Learning Expeditions 2012
Zoom MapIJNR learning expeditions help reporters and editors at all career stages to gain perspective and understanding and to become better storytellers. Mid-career, early-career and veteran reporters and editors from a diverse range of newspapers, magazines, broadcast operations and on-line news organizations are chosen to participate. Journalists working for smaller organizations, including tribal and ethnic news media, are encouraged to apply. IJNR fellowship awards cover the costs of meals, lodging, chartered bus and all other field activities during the expeditions. In addition, some travel stipends are available.
These fellowships are designed for reporters and editors who aspire to produce deeper, more explanatory news coverage of issues that affect growth, economic development, rural communities, natural resources and the
Funding for IJNR programs comes from a broad spectrum of charitable foundations, conservation and environment groups, state and federal government agencies, news-media groups, natural-resource companies and trade associations, as well as individual donors. (See IJNR's Supporters page.)
Please review How To Apply for details on selection criteria, application materials and costs.
IJNR will conduct two shorter-format expeditions during the first half of 2012. Because of the U.S. presidential election cycle and its demands on journalists and news outlets, IJNR does not plan to conduct any expedition-style programming in the second half of 2012. Instead, second-half activities will be limited to short gatherings of groups of IJNR Fellows (alumni) and planning for 2013 programs.
Wisconsin Watersheds Institute — Milwaukee River Basin
April 25 - 28, 2012
Application deadline: Wednesday, March 14, at 7 PM Eastern Time
This learning program will enable 14 journalists to explore parts of the Milwaukee River Basin in southeastern Wisconsin. The drainage includes the Menomonee River and Kinnickinnic River. Both are tributaries of the Milwaukee, which flows into Lake Michigan. Watershed ecology and economic development will be unifying themes of this program. The city of Milwaukee will serve as the hub for the trip.
Content of the program will emphasize understanding the dynamics of restoration, protection and management of critical watersheds and vital habitats in the Great Lakes ecosystem. Journalists will meet and travel with experts representing a broad and balanced spectrum of vocations and viewpoints. The program will pay special attention to urban influences on the river and its watershed. Journalists will observe innovative examples of urban agriculture, composting, recycling and urban storm-water management. They will also learn about dam removal, wetlands protection, stream ecology, and shifts in fish migration.
Maumee Valley Institute — Maumee River Basin
June 13-16, 2012
Application deadline is Wednesday, May 2, at 7 PM Eastern Time
The learning program will enable 14 journalists to explore parts of the Maumee River watershed, from the headwaters near Fort Wayne, Indiana, to the river’s mouth in Toledo, Ohio, on the southwestern shore of Lake Erie. Watershed ecology and economic development will be unifying themes of this program. The city of Toledo will serve as the hub for the trip.
Content of the program will emphasize understanding the dynamics of restoration, protection and management of critical watersheds and vital habitats in the Great Lakes ecosystem. Journalists will meet and travel with experts representing a broad and balanced spectrum of vocations and viewpoints. The Maumee Valley program will pay special attention to manipulated landscapes and related rural influences on the river and its watershed. Journalists will explore the connection between confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs) and the contamination of underground supplies of drinking water and of near-shore waters of Lake Erie.