16 Journalists Win Fellowships to Report from COP31 in Antalya

Sixteen journalists from 15 countries have won COP31 journalism fellowships to report on location from the UN climate conference in Antalya, Türkiye, this November — a push to bring frontline climate reporting, and for the first time independent creator journalists, into the heart of the negotiations. The Climate Change Media Partnership (CCMP) fellowships were announced by Internews’ Earth Journalism Network (EJN), Informed Earth and the Stanley Center for Peace and Security.

The fellows will attend the full two weeks of the talks, from November 9–20, 2026, taking part in orientation activities, daily briefings, interviews with high-level officials and networking events. According to the organizers, they will be guided by seasoned climate journalists and trainers, while a companion programme will support a further group of fellows reporting remotely from their home countries, with a focus on oceans.

FAKTA

• Programme: Climate Change Media Partnership (CCMP) COP31 Reporting Fellowships
• Organizers: the Earth Journalism Network (an Internews project), Informed Earth and the Stanley Center for Peace and Security
• Fellows: 16 journalists from 15 countries, chosen from more than 500 applications
• Where and when: COP31 in Antalya, Türkiye, November 9–20, 2026
• First: two independent creator journalists join the CCMP cohort this year
• Trainers: Joydeep Gupta (India), Fermín Koop (Argentina) and Imelda Abaño (Philippines)

Who won the fellowships

The 16 fellows are Anandabhuwana (Indonesia), Angelica Maria Daza Romero (Colombia), Aparna Bose (India), Aria Deemie (Liberia), Hammad Sarfraz (Pakistan), Lerato Tshilidzi Ida Mutsila (South Africa), Maria de los Ángeles Graterol Camacho (Venezuela), Maria Vasileva Petrova-Galabova (Bulgaria), Nadia Soledad Luna (Argentina), Nathalie Iriarte Villavicencio (Bolivia), Nkoli Lovelyn Omhoudu (Nigeria), Noel Charles Piringi (Solomon Islands), Ontomwa Francis Gekuno (Kenya), Shaikh Shahrukh Farhan (Bangladesh) and Zenebe Hailu Gemechu (Ethiopia) — plus one fellow from China who asked to remain anonymous. According to the organizers, all are attending and covering a COP for the first time, and all were selected by a panel of international judges after two rounds of review and interviews.

Pakistan and South Asia represented

Hammad Sarfraz of Pakistan is among the fellows, alongside Aparna Bose from India and Shaikh Shahrukh Farhan from Bangladesh. Noel Charles Piringi is the only journalist from the Solomon Islands in the cohort — a small island developing state on the front line of sea-level rise and extreme weather, according to local reporting on his selection.

Independent creator journalists join for the first time

For the first time, two independent creator journalists will be part of the CCMP cohort — journalists not affiliated with a news outlet who use journalistic practices and content-creation techniques to deliver climate news to their audiences on social media platforms. “As part of our ongoing Earth Shorts program, we are increasingly bringing traditional journalists and creator journalists together to learn from each other, and from expert trainers,” said EJN Executive Director James Fahn. “It’s exciting to be working with the CCMP on similar efforts to help improve coverage of the climate COP.”

A partnership going back to 2007

The CCMP was formed in 2007 by EJN, Panos London and the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) to enable journalists from low- and middle-income countries to attend and report from the annual UN climate summits. Since then, the programme has supported more than 550 journalists to report on location from the annual talks. This year marks the eighth time the Stanley Center and EJN have collaborated on the fellowship programme, and the first time working in partnership with Informed Earth.

Why local journalists at COP matter

According to the organizers, audiences and media houses benefit from having local journalists present who can contextualize the negotiations and cover the most relevant stories for their countries and communities, rather than relying only on broader international wire services. “Each year, the CCMP attracts outstanding climate journalists from around the world, who come together for two intense weeks of the COP, learning alongside peers and producing important stories for their audiences back home,” said CCMP co-organizer Devon Terrill of the Stanley Center’s journalism and media team. “This year’s cohort is truly impressive and we can’t wait to see them in action.”

What the fellows will cover

COP31’s hosts, Türkiye and Australia, want to emphasize a shift from talk to action at this year’s event, with key targets around electrification, zero waste and resilient cities. According to the organizers, the journalists will have front-row seats on talks about the equitable implementation of climate infrastructure and funding adopted at previous negotiations, as well as progress on climate mitigation and adaptation targets.

For more on the profession behind the climate story, see our climate journalism coverage. Sources: the Earth Journalism Network; Environment Media (Isles Media).