Editorial meet on Climate Realities and Role of Media held in GU
Guwahati, Rongili Barta: As the 1st pre event of the ASDMA Foundation Day on March 23, 2025, an Editorial meet on climate realities and role of media with over 40 nos. of editors from various news organisations of the State was held today at Gauhati University (GU). The programme was organised by Department of Communication and Journalism and Department of Environmental Studies, GU in collaboration with Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA).
Climate change is an escalating global crisis. Journalists play a pivotal role in raising awareness and shaping public discourse around this pressing issue. With growing concerns about the impact of climate change, these editors gathered to discuss media’s power in advocating for climate action and disaster preparedness in it.
Prof. Nani Gopal Mahanta, Vice Chancellor, the Chief Guest of the event emphasised on the importance of media in shaping public discourse on environmental issues. “Journalists are the bridge between science and society. We need their storytelling abilities to bring climate realities to the forefront,” said Prof. Mahanta, highlighting media’s responsibility in fostering public awareness and policy change.
In her key addresses, Smt. Meenakshi Das Nath, ACS, Secretary and Additional CEO, ASDMA, Govt. of Assam emphasises on the primary objectives of the meet, which included exploring challenges in communicating climate change and disasters, designing effective media strategies, and formulating grassroots communication guidelines.
During his welcome address, Dr. Chandan Kumar Goswami, Head of the Department, Communication and Journalism, GU said that media is not just a messenger, it is a catalyst for change.
An engaging interactive session with all the editors was allowed for collective brainstorming, where they exchanged ideas on harnessing media’s power for sustainable impact. The editors of various media houses expressed that climate change gets less importance in reporting in the print and electronic media till now which need to be focused more in due course of time. Lack of coordination among the science community and media fraternity is another hurdle to tackle the situation. The insightful discussion further reinforced the media’s role in bringing the issue to the forefront.