Deadline: January 6, 2026
Applications are open for the Earth Journalism Network (EJN) Forest Governance Story Grants 2025. EJN is offering reporting grants to journalists to support the production of in-depth stories on forest governance issues.
EJN is launching its new Forest Governance Media Initiative (FGMI) with a story grant call for journalists who wish to report on forest governance topics locally in Cameroon, Liberia, Ghana, Vietnam and Indonesia, as well as journalists in the UK, EU member states, China, India and Japan who wish to report on international forest governance processes.
This story grant opportunity will award up to 7 grants in total, with additional grant opportunities as the project continues. In addition to funding, selected journalists will receive support from experienced mentors through the story production process. This work is funded with UK International Development from the UK government.
Story Themes
They are interested in pitches focused on the following country-specific themes, though they will also accept applications for forest governance stories outside of these themes:
- Indonesia: Deforestation driven by oil palm plantations and mineral mining, IPLC land rights, forest law enforcement gaps, social forestry, the SVLK timber legality assurance system and FLEGT licensed timber.
- Vietnam: Timber trade, REDD+, implementation of the FLEGT Voluntary Partnership Agreement with the EU, benefit sharing for local communities.
- Cameroon: REDD+, community forestry, illegal logging and related activities, cocoa plantations and forest law enforcement.
- Liberia: Illegal logging, mining and deforestation, financial crimes, EU-Liberia directives and agreements.
- Ghana: Impacts of gold mining and cocoa production on forests, implementation of FLEGT licensing.
- International: International forest governance processes, trade relationships or policies that affect Indonesia, Vietnam, Cameroon, Liberia and Ghana, such as the EU Regulation on Deforestation-free Products (EUDR), REDD+, the Global Biodiversity Framework, etc.
They aim to support the production of stories that raise awareness about and contribute to forest governance processes such as legal reforms and policy implementation, and drive conversation among stakeholders at local, national, regional and international levels. Proposals that focus on topics or stories that have not been widely covered are preferred. Issues that have already received a lot of media coverage or don’t provide unique angles to forest governance challenges are unlikely to be selected.
Grants
- They expect to award 7 story grants with an average budget of 1,500 GBP each.
Eligibility
- Applicants can be from any country, but they are particularly interested in applications from journalists in Cameroon, Liberia, Ghana, Vietnam and Indonesia on the topics outlined above.
- They are also requesting applications from journalists worldwide who wish to report on international forest governance processes, trade relationships or policies that affect the five target countries listed above. For these proposals, they are especially interested in applications from journalists in the UK, EU member states (particularly Germany, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, France and Belgium), China, India and Japan.
- Groups of journalists are eligible. In the case of Cameroon and Vietnam, cross-border collaborations between journalists within and outside of these countries would also be acceptable. However, the application must be made in the name of one lead applicant. Lead applicants are responsible for communicating with EJN and receiving funds on the group’s behalf, if awarded.
- For the purposes of this grant opportunity, they will only be accepting applications in English. Unfortunately, they do not have the capacity to consider applications in other languages at this time. Applicants must either have a working understanding of English or have a translator available to assist with communication with Internews staff.
- Applications are open to journalists working in any medium (online, print, television, radio) and other expert media practitioners with professional reporting experience. They welcome applications from early-career journalists and experienced reporters with a track record of covering biodiversity, climate or forest issues. They encourage applications from freelance reporters and staff from all types of media organizations—international, national, local and community-based.
- Selected journalists will be expected to produce work in line with the project’s high-quality journalism standards, which include but are not limited to; the inclusion of marginalized sources, data, multimedia and other elements to be discussed and agreed during onboarding for this grant opportunity.
- Applicants are required to be transparent about the use of generative AI tools, if any, to revise their proposals. EJN reserves the right to disqualify applicants from consideration if they have been found to have engaged in unethical or improper professional conduct, including, but not limited to, submitting AI-generated content as their own.
Selection Criteria
Applicants should consider the following points when devising their story proposals.
- Relevance: Does the proposal meet the criteria and objectives of the call? Why does this story matter and to whom? Is the main idea, context and overall value to the target audience clearly defined?
- Angle: If the story has been covered, does your proposal bring new insights to the topic or offer a fresh angle?
- Reach: Does the proposed media outlet have a wide reach? Journalists publishing their work at outlets that typically restrict content behind paywalls are encouraged to secure commitments to publish from additional outlets, or request an exception to ensure their EJN-supported story remains accessible to audiences.
- Impact: Does the proposal have a compelling narrative that will inform and engage, draw attention, trigger debate and spur action?
- Innovative storytelling: The use of creative approaches, multimedia and data visualization will be considered a plus.
- Plan for timely publication: Reporters, whether freelance or employed at a media outlet, will need to include a letter of support from an editor in their application, committing to publish the stories by September 2026.
Application
For more information, visit Forest Governance Story Grants.
Jude Ogar is an educator and youth development practitioner with years of experience working in the education and youth development space. He is passionate about the development of youth in Africa.