By Juliet Akoth I julietakoth19@gmail.com
Climate change reporting should look beyond extreme weather and environmental damage to show how rising temperatures, changing ecosystems and pollution affect people, animals and food systems.
These discussions were at the center of a virtual science media café that brought together journalists, editors and scientists from across Africa on October 22, 2026.
Organised by the Media for Environment, Science, Health and Agriculture (MESHA) in collaboration with the Science Journalists Network, the session explored how journalists can use a One Health approach to report on climate change, environmental risks and public health without losing sight of practical responses.
Speaking during the webinar, MESHA Chief Executive Officer Aghan Daniel urged journalists and experts to keep these issues in public discussion beyond awareness campaigns or themed months.
“Reporting issues on one health and climate change should be ongoing, not episodic,” Aghan said.
On her end, Magdalene Kagendo, who specialises in climate change and sustainability, explained that One Health recognises links between human, animal and environmental health.
“Climate change is not only about trees or water,” she said. “There are so many things you can learn about climate change, including animals, plants, and microorganisms that we can’t see,” she added.
The approach is consistent with the World Health Organization’s explanation that human, animal and ecosystem health are interdependent, and that issues such as pollution and climate change can require coordinated responses. Kagendo said journalists could help the public understand these connections by communicating research clearly and asking how prevention, sanitation and environmental management can reduce risks.
Kagendo described several links between climate pressures and health: Extreme heat can cause illness and stress, while heat stress in livestock can reduce milk production. Droughts and floods can damage crops, undermine food availability and contribute to malnutrition. Water pollution, meanwhile, can harm aquatic life and create risks for people who depend on water and fish for food and income.
“The resulting financial pressure can also affect people’s mental wellbeing, particularly when families lose crops, livestock or homes and struggle to recover,” noted Kagendo.
Kagendo also highlighted concerns about antibiotics entering the environment through poorly managed medical waste and wastewater, potentially contributing to antimicrobial resistance. She called for better research, data sharing, sanitation and communication among health, environmental and animal experts.
The discussion then moved from the effects of climate change to whether international climate processes are delivering practical support.
Stephen Muwaya, executive director of Uganda-based Agro-Resilience Advisory, a climate change negotiator and agricultural climate coordinator for least developed countries, focused on agriculture and food security ahead of the United Nations climate negotiations at COP31.
Muwaya discussed the Sharm el-Sheikh joint work on implementation of climate action on agriculture and food security, established at COP27 in 2022.
The four-year process aims to strengthen implementation, though gaps remain in financing, project preparation and the systems meant to connect countries’ needs with available support.
“The most important element here is to shift from discussing agriculture and climate change to enabling action on the ground,” Muwaya said.
He argued that climate plans must translate into finance, technology and capacity that farmers can actually access. Complex accreditation procedures and limited project-preparation capacity can prevent countries and local institutions from obtaining support, while reporting may describe general activities without clearly showing what has been implemented. As COP31 approaches, Muwaya said journalists should examine whether support reaches smallholder farmers and vulnerable communities, whether technologies are affordable and locally appropriate, and whether climate finance increases debt burdens.
Ida Jooste, a South African journalist, global media development specialist and media trainer, shared reflected on how journalists can make climate and One Health stories more useful to audiences. She cautioned against confusing terminology, reporting disasters without explaining their causes, or leaving audiences frightened without showing possible responses.
“Climate change may worsen risks of disasters, but local infrastructure failures and other factors can also shape a disaster’s impact.”
Jooste encouraged reporters to seek different perspectives, explain solutions and weave climate and health into beats such as business, politics, education and sport, rather than treating them as separate specialist subjects.
A rookie climate journalist, Winnie Luwembe from Malawi noted the importance of specialised training for journalists covering climate change. Drawing from her more than 12 years of experience at Zodiak Broadcasting Station, where she has worked as a reporter, producer and presenter, Luwembe reflected on the challenges of covering specialised subjects such as climate change while working across different beats.”
“At Zodiak we are not allowed to specialise when it comes to news writing and reporting, as a reporter I cover any kind of story,” Luwembe said.
But this year, she decided to challenge herself by writing six climate change stories and that her recent training through MESHA’s Climate Beacon Newsroom Initiative in Nairobi had strengthened her interest in environmental journalism.
“After attending the Climate Beacon Newsroom Initiative training, I have become interested to pursue environmental journalism for my second degree. My wish is to find a good university and sponsorship for that.”
Moreover, Luwembe stressed the need for journalists to have stronger subject knowledge to help communities build resilience and take part in solutions.
“If we are to help communities become resilient to the effects of climate change and be part of the solution, we journalists need to have sufficient knowledge of the issues we report on,” she said.
She also called for editors to receive training or refresher courses so they can better assess climate coverage. Luwembe identified carbon markets, climate finance and cross-border reporting as areas where further training and opportunities would help journalists produce more in-depth stories.
Together, the speakers encouraged journalists to connect the science of climate change with its consequences for everyday life and to scrutinise whether promised responses reach the people who need them. For MESHA’s audience, the challenge is to show how health, food security, finance and practical action intersect, while distinguishing evidence from assumption and giving communities a meaningful place in the story.
A MESHA Features Publication 2026
