Lia Ciutac, who is currently a SAJ student, and Dorin Galben, a SAJ graduate, are two of the eight winners of the contest ‘Awards for Environmental Journalism’ organized by the Association of Journalists Covering Environmental Issues and Ecological Tourism in Moldova. The two reporters won the awards for online and printed media for publishing articles in the newspaper ‘Timpul’.

The goal of the contest was to stimulate the journalists covering environmental topics to address their topics with a maximal level of professionalism; 47 works were contributed by 20 reporters. Lia Ciutac, a current SAJ student, entered the contest by contributing an article about illegal car washes on the bank of the Bic river in Chisinau (http://www.timpul.md/articol/spalatoriile-ilegale-transforma-bacul-intr-o-adevarata-bomba-ecologica-73585.html). She sees her award as a stimulus to continue writing about ecology.

‘I applied to the contest because I am aware how important it is to cover such topics. We, the journalists, must signal the problems and thus educate the people, so as they care for nature. At first glance, the issues concerning the water we drink, the soil that gives us food or the air we need every day are not that important. But we must understand that, year after year, their quality is worsening and the people are to be blamed most for it... Each of us can contribute to positive changes in the short term and long term, and am going to talk about it in my future publications,’ said Lia Ciutac.

Dorin Galben, who has graduated from SAJ in 2013, contributed three materials to the contest. He gained a diploma of merit for the article ‘The Water in the Wells Is Killing Us Slowly but Surely’ (http://www.timpul.md/articol/apa-din-fantani-ne-omoara-incet-dar-sigur-78773.html). ‘I have not written the articles solely for the contests; I wrote them because they covered matters of public interest that affect the Moldovan population. I am glad that more and more journalists contribute materials on ecology. I hope thus our voices would get louder and the authorities would take into account the warning signs brought to their attention by us. This diploma is partly the merit of the SAJ, as I gained necessary knowledge and skills at the course on Environmental Journalism,’ said Dorin Galben.

Environmental Journalism has been part of the curricula at the SAJ from the very beginning; it is taught during the second semester of studies. The module provides practical tools that enable students to identify and understand environmental issues. The discussions, presentations and field visits help identifying the main challenges faced by environmental journalists and ways of addressing them.