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Journalism fellowship and funding for special projects are opportunities to go beyond daily reporting and to have support and money to dig deeper into issues including environmental health.
Each year there are increasingly more fellowships and grants for extensive reporting, especially as newsrooms shrink and outlets close. Many are focused on climate change or public health while others are open to significant ideas including environmental health.
Below are a few of the fellowships currently open for applications. While these are not specifically focused on environmental health, they are open to various topics and are great opportunities for journalists to pitch in-depth ideas about social justice, environmental racism or environmental health.
USC Annenberg Center for Health Journalism
The center offers a variety of fellowships throughout the year that include a week of learning at the university’s Los Angeles campus and grant funds ranging from $2,000 to $10,000 depending on the project.
The following fellowships are upcoming:
National Fellowship: This fellowship is perfect for an environmental health project that revolves around the “health, welfare and well-being of children and families.” Fellows pitch an idea and are expected to produce a health or social well-being project. The “program places strong emphasis on the ways in which environmental and community conditions can influence how long and how well we live.”The deadline to apply is May 28, 2023, for a July fellowship week.
Data Fellowship: This is a great opportunity to learn how to “interview the data” and to utilize tools to find information and analyze the data. With environmental health stories often reliant on public and university research this is a helpful opportunity to dig deep. The deadline to apply is July 17, 2023 for an October fellowship week.
The Mesa Refuge
Write on the Northern California coast at The Mesa Refuge, in Point Reyes Station, CA. The two or four-week residencies are open to experienced and emerging environmental writers, including journalists, focused on “ideas at the edge” of “nature, economic equity and social justice.” The deadline is June. 1 for Fall 2023 or Dec. 1 for Spring 2024. Visit this webpage to apply.
Alicia Patterson Journalism Fellowship
This fellowship allows journalists to spend a significant amount of time pursuing an independent project of “significant interest.” One of the slots, called the Cissy Patterson Fellowship, is earmarked for a project focused on science or environmental journalism. It provides $40,000 grants for twelve months and $20,000 for six months and includes the costs of travel and research. Applicants must be U.S. citizens with five years of professional experience in print journalism and freelancers can apply. The application cycle has opened and the deadline is November 1, 2023.
The Daily Yonder’s Rural Reporting Fellowship
This fellowship is for those who want to report and write for rural audiences and is an opportunity to focus on environmental health and other topics. The program is intended for emerging professionals or college students who want to expand their portfolio, especially those from diverse backgrounds. The program is taking applications for summer and Fall of 2023; fellowships typically last 12 weeks. Fellows are paid an hourly wage. The fellowship can be remote and there are offices in Kentucky, Tennessee, Minnesota and Oregon.
The application cycle is open now. Apply here.
Coming soon:
The Health Coverage Fellowship, applications open in the fall for the 2024 program.
There are more fellowships and grants offered throughout the year but many of the application cycles have closed. We will update our list as they open up in the future. If you have a fellowship or program to add to the list, please email me at elizabeth@healthjournalism.org.