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Support radio stations in their journalistic coverage on Climate crisis issue.
On February 13th, 2025, the 14th edition of World Radio Day dedicated to “Radio and Climate Change” to support radio stations in their journalistic coverage of this issue.
Ideas for Celebrating the February 13th.
Here is the list of the 13 Ideas for Celebrating World Radio Day.
1. Put more emphasis on facts 2. Review your programming strategy 3. Present realities from elsewhere 4. Inform from an intersectional point of view 5. Start an "On the way to COP30" chronicle 6. Give the audience a say 7. Prepare for the storm 8. Raise the safety awareness of environmental journalists 9. Redouble your efforts to combat disinformation 10. Encourage your audience to listen to the radio critically 11. Strengthen staff competencies in relation to climate change issues 12. Set the tone 13. Green your radio
To learn more about the World Radio Day Follow the conversations with the hashtags: #13February, #WorldRadioDay.
13 Ideas for Celebrating 13 February
Present realities from elsewhere.
On February 13th, bring your local, national and international correspondents on air all day long, or simply connect live on air with other broadcasters from around the world, or prerecord such encounters. Let your listeners hear about the diversities of every town, country and region. Discuss common environmental topics, regional phenomena or local issues related to climate change. The angles and topics offer an extremely rich plurality of voices and perspectives, while enhancing your networking. For such broadcasts, take the initiative to use the UNESCO WRD 2025 map, and contact radio stations interested in a partnership opportunity. Thanks to the form and the map, you can explore opportunities for collaboration. In the medium to long term, you could agree to conduct joint radio surveys, share resources and reports, or other mutually beneficial exchange opportunities.
Inform from an intersectional point of view.
In addition to explanations of and solutions to climate change, there are a large number of business stories, daily news items and public interest editorials that intersect with other themes. Climate change and the stock market, the ski industry or the cheese trade; technology, astronomy or legislation; public health, population displacement or elections; antiques, films or music – all of which are examples of intersectionality. Generally speaking, the reliable information you communicate can stand in stark contrast with political communication. Compare the differences between the two based on the data collected by your radio station, and provide information from an intersectional, factual point of view. Highlight similarities and differences. Present situations where nothing moves forward, or even worse, moves backward, whether it concern obstacles to environmental progress, international agreements, voting in assemblies or something else.
On 13 February, shine the spotlight on decision makers. Invite on air everyone from all sides. All day long, describe what decision makers do, but also what they do not do, and the intersecting effects in other areas. Consider how to continue this work after World Radio Day 2025.
Give the audience a say!
For World Radio Day, encourage your audience to say what climate change means to them. Do not just leave it to the “experts”. Give people a voice and see how affected, concerned or worried they are about climate change.
Do interviews, vox pops and news reports that help your audience to understand the realities, challenges and experience of listeners with respect to climate change. How about organizing an outdoor public broadcast?
If you cannot broadcast outdoors because of the cost or for security reasons, invite people to call in to the station's switchboard or leave an audio comment ("voicemail") on your instant messaging platform or social network.
Elicit the opinions of those who have less of a say: women and indigenous or marginalized people. And what about those who do not listen to your radio station: what are they saying?
Share human stories, not just a stream of data. Some prefer to hear like-minded people in order to take on board the discussions and potential solutions. You can tell real-life stories, broadcast "colourful" statements and share the experience of what is actually happening in your broadcast area.
Whether light-hearted or more serious, there are thousands of ways to give people a say.
Prepare for the storm.
Hurricanes, floods, forest fires, heatwaves and other such events have become so commonplace that they now make working conditions demanding for broadcasters and media workers alike. In striving to obtain first-hand accounts from affected populations and decision makers, they, too, will be exposed to the same extreme weather conditions as the population in the course of their reporting, be it outdoors or in the studio. Media professionals are often trained to cope with war and terrorism, but not so much with climate events.
Launch your climate emergency plan on World Radio Day 2025. It should include pre-prepared mapping of at-risk areas; contact lists of experts and authorities for various disaster scenarios; response routines; safety instructions specific to each natural disaster; and a list of improvised broadcasting "rooms". You will also need to review the professional insurance policies covering the various hazards inherent to the media industry and check to see whether your radio station and co-workers will be protected in the event of extreme weather conditions.
Raise the safety awareness of environmental journalists.
Anyone covering climate change, including radio reporters, is potentially at risk as it often calls political, business and property interests into question. UNESCO’s brief on the safety of environmental journalists already provides the data you need to inform your audience about the many kinds of physical threats to which media professionals are exposed, such as kidnapping, arbitrary detention, legal attacks, material damage, threats, online harassment and murder, among others. Interview other media colleagues on February 13th. Ask them how they manage their personal safety and make your listeners aware of just how committed the media are to bringing them information on climate change. You can also prepare a talk show, documentary or interview with public policy experts to inform your audience about the misuse of the judicial system to attack freedom of expression, or about the preventive mechanisms and safeguards to counter attacks on the journalists covering climate change. If you prefer, you can focus on the violence used to silence activists and lawyers, if it seems more feasible in the context of your radio station.
Do not hesitate to consult the list of climate change experts brought together by UNESCO on the occasion of its latest World Press Freedom Day.
Encourage your audience to listen to the radio critically.
UNESCO has a new online course to enable people to acquire the skills they need to combat disinformation about climate change. The course lasts around 90 minutes, consists of four main modules and is accessible free of charge and open to all. In addition, you could, for example, follow the UNESCO massive open online course (MOOC): "Think Critically, Click Wisely: Media and Information Literacy in the next normal". This course comprises 20 thematic modules focused on developing the concepts and competencies of media and information literacy. World Radio Day
