InvestigateWest has been invited to become a member of Local Media Association’s Covering Climate Collaborative. Only 22 newsrooms in the nation were chosen for this group, which includes digital, radio, and television stations.

“We’re thrilled to announce this group of newsrooms that are recognized for their commitment to reporting locally on the impacts of climate change,” said Frank Mungeam, LMA chief information officer. “Together, these newsrooms will focus on covering the impacts of climate change at the local level and reporting on ways communities can take action.”

The four partners representing climate in the West are: InvestigateWest, The Sacramento Bee, KGO-TV San Francisco (ABC7 News), and Southern California Public Radio. Journalists will focus on key climate-related issues in their region, collaborating on local coverage and exchanging content with reporting teams in their region and across the collaborative. The aim is to create a best-in-class collaborative that will localize and humanize the impacts of rising global temperatures, and to empower residents in those communities to take meaningful action.

InvestigateWest will also partner with Climate Matters in the Newsroom, a National Science Foundation-funded local climate reporting resources program produced by George Mason University, Climate Central, and Climate Communication, in association with NOAA, NASA, and journalism professional societies, including the Society of Environmental Journalists.

“InvestigateWest believes that climate change is one of the most important stories of our lifetimes, which is why the environment is one of three pillars of our reporting,” said Allison Augustyn, executive director of InvestigateWest. “As we focus even more on our Pacific Northwest communities, and solutions to better serve our audiences, we are grateful to collaborate with LMA and all partners in this project, and are excited for the innovations that we will undoubtedly discover by working together.” 

The Covering Climate Collaborative will draw on the LMA’s past success in supporting news collaboratives, including Word in Black, Solving for Chicago and the Oklahoma Media Center; a history of partnering with platform and tech companies; and strong relationships with 3,000 member media companies spanning all media platforms, serving audiences in markets large and small across the U.S.

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