in raising awareness of SDGs and analysing key issues and challenges in reporting SDGs in a fluid contemporary society. It consists of two main parts – content and multimedia platform. Content-wise, the module covers topics such as SDGs and environment, SDGs and city, and SDGs and economy. Platform-wise, the module covers SDGs and data journalism, SDGs and social media, and SDGs and mobile journalism (MoJo). In today’s rapidly changing and converging media environments, it is essential to integrate SDGs principles and digital technology. Therefore, this module will engage students and journalists in discussions and analysis of pressing issues and challenges in reporting SDGs and exploring the best ways to champion SDGs in the global and digital era. Examples and case studies will draw from China and other countries. 

NAA Course: Reporting Sustainable Development Goals (Level II) 

Reporting Sustainable Development Goals (Level II) has been successfully launched at the University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC). As part of the Nottingham Advantage Award (NAA) program, the course has 74 registered students. Commencing from March 2023, eight distinguished experts, who are all highly claimed in their field from both the university campus and the world, have been invited to deliver lectures on how to report SDGs news.  

The course started with an overview given by Dr Shixin Ivy Zhang on 1st March. Dr Zhang covered fundamental concepts, course outline, timetable, delivery, and assessment. Dr Xiaoge Xu gave the second session on 8th March. He offered his ideas and suggestions on enhancing SDGs reporting and responding. On 15th March, invited by Dr Nancy Liu, Dr Steven Huang, a professional interpreter at the United Nations, opened the world of conference interpreting at the UN to the students. Dr Altman Yuzhu Peng discussed the interplay of post-socialist gender politics within China's digital public sphere on 22nd March. On 29th March, Mr Andrew McEwen offered valuable guidance on the art of English commentary, encompassing interviews, language shortcuts, and writing tips. Dr Zhaoyu Zhu delved into strategies for utilizing short journalistic videos to engage with topics surrounding environmental sustainability, well-being, and equality on 12th April. On 19th April, Dr Tengwen Long focused on the fundamental principles of ecological change science. Finally, on 26th April, Mr Zhenyang Li explored the impact of new media technology on journalism, shedding light on the challenges traditional news organizations and journalists face in the current world.

The course has received high acclaim from the students. A student commented in the evaluation form that the course highlights the value of experts’ shared expertise and experience, stating, "The introduction from experts that major in various sectors help me to get a basic or better understanding on these areas." 

Professional Training for Journalists

Sustainable Development Goals News and Innovative Reporting Workshop Series, the first in China, has been launched for Chinese journalists. Starting on March 18th, this workshop series offers its weekly online one-hour workshop on Saturdays (March 18th to May 20th). Leveraging Teams as the platform to host all the training materials and discussions and Tencent Meeting for virtual workshops, this series has enrolled 58 journalists out of 129 registered individuals.

The workshop series is designed to enhance the reporting skills of Chinese working journalists in reporting sustainable development goals, enabling them to convey information related to these goals effectively. The workshop series is divided into two parts. The first part covered an overview of sustainable journalism, issues, experience, challenges, and practices associated with reporting on sustainable development goals. The second part explored the application of data, multimedia, immersive technologies, games, and mobile applications in reporting on sustainable development. Through analyzing industry case studies and sharing academic research findings, the workshop series provided participants with the latest knowledge and best practices in sustainable development goal reporting.

The workshop series was offered free of charge and took place every Saturday from 3 pm to 4 pm. Participants were required to submit sustainable development goal news reporting projects before receiving a certificate of completion upon fulfilling the training requirements.

SDGs Journalism Summer School

From 30 May to 3 June 2022, the “SDGs Journalism Summer School (SJSS)” was held at University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC). Forming part of the EU Erasmus+ SDGs Journalism Reporting Project (2020-2023) led by Dr Shixin Ivy Zhang from the School of International Communications, this one-week-long intensive course is a test-run for the future delivery of a Nottingham Advantage Award (NAA) on Reporting SDGs in the academic year 2022-2023. The objective of SJSS is to help students understand the important role journalism plays in achieving the United Nations’ SDGs goals, as well as knowledge and skills in producing multimedia news reports. A total of 24 students from three Faculties (FHSS, FOB, FOSE) participated in this interdisciplinary course.

 Photo taken by Yiben Ma 

SDGs Journalism Winter Workshop

University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC) successfully held an SDGs Journalism Winter Workshop on 10 January 2023. The Winter Workshop is part of the "Sustainable Development Goals in Journalism Reporting" (SDGsJR) project funded by EU Erasmus+. Five UNNC professors taught at the online workshop, which brought 51 students from eight universities. During the workshop, five professors from Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences (FHSS), Centre for English Language Education (CELE), and Faculty of Science and Engineering (FoSE) delivered five lectures. They are 'Introduction to SDG Journalism', 'Localising SDGs', 'Sustainable Cities and Communities', "Communicating the SDGs", and "Communicating SDGs Stories, the Innovative Way". The Winter Workshop, taught in English, enabled students from Xiamen University, Chongqing University, Lanzhou University, Suzhou University, Beijing Normal University - Hong Kong Baptist University United International College, Ningbo University, NingboTech, and Zhejiang Wanli University to obtain the latest knowledge and skills to enhance SDGs news reporting. In the evaluations, this workshop received 4.78 out of 5 from the participants. Students praised the course's innovative thinking, English context, and presentation mode, and some looked forward to participating in the offline sessions.

Exhibition during UNNC Environmental Sustainability Week

During the University of Nottingham Ningbo China Environmental Sustainability Week (UNNC ES Week) from 20th March to 24th March, the Sustainable Development Goals in Journalism Reporting (SDGsJR) team organized a captivating and interactive digital exhibition. This exhibition highlighted the core concepts of SDGsJR and past accomplishments of the UNNC SDGsJR Team, showcasing interactive assignments created by students and displayed on large electronic screens.

Through these captivating assignments, students expressed their concerns and contributions to the SDGs in unique and innovative ways. Their remarkable creativity and unwavering enthusiasm were seamlessly integrated into multimedia presentations. These reports encompassed diverse aspects of the Sustainable Development Goals, encompassing areas such as gender equality, hunger eradication, education, and environmental protection. The exhibition drew a substantial number of students who eagerly engaged in viewing and discussing the displays, igniting a profound interest in the SDGs.

Study Visit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

From 15 to 20 May, five members of the UNNC SDGsJR Team were invited to participate in a study visit meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. This study visit meeting involved eight universities: University of Santiago de Compostela (USC), University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC), Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu (LBUS), National University of Battambang (NUBB), Royal University of Phnom Penh (RUPP), Universiti Malaya (UM), University Utara Malaysia (UUM), and Shenzhen Polytechnic (SZPT).

On 15 May, the group attended the SDGsJR Project Opening meeting, followed by the SDG Symposium meeting on the theme "Communicating the SDGs for Effective Partnerships." The following day, all university members convened for a consortium meeting to report on the project's progress, share encountered challenges, and discuss the way forward. On 17 May, the group embarked on a tour of the UM campus, KLCC, Petronas Twin Tower, and Putrajaya city. On 18 May, NUBB led a meeting on the progress of the course. Afterwards, NGS presented how to use the project platform in a workshop. In the afternoon of the same day, there was a discussion on finances through an online meeting with the USC Office. On the last day, the group visited the Research Unit and the Faculty of Languages and Linguistics of the Universiti Malaya. Then there was a meeting and greeting session with SDG course instructors and students, followed by the closing session of the study visit.

During the visit, the UNNC team shared the progress of the SDGsJR project with other partner universities, received praise for what we have achieved and gained clarity on the way forward, which will help to continue the effective implementation of the SDGsJR project in China.

The Sustainable Development Goals Journalism Conference
(UNNC Study Visit)

The Sustainable Development Goals Journalism Conference (UNNC Study Visit) was held at UNNC from 4 to 8 September 2023.

Hosted by UNNC and co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union, this international conference was the first ever conference that dedicates to the role of news media and media practitioners in promoting the UN’s sustainable development goals (SDGs).

The conference gathered over 50 academics from Spain, Romania, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Cambodia and China. Most participants are working and collaborating on the EU’s Erasmus+ SDGs Journalism Reporting Project. China was the last leg of study visits before the four-year-long Erasmus+ project concludes in November 2023.

At the opening ceremony on the 4th Sep., Prof. Giapaolo Buticchi, Interim Vice Provost for Research and Knowledge Exchange, UNNC, and Prof. Óscar Rodil Marzábal, the Principal Investigator of Erasmus+ SDGs Journalism Reporting Project, University of Santiago de Compostela, delivered opening speeches. Then, three keynote speakers, Prof. Xiaoge Xu, the founder of Mobile Studies International and Mobile Studies Congress, Associate Prof. Liang Chen from Tsinghua University, and Prof. Peter Berglez from Örebro University, Sweden, gave talks on Rescue SDGs Storytelling, the Mobile Way, Environmental Communication in the AI Era, and What is Sustainable Journalism? Theoretical Challenges and Practical Opportunities respectively.

In the following days, the Erasmus+ project consortium meetings were held for all partner universities to report on the project's progress, to share their experiences and challenges, and to discuss the way forward.  Cultural events and UNNC campus tour were organized as well. Participants visited the Tianyi ancient library and the Nantang old street for a taste of the local culture in Ningbo. They also visited UNNC's e-classrooms, Innovation and Enterprise building, incubators, digital labs, the award-winning Center for Sustainable Energy Technologies, and the new library.

End of the SDGsJR programme

On 14 November 2023, the four-year Sustainable Development Goals in Journalism Reporting (SDGsJR programme) drew to an end. Funded by the European Union's Erasmus programme, the programme was carried out by a consortium of eight institutions in six countries - Spain, Romania, Luxembourg, Cambodia, China and Malaysia - with the University of Nottingham Ningbo as a key member of the team. Over the course of four years, the eight universities have worked together to explore the diverse possibilities of reporting on sustainability and to develop a journalism curriculum that is in line with the concept of sustainable development.

• The principal activity of the programme is the creation, testing and adaptation of a 6/12-month journalism reporting course, that will be a collection of programs and contents designed to help prepare journalists, analysts and journalism students for working in a changing environment. During the process, challenges of local developmental has been high on the agenda.
• SDGs Research Units have been established in the higher education institutions (HEIs) that provide relevant equipment and free access to information, statistics and tools for data processing, analysis, as well as monitoring of indicators to track progress of SDGs.
• The development of an online digital reporting platform helps to promote and support lifelong learning and will strengthen the links between the academic and journalistic labour environments.
• This programme has developed vocational courses for academic staff delivering journalism reporting courses as well as building the capacity of academic staff from the rest of the faculty.
• The creation of synergies and support for networking and partnerships among academics, journalists and other relevant stakeholders will be of great value in creating high-quality reporting, prioritising the SDGs on national agendas, and raising public awareness.

 

SDGs Journalism Reporting Project Team

University of Nottingham Ningbo China
199 Taikang East Road, Ningbo, 315100, China

E. SDGJournalism@nottingham.edu.cn
W. https://www.journalism-reporting.eu/

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