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MONGABAY.ORG

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SPECIAL REPORTING PROJECT: BIOENERGY

MONGABAY IS NOT CURRENTLY ACCEPTING PITCHES FOR THIS PROJECT. 

Climate change is a complex problem that is propelling the development of
alternatives to fossil fuel energy sources and schemes to remove greenhouse
gases from the atmosphere. This growing demand for alternative energy has
resulted in the proliferation of prospective climate solutions that harness
renewably grown organic material to generate energy, while limiting,
eliminating, or negating greenhouse gas emissions. However, the social,
environmental, and economic costs of these climate actions can be significant.

Some forms of bioenergy are already widely used, and more are being studied and
in development. Bioenergy is generally defined as energy made by burning biomass
(usually solids) or by burning biofuels (usually liquids or gases).

Biomass energy is often made using solid organic material such as forests, wood,
farm, municipal, and/or industrial waste as a source material, which is then
converted into an energy crop. For example, forest biomass (whole trees or wood
waste) can be converted into wood pellets, then burned on an industrial scale at
retrofitted coal-burning power plants). In addition, efforts to pair biomass
energy generation with “negative emissions technologies” — known as bioenergy
with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) — would have social and ecological
consequences if implemented at scales required to remove significant carbon from
the atmosphere.

Thousands of trees stacked like cordwood wait to be turned into wood pellets for
overseas shipment, mostly to the UK and EU, at one of three pellet-making plants
in North Carolina. Photo courtesy of the Dogwood Alliance

A biofuel often describes a liquid or gaseous fuel with an organic base,
typically used for transportation. Energy crops can include sugarcane, algae,
corn, palm oil, soy oil, rapeseed, sugar beets, and others, which can be made
into bioethanol and biodiesel.


SERIES OBJECTIVES

This series will take a sustained look at bioenergy using a solutions journalism
approach, evaluating how well they address the climate problem, while also
looking at how these solutions affect a plethora of other socio-environmental
issues. Collectively, the stories in this series will provide an objective look
at the pluses, minuses, and trade-offs of various bioenergy processes as they
are being developed and utilized around the globe.

 


SOME SUGGESTED STORY TOPICS / GUIDELINES:

Bioenergy state of knowledge: Overviews: Stories that focus on the basic science
of one bioenergy or biofuel technology; articles could look at new research,
implementation of innovations by companies, communities, or nations. These
pieces would also objectively weigh the pros and cons of new bioenergy and
biofuel technology.

Bioenergy: Going deeper: A look at a particular form of bioenergy from a variety
of angles, including socio-environmental impact hotspots and what we can learn
from them (e.g., the positive and negative impacts of expanding plantations in
Brazil that grow sugar cane as a biofuel — Pro: more jobs and economic growth;
con: increased pollution and labor inequities).

Place-people-species based reporting: Stories can focus on a nation, region or
biome where bioenergy production, or use, is underway. For example, a story
might document the wood pellet industry and its climate / socio-environmental
impacts in Vietnam or British Colombia, or it could look at the far end of the
supply chain where the pellets are burned in the UK or EU. Or a piece could
follow a particular bioenergy crop from its source in one nation, to its use in
another. Or it could look at impacts on a particular group of people (Indigenous
or traditional peoples, for example), or at effects on a species of ecosystem.

Innovative problem-solvers / project stories: Engaging stories that profile and
introduce readers to the work of key actors (researchers, conservationists,
entrepreneurs, NGOs, companies, engineers, city planners, activists, thought
leaders and others) who are actively exploring and implementing approaches to
bioenergy. These stories could document current initiatives around the globe,
identify opportunities and barriers to adoption, and help readers understand
practices meant to prevent or forestall the misuse of bioenergy.

International initiative evaluations: Stories would look at the current status
and successes / failings of international cooperative agreements aimed at
advancing or regulating the uses of bioenergy and biofuels. (ie. the role of
bioenergy in a country’s Nationally Determined Contributions to the Paris
Climate Agreement).

Egregiously bad actors: Profiles of companies, investment institutions, industry
associations, and others most responsible for, and who most benefit from,
potentially false bioenergy claims, while allegedly doing significant
socio-environmental harm (ie. air and water pollution, deforestation and
biodiversity loss, land grabbing, labor practices analogous with slavery,
encroachment on, and conflicts with, Indigenous and/or traditional communities,
etc.).

Other: Mongabay is open to diverse pitches from existing and new contributors
for stories that fulfill the requirements of the Bioenergy 2021 series.

All of these stories for this series have the potential to be told via narrative
(online print stories and photos published on the Mongabay website) as well as
via videos (short-form, 1-3 minutes; or long-form, 3-10 minutes), as
appropriate. Potential categories of Mongabay videos to accompany articles
include Explainers, expert interviews, profiles of individual/organization
success stories, and profiles of egregious actors.

Contributors are also encouraged to maximize readership through republishing and
syndication with third-party outlets.


HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR PITCH

MONGABAY IS NOT CURRENTLY ACCEPTING PITCHES FOR THIS PROJECT. 

Please submit your pitch here long with your journalism resume and three clips.
Pitches should be roughly 500 words in length. They should clearly explain the
specific subject you would like to write about in detail, your approach to
covering it, and describe a few potential sources. Applications must be
submitted in English.

Pitches will be considered on a rolling basis, until our budget is disbursed.
Stories must be published by November 30, 2021.

 

 


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