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The Society of Environmental Journalists Conference in Chicago and the Festival Gabo in Bogotá, highlighted how the global decline in freedom of expression is undermining environmental reporting at a time when reliable information is more essential than ever.
Protecting environmental journalists
At the 2026 Society of Environmental Journalists Conference (15-18 April, Chicago), the UNESCO report featured prominently during the plenary session, Protecting Environmental Journalists, Protecting the Planet: Safety, Support and Resilience.
Introduced by Kunda Dixit, author of the chapter on press freedom and environmental journalism, the session presented the alarming trends in attacks against journalists covering environmental issues to more than 400 environmental journalists gathered.
Since 2010, at least 46 environmental journalists have been killed, yet perpetrators have been convicted in only six of those cases. The report also notes that even greater numbers of environmental defenders and activists have lost their lives.
The discussion also focused on the growing mental health challenges faced by environmental reporters and the need for newsrooms to provide better support for journalists working under increasingly difficult conditions. Participants examined strategies to protect reporters from online abuse, coordinated trolling campaigns and strategic lawsuits intended to silence critical reporting.
The rise of “new denialism” and silencing of science
The conference highlighted the Report’s findings on growing attacks against climate scientists and the emergence of “new denialism.”
According to research by Global Witness cited in the UNESCO report, 39% of 486 climate scientists surveyed worldwide reported experiencing online abuse after publishing their findings. Many Australian scientists said the harassment had become so severe that they had stopped posting about their research on social media altogether.
The UNESCO report notes that climate denial content on social media doubled between 2021 and 2024. While traditional climate denial—the outright rejection of climate change—has declined, it is increasingly being replaced by “new denialism.” This newer form accepts that climate change is occurring but falsely argues that it is not primarily caused by human activity, that its impacts are beneficial, or that investments in renewable energy are unnecessary or wasteful.
The discussions also examined the role of major digital platforms in amplifying misinformation. As the Report argues, social media companies have shown limited willingness to curb climate misinformation because engagement-driven algorithms often reward sensationalism, conspiracy theories and denialist content.
Democratic backsliding weakens climate action
At the Festival Gabo (24-26 July, Bogota), Kunda Dixit joined Catalina Botero, author of the Chapter on “Journalism: Strengthening the Rule of Law”, to discuss the global decline in freedom of expression and its implications for climate journalism.
The Report identifies worrying trends, including declining freedom of expression, increasing media self-censorship, and weakening accountability mechanisms. Together, these developments reduce the ability of journalists to investigate environmental issues and hold governments and corporations accountable.
“At a time when societies need trusted information and strong democratic institutions to respond to the climate emergency, independent journalism is increasingly under pressure. Meanwhile, populist narratives that deny or distort climate science continue to gain visibility through algorithm-driven digital platforms,” said Kunda Dixit.
Yet, the report also highlights encouraging public support for climate action. Citing a survey across 77 countries, it notes that 80% of respondents support stronger government action to address climate change.
Investing in investigative journalism
Both conferences reinforced one of the UNESCO Report central conclusions: strengthening investigative journalism is essential to society’s ability to respond to the climate crisis. The report calls for greater investment in journalism that can expose environmental crimes, the corruption that enables them, and emerging challenges such as greenwashing and the manipulation of carbon credit markets.
It argues that journalists need the time, resources and expertise to investigate complex climate issues, explain scientific evidence, and counter misinformation. Governments, meanwhile, must ensure journalists can work safely by strengthening legal protections and preventing the misuse of lawsuits designed to intimidate or silence independent reporting.
As heat records continue to be broken, extreme weather events intensify, and polar ice melts at an accelerating pace, the Report concludes that protecting journalism is no longer simply about defending press freedom. It is about safeguarding the public’s right to reliable information, strengthening democratic accountability and enabling informed action on the defining challenge
read more: https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/protect-planet-we-need-protect-journalism-unesco-world-trends-report?hub=701
