Environmental Journalism Story Incubator

Are you an environmental journalist with a big reporting idea? What if you could tap into the expertise of a crack team of editors and leaders in data-driven reporting, narrative storytelling, visual journalism, audience engagement, and social media to make your work reach even further?

Apply to one of four slots at the Environmental Journalism Story Incubator at SEJ2026 in Chicago. This one-day workshop and mini-fellowship will give journalists the opportunity to build a plan for turning an idea-in-progress into a deeply reported project, in consultation with editors from publications such as bioGraphic Magazine, Sentient Media, Inside Climate News, Grist, and the Food and Environment Reporting Network, along with The Pulitzer Center and Covering Climate Now.

Applicants must be available to attend SEJ2026 for the full-day workshop on April 15.

New extended deadline: Applications are due by March 6 at 8pm EDT.

With financial support from Covering Climate Now and the Pulitzer Center, successful applicants will receive a $1,000 stipend and registration to the SEJ2026 conference April 16-18. Travel and lodging are not included.

We are accepting pitches on a wide range of environmental topics, with special interest in climate change, water and fisheries, biodiversity conservation, wildlife trafficking, zoonotic diseases, agricultural labor issues, animal welfare in agriculture, aquaculture, deforestation, food safety, and challenges affecting tribal nations and other indigenous communities.

Pitches should identify solutions or areas where progress, recovery, or resilience is possible. Investigative projects are also encouraged. Story ideas may come from any geographic region, but applications must be submitted in English. Cross-border projects and international reporting are welcome. One of the workshop slots is reserved for a project based at least partly in the Great Lakes or Midwest region.

Acceptance into the workshop does not guarantee a story contract or additional funding beyond the stipend.

Name*

First NameLast Name

Email*

example@example.com

Phone Number*

Please enter a valid phone number.Format: (000) 000-0000.

Resume (10MB limit)*

Clip 1*

Clip 2*

Clip 3*

Your Pitch (1,000 word max) (guidelines adapted from bioGraphic): (a) Make sure your pitch is about a story, not a topic. (b) Show us that you have a good sense of what the story is about—the main idea, the characters involved, where and when it takes place, and its narrative trajectory. (c) Explain why you think it’s important to tell this story now, and why you’re the right person to tell it. (d) Describe how you plan to report the story—who you plan to talk to and/or where you think you need to go to report the story properly. (e) What format or formats do you imagine for this story (written narrative, photography, video/film, audio, series, etc.), and how would it unfold in these formats?*

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Workshop Goals (300 word max) What would you like to achieve through this workshop? How would access to the collaborative resources, tools, and expertise provided there help boost the impact or strength of your story?*

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Form

Environmental Journalism Story Incubator

Please provide three URLs to samples of your related work