Meet the NIMJN-CANSA climate reporting Fellows
Meet Bhagirathi and Ghanshyam- the recipients of the NIMJN-CANSA Climate Reporting Fellowship to report on non-economic loss and damage issues due to climate change in Nepal. They have been selected on the basis of their story pitch, ideas, time commitment, and climate reporting experiences among a pool of qualified applicants. Under this fellowship, they will be working on producing original and in-depth multimedia stories related to non-economic loss and damage issues resulting due to climate change in Nepal. NIMJN will be providing them with all the necessary mentorship and support for this.
Ghanshyam Khadka
Correspondent, Kantipur Publications
Ghanshyam Khadka from Beni Municipality-8, Myagdi from Gandaki Province, is one of the recipients of the NIMJN-CANSA Climate Reporting Fellowship (NCCRF). This fellowship was open for all Nepali journalists to report on non-economic loss and damage due to climate change in Nepal. Ghanshyam was chosen based on his story pitch, time commitment, and investigative reporting experiences covering climate change issues.Ghanshyam graduated from the Tribhuvan University’s Dhaulagiri Campus in Baglung with a master’s in Sociology. He is a correspondent for Kantipur Publications.
Bhagirathi Pandit
Independent Journalist
Bhagirathi Pandit is one of the recipients of NIMJN’s Investigative Reporting Fellowship. With over six years of reporting experience, she mainly reports on crucial topics such as the environment, education, health, and marginalized communities. She is also pursuing a Masters in Journalism and Mass Communication at Tribhuvan University. Bhagirathi is especially interested in exploring the impact of climate change on the indigenous communities in Nepal and investigating the role of government accountability in the climate change crisis. At NIMJN, she will be covering the Climate Change beat and investigating these issues at an in-depth level.
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Meet the CIR-CANSA Climate Reporting Fellows
Under CIR’s latest evidence-based reporting initiative in collaboration with the Climate Action Network South Asia (CANSA), four competitively selected journalists will focus on non-economic loss and damage from environmental disasters (NELD), exploring multiple topics; extreme weather events such as storms, floods, and heatwaves, as well as the slow-onset changes like sea-level rise, biodiversity loss, and desertification.
Malaka Rodrigo
Freelance Environmental Journalist – The Sunday Times, Contributor to Mongabay
Malaka is an IT expert by profession, but a naturalist and a passionate environmental journalist who believes in ‘conservation through awareness’. He won many awards for his work and writes extensively on biodiversity, wildlife, oceans, water, climate change and environmental issues. Malaka is a regular writer to Mongabay and many local publications.
Kamanthi Wickramasinghe
Deputy Features Editor, Daily Mirror
Kamanthi is an environmental journalist who has been reporting on many sensitive issues for about a decade. She has received many local and international awards and recognition including the Denzil Pieris Young Reporter Award 2015 and Michael Konig Young Journalist Bursary at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, 2017. Kamanthi has a BSc in Psychology from the Missouri University of Science and Technology, USA, a Postgraduate Diploma from Manorama School of Mass Communication, Kerala and an MA in Mass Communication from University of Kelaniya.
Aanya Wipulasena
Freelance journalist
Aanya Wipulasena is a journalist with experience in print and broadcast media, specializing in human rights, politics, and social issues in Sri Lanka. She has contributed to international news agencies, networks, and publications such as Al Jazeera, The Guardian, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, The New York Times and Agencia Efe. Aanya is a Chevening (UK) and Reporters Without Borders (Berlin) fellow. She was the recipient of the Laadli Media and Advertising Awards for Gender Sensitivity 2024 (India) and Denzil Peiris Young Reporter of the Year Award in 2013 (Sri Lanka).
Buddhika Samaraweera
Deputy News Editor, The Daily Morning
With more than five years of progressive career in print media, Buddhika is the Deputy News Editor of the Daily Morning, a daily English national in Sri Lanka. Buddhika has been reporting on a number of beats such as politics, education, health, and economy. He recently completed a journalism fellowship on electoral integrity with the Center for Investigative Reporting where he produced an in-depth report revealing a decade-long unsolved flooding issue related to one of the four main rivers of the country.