CASW to present workshop on covering climate and health Nov. 8

Application deadline extended to Friday, August 16.

Journalists who cover topics at the intersection of climate change and health are invited to apply to attend a full-day pre-conference workshop to be presented in Raleigh, N.C., on November 8, in connection with ScienceWriters2024.

The workshop, “Living and working on a hot planet: Reporting on climate change and human health,” will be presented by the Council for the Advancement of Science Writing. Thanks to a grant from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund, CASW is able to provide up to $1,200 in support for travel and accommodation expenses, along with complimentary ScienceWriters conference registration, to journalists attending the workshop. General conference sessions on climate and health topics are planned for November 9 and 10.

There is a fixed pot of funds for travel expense support. Interested journalists should apply via Submittable by August 16.

Organized by CASW New Horizons in Science Program Director Amber Dance, the workshop will provide a deep dive into new scientific evidence and emerging policy issues linking climate and health, examining heat’s role throughout the life course with a special focus on the workplace. Speakers include top researchers in the field and experienced journalists covering climate and health. Attendees will leave prepared to find and report untold or undercovered stories where climate and health intersect.

Experts will help participants explore journalistic techniques and resources for telling climate-health-connection stories and mining data sources. After participants meet over dinner on Nov. 7, selected journalists will join early-career reporters participating in the National Science-Health-Environment Reporting Fellowships program for a full day of presentations, panel discussions, and a hands-on session.

The workshop will be opened to early-arriving conference attendees in the afternoon. Space will be limited, so interested ScienceWriters2024 attendees are encouraged to register for a space when general conference registration opens August 21. ScienceWriters 2024 is co-organized by CASW, the National Association of Science Writers, and the Science Communicators of North Carolina.

Program outline

Morning and Lunch Sessions

Keynote: Life Course Effects of Climate Change, from Pregnancy and Birth through Adulthood and Aging Kristie L. Ebi, professor of global health and of environmental and occupational health sciences, University of Washington

Heat and Toxins Intersect to Damage Kidneys in Sri Lanka Nishad Jayasundara, Juli Plant Grainger assistant professor of global environmental health, Duke University

Data Mining and Attribution Science: A Hands-On Workshop Zoya Teirstein, staff writer, Grist David Herring, division chief, Climate Program Office, NOAA

Open Afternoon Sessions

Regulations and Protections (or the Lack Thereof) for Workers in Hot Conditions Nicolás Rivero, climate solutions reporter, The Washington Post, moderator Ashley Ward, director, Heat Policy Innovation Hub, Duke University Clermont Ripley, co-director, Workers’ Rights Project, North Carolina Justice Center Neza Xiuhtecutli, senior grassroots advocacy coordinator, National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition

Implementation Science in the Face of Climate Change Lee Newman, Distinguished Professor and director of the Center for Health, Work & Environment, University of Colorado School of Medicine

Climate Change Means Health Changes: How Journalists Can Tackle the Links Linda Marsa, journalist, author, and teacher, author of Fevered: Why a Hotter Planet Will Hurt Our Health — And How We Can Save Ourselves, moderator Kathryn Thier, postdoctoral fellow, Center for Climate Change Communication, George Mason University Kristie Ebi Neza Xiuhtecutli Nicolás Rivero

Apply to attend