Launched in 2021, the fellowships are a collaboration of the Association of Health Care Journalists (AHCJ), the Council for the Advancement of Science Writing (CASW) and the Society of Environmental Journalists (SEJ), with funding by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Department of Science Education and the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation.
The 2022-23 fellows are:
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Aarón Miguel Cantú, Type Investigations fellow, climate reporter, Capital & Main, California
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Bella Isaacs-Thomas, digital science reporter, PBS NewsHour, Washington, D.C.
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Christian von Preysing-Barry, reporter, KRGV-TV, Texas
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Darian Benson, reporter, Side Effects Public Media, Indianapolis
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Devi Shastri, health and medical science reporter, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Wisconsin
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Erin Rode, environment reporter, The Desert Sun, Palm Springs, Calif.
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Jena Brooker, environment reporter, BridgeDetroit, Detroit
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Neel Dhanesha, climate change reporter, Vox, Washington, D.C.
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Rachel Cohen, reporter, Boise State Public Radio, Idaho
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Sarah True, independent health care journalist, Washington, D.C.
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Shantal Riley, independent health and environmental journalist, New York
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Zoya Teirstein, staff writer, Grist, Brooklyn, N.Y.
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Over the course of a year, the selected fellows will participate in workshops and other events held at the annual Science Writers (October 2022), Environmental Journalism (April 2023), and Health Journalism (Spring 2023) conferences. Custom webinars scheduled throughout the year will provide additional opportunities to gain skills, connections and resources to inform their reporting. Each fellow will be matched with a professional mentor; receive prepaid membership in the National Association of Science Writers, SEJ, and AHCJ; and participate in peer-to-peer networking platforms. Independent journalists will be eligible for project support stipends. In addition, alumni from the project’s first year will be invited to connect with new fellows online and at conferences and other events, to facilitate networking, continued learning and mutual support.
“Today’s science, health, or environmental reporter needs to be able to cover all these topics well and understand how they intersect with each other and a wealth of social, cultural, and political issues,” said Rosalind Reid, CASW Executive Director. “This extraordinarily accomplished and diverse group of fellows will gain important skills, knowledge, and connections for covering issues critical to regional and national audiences.”
“Our first class immediately demonstrated the value of the fellowship because the fellows came from so many different backgrounds, which contributed to the group’s overall awareness of important, untold stories on these beats,” said Katherine Reed, AHCJ’s Director of Education and Content. “Their work reflected the richness of that experience, and I am confident the next group will benefit in much the same way.”
"The future of science, health, and environmental journalism depends on creating a more sustainable career path for talented reporters — and flexible, free, early-career fellowship programs like this one fill a missing rung on the career ladder, especially for journalists from groups that have been traditionally under-represented in the field," said Meaghan Parker, Executive Director of the Society of Environmental Journalists. "We are especially pleased that journalists of color comprise more than half of the group."
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