The concept for the Caribbean Environmental Reporters' Network was born out of a training workshop on media and the environment, convened in July 1990 in Jamaica. The Caribbean Environmental Network was formed later that year with membership including scientists and journalists who participated in the Panos/CARIMAC workshop. In November 1992 at a follow-up workshop in Barbados put on by Panos Washington, the Caribbean Institute of Mass Communication (CARIMAC) and the Caribbean Conservation Association (CCA) the concept was formally accepted by regional journalists.

The Caribbean Environmental Network (CEN) forerunner to CERN was merged with the new organisation. From the ten journalists that participated in the Barbados workshop, the network now has a membership of 35 journalists in 13 Caribbean states.

CERN works in collaboration with media houses across the region and its coverage of events provide these organisations with accurate, up-to-date coverage from a Caribbean and or a Third World. In association with Panos Washington, CERN works with journalists from other developing countries in a Third World Pool at major conferences like the United Nations Population Conference in Cairo in 1994. CERN was also sponsored by Panos to cover the AIDS conference in Geneva in 1999.

CERN offers:

Short-term training opportunities. CERN aims to host one regional gathering a year on a topic of timely interest within the area of environmental journalism. The membership of CERN, as well as other interested journalists are invited to participate in these courses. In this way, more and more reporters are either being introduced to environmental reporting, or are assisted in increasing their knowledge in specific areas.

Networking and information exchange with reporters with similar interests throughout the Caribbean.

Fellowships
In order to achieve broader media coverage of environmental events in the region, and establish collaboration between media houses, CERN facilitates the dispatching of reporters to international events around the world.

Participation in media production projects
CERN carries out production initiatives of environmental media materials. CERN produces a weekly radio magazine series on community environmental action in the Caribbean, entitled Island Beat. The10-minute programme is aired weekly on over 25 stations in 15 countries and is distributed through the CANA Satellite network .

Environmental award programmes
CERN is committed to working with regional and national awards schemes that will recognise excellence in environmental journalism, and contribute to continued training and exposure to environmental journalism.

The greenwire which started in 1993 continues courtesy of Panos, the Caribbean News Agency (CANA)/Reuters Newswire and Newsline CERN's news on the web is the newest initiative from our membership.

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