South Kivu, DRC – May 23, 2025 marks a turning point for environmental journalism in cross-border regions. After five days of intensive training, 16 journalists, including six women, were awarded certificates recognizing their newly acquired skills in environmental protection, reporting, and the fight against ecological crimes. The initiative, praised by all participants, stands as a milestone in the effort to safeguard endangered ecosystems.
Organized by the Action for the Promotion and Protection of Endangered Peoples and Species (APEM) in partnership with KilaloPress, the training aimed to strengthen the capacities of environmental bloggers and journalists in a region particularly vulnerable to biodiversity threats. Challenges such as lake pollution, illegal exploitation of natural resources, and mass deforestation—often cross-border in nature between the DRC, Rwanda, Burundi, and Uganda—are numerous and pressing.
Participants were trained by a multidisciplinary team composed of specialists and university professors. The program included environmental law, reporting techniques, field investigations, strategic advocacy, and community awareness. This theory-practice blend provided participants with a full immersion into real-world challenges.
Among the highlights of the training were several powerful expert interventions. Public interest lawyer and Executive Secretary of the Congolese Alert for the Environment and Human Rights (ACEDH), Maître Olivier Ndoole, emphasized the urgent need to protect wildlife and flora in the Virunga landscapes and the Kahuzi-Biega National Park (PNKB). He also highlighted the pivotal role journalist-bloggers must play in strategic climate litigation, urging them to be active agents of environmental justice.
From a complementary perspective, Angenong’a Robert, a national expert in journalist safety, educated the participants on using media technologies to trace illicit cross-border trafficking and protect their own safety—an essential topic for professionals frequently exposed to risks in the field.
The international civil society voice was represented by Vittoria Moretti, advocacy expert and campaign officer at Rainforest UK, who explained the critical role journalist-bloggers play in advocacy related to environmental crimes. She emphasized their unique ability to mobilize public opinion and influence local and international policy.
The following day, Dr. Cleo Mashini—a PhD in Law from Ghent University (Belgium), professor and vice-dean for research at the Faculty of Law at the National Pedagogical University (UPN), director of the Interdisciplinary Research Center on Environmental Law (CRIDE), researcher at the Human Sciences Research Center (CRESH), member of the IUCN’s World Commission on Environmental Law (WCEL), co-founder of JURISTRALE, and a practicing lawyer—provided the bloggers with legal foundations essential to reporting environmental crimes, particularly as violations intensify.
The final expert, Fla Gauthier Mujinga—legal expert, ecologist, environmental law researcher, specialist in sustainable development, member of the UN 2030 Agenda Observatory at CEIM-UQÀM (Canada), member of OMIRAS, researcher at Laval University’s ResODD network, and legal advisor at LMS—gave a compelling presentation on poaching in conflict zones, highlighting the links between insecurity, environmental crime, and cross-border trafficking.
By enhancing their skills, these newly trained environmental ambassadors are addressing a critical issue: the lack of specialization in environmental journalism in cross-border areas. This gap, often responsible for inadequate coverage of ecological issues, is now being bridged.
“We’ve learned how to document, investigate, expose, and most importantly, raise community awareness about the importance of preserving our natural heritage,” said Hélène Kipukila, a blogger at aupicinfo.com. She also stressed the need for advocacy journalism capable of pressuring authorities to adopt effective ecological policies.
Elie Cirhuza, a journalist with the agricultural and environmental media Mkulima.net, sees this training as a unique opportunity to enhance the impact of his audiovisual productions, which he now plans to focus on combating environmental crime. He aims to awaken the conscience of communities living near national parks and Lake Kivu, the region’s vital “nurturing mother,” now under threat.
This initiative also stands out for its cross-border dimension. By mobilizing journalists from South Kivu to monitor ecological violations in regions straddling multiple countries, it lays the groundwork for cooperation beyond national borders. This is essential, as ecological issues do not conform to administrative boundaries—pollution in Lake Tanganyika or Lake Kivu, deforestation in the Congo Basin, and trafficking of protected species demand coordinated responses.
Far from being just a workshop, this training was a space for transformation. These trained journalists are now key actors in environmental defense—capable of informing, training, exposing, mobilizing, and taking action.
During the closing ceremony, APEM’s local coordinator, Eddy Mugaruka, praised the participants’ commitment:
“You have demonstrated an admirable sense of responsibility. Use what you’ve learned in service of our endangered environment. The road is long, but together, we can make a difference.”
While the participants expressed pride and a firm commitment to becoming true ambassadors for the ecological cause, they also issued a call: for technical, material, and financial support to sustain the progress achieved through this training. They aim to continue their work in the field and produce high-quality content accessible to all segments of the population.
This training is part of a broader movement—a journalism committed to the planet. By equipping media professionals with the right tools, APEM and KilaloPress have strengthened a vital ecological solidarity network for the survival of transboundary ecosystems.
Through future reports, investigations, videos, blogs, and advocacy campaigns, these journalists will help raise awareness, expose environmental crimes, and propose sustainable solutions. South Kivu now boasts a new generation of environmental guardians—ready to write, film, and amplify the voice of nature.
A heartfelt congratulations to all the organizers, trainers, experts, and participants who made this ecological and human journey possible. History will remember that it was through the pen, the camera, and commitment that nature found new defenders.
By Patrick Babwine
