Introduction
Biovision Africa Trust (BvAT) invites proposals from qualified and competent journalists to participate in the Call on Agroecology Journalism Challenge that aims at empowering journalists as catalysts for change in promoting agroecological practices.
About Biovision Africa Trust
Biovision Africa Trust (BvAT) is a not-for-profit organization established in Kenya in 2009 by the Biovision Foundation for ecological development in Switzerland and supported by the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (icipe) in Nairobi. The Trust’s goal is to alleviate poverty and improve the livelihoods of smallholder farmers in Kenya and other African countries through supporting dissemination of information and knowledge and building capacity for uptake of appropriate technologies to improve human, animal, plant, and environmental health. To achieve this, BvAT has four broad programmes through which the mission is unfolded. The Farmer Communication Programme (FCP), the Ecological Organic Agriculture Initiative (EOA-I), the Knowledge Centre for Organic Agriculture (KCOA) and the Agroecology Promotion Programme (APP). FCP has four (4) pathways through which Agroecology technologies and practices are disseminated via the Print (The Organic Farmer and Mkulima Mbunifu Magazines), the Radio (The Organic Farmer Radio), Online (Infonet) and the Outreach to reach smallholder farmers.
Scope of work
Biovision Africa Trust is inviting proposals aimed at strengthening capacity in the field of agroecology journalism. The selected 10 applicants will receive cash support for purposes of field expenses in content development. The applicants will be invited to present their ideas in a plenary before a team of experts to adjudicate the best three winning journalistic work. The winning applicant for broadcast/publication will be awarded a prize. The participating journalists are expected to use the grant towards content development on agricultural, environmental, food security and nutrition issues for journalists with great content ideas. This will help the media to convey technical information on important agroecology practices through effective reporting. The transition to agroecological farming practices is essential for achieving sustainable food systems, enhancing food security, mitigating climate change, and preserving biodiversity among other desirable outcomes.
Key Responsibilities:
- Develop and present engaging radio segments, interviews, and discussions that promote the theme of World Food Day.
- Create and post engaging content (images, videos, blogs, stories) that promotes the theme of World Food Day on platforms like Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Facebook, and YouTube.
- Use hashtags, tags, and other influencers to amplify the campaign’s reach and ensure maximum visibility.
- Track engagement metrics (likes, shares, comments) and provide a post-campaign performance report.
- Collaborate with our campaign team to incorporate key messages and statistics related to global food security and sustainability into broadcasts.
- Engage listeners through call-ins, social media interactions, and live discussions to foster community involvement and dialogue about hunger and nutrition.
- Promote relevant events, activities, and campaigns related to World Food Day across various radio platforms
- Monitor listener feedback and engagement, providing insights and performance reports to the campaign team.
Purpose
Informed media coverage is required to improve adoption, and to support greater awareness of the opportunities that embrace agroecology. The media can play a greater role in showcasing the various agroecological practices, technologies and innovations as well as bridge the gap between science and practice by highlighting the role of researchers and farmers in developing agroecology technologies. BvAT intends to support journalists that break new ground, showcases farmers’, researchers’ and extension officers’ experiences, insights and achievements in the realm of agroecology. BvAT will provide support to journalists to overcome barriers to agroecology content development by:
- Covering production costs such as travel expenses and providing linkages to resource persons to be interviewed.
- Offering training on agroecology principles, interviewing techniques, storytelling, and multimedia production during the inception workshop.
- Encouraging data-driven, investigative journalism that empowers farmers and other key stakeholders in the realm of agroecology to make informed decisions.
BvAT will accept no responsibility for the work produced or the conduct of the journalist but retains the right to use any material published for publicity and promotional
purposes. BvAT will always provide due accreditation to the journalist/author.
Proposal Application:
Interested journalist applicants are invited to submit proposals covering the following:
- How s/he will produce and publish media content in channels that will engage smallholder farmers. They are encouraged to re-publish their work in other
online platforms, including social media to engage with a wider and more diversified audience. - Experience in at least one of the following – writing, video/TV content production, presenting farmer radio programmes in Kiswahili, vernacular
languages and community radio stations demonstrating a commitment to agroecology and a track record of producing high-quality content. - Proposed fieldwork locations/regions and elaborate how s/he intends to involve farmers and Biovision Farmer Communication Outreach field staff. BvAT staff
are currently running farmer resource centres located in Central, Rift Valley, Lower Eastern or Western regions of Kenya. - Key assignment activities and timelines. The assignment will take a maximum of 1.5 months during which the journalist should complete field activities and
publish their work. A detailed budget breaking down costs of activities during content development.
Proposals on technologies and innovations produced by the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (icipe) are highly encouraged. A dissemination
workshop will be held with the applicants to showcase their journalistic work. A panel will adjudicate the presentations and select the best three who will be awarded
How to Apply
Interested journalists should submit the following:
- A succinct proposal in MS Word, outlining the story idea; what agroecology technology, practice or innovation will be covered, a detailed background and
relevance, and methodology indicating how and where the fieldwork will be undertaken. - A detailed budget of expected costs. Budget costs are not to exceed KES. 40,000.
- Applicant’s resumé/CV with at least two references and links to samples of published or broadcast work.
Send your application to procurement@biovisionafricatrust.org with the subject heading: titled “Agroecology Journalism Challenge “, by Friday, 15th November
2024.
Download the Printable version here
Biovision Africa Trust is an Equal Opportunity Employer
To apply for this job email your details to procurement@biovisionafrica.org