Going Green

Kudos to Society of Environmental Journalists (SEJ) for record-breaking attendance of more than 900 people at its 17th annual conference, hosted by Stanford University Sept. 5-9. Sessions covered a number of topics useful to reporters, from coverage of climate change to urban land use, green buildings, efficient energy and how to use the FOIA.

My personal favorite was the "Freelance Pitch Slam" session, where a panel of editors (Wired, National Geographic Adventure, Popular Mechanics, High Country News, etc.) respond to 60-second story pitches from journos in the audience brave enough to grab a nearby mic. “That’s local-we’re a national magazine” was matched by the occasional “Great story idea. Let’s talk right after this session.” Another panel offered up tips on using Google Earth and GeoEye for both reporting and presenting findings in map form for readers.

See SEJ’s Web site for video coverage of the conference, resources posted from sessions and SEJ’s annual awards for exemplary coverage of environmental issues (take a peek at those student winners while you’re at it) at www.sej.org.