February 17, 2025

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Equipping Journalism Students with Updated Curriculum on Environment Crucial for Addressing Climate Change

By Ange de la Victoire DUSABEMUNGU

In order to effectively address the pressing issue of climate change, Mr. Rushingabigwi Jean Bosco, Head of Media Sector Coordination at Rwanda Governance Board, emphasized the importance of equipping journalism students with updated Curriculum on the environment. This will enable them to publish stories and advocate for action on these critical issues.

Speaking on Solution Journalism earlier this week, Mr. Rushingabigwi explained that “When we talk about environment, for me it means life. Simply. Because everything is environment, starting by ourselves. Whether in our relationship to the flora and fauna as has been mentioned, but also as a beneficial result of the environment.”

He further added, “We are talking about solution journalism. But before we find solutions, I think we need to understand what are the issues. Because if you want to find the right solutions, you need to understand correctly, accurately, what are the issues at hand.”

Mr. Rushingabigwi also highlighted the importance of engaging the youth in environmental issues. He stated, “Just an example, in Rwanda today, as the previous census showed, we have a population which is younger. I think more than 60% are 30 years and less. How is this huge population living? Or do they understand environment? What is the best way to package information for them to understand and act?”

He emphasized the need for innovative ways of presenting information related to the environment in a manner that is attractive to the youth. “Everyone is using Mobile Phones. Everyone is on YouTube. Can we find a way of packaging that information related to the environment in a very interesting way, attractive to the youth?”

Mr. Rushingabigwi also called for a revamp of journalism curriculum to include practical training sessions on environmental reporting. He stated, “The way we package our curriculum needs also to change. We’ve been having three years of education, but is it practical? Is environment part of our curriculum? How do we package that training sessions?”

He emphasized the need for collaboration among academicians, decision makers, and media practitioners to effectively address environmental issues. He stated, “It will only work if we work together. Academicians, decision makers, media practitioners. Because, as I said, we need first to understand what is wrong with the environment.”

By equipping journalism students with updated curriculum on the environment and fostering collaboration among stakeholders, it is hoped that meaningful progress can be made in addressing climate change and promoting environmental sustainability.

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