The UN Climate Talks are almost here and we’re excited to introduce you to our cream-of-the-crop journalists this year! They wrote and published exceptional and inspiring pieces about fossil fuel projects in their country that needs to be stopped. They amplified climate issues in national and international media.
Get to know our COP25 Fellows!
Allan Jay Quesada, 32, Philippines
Allan is a licensed architect and a photography enthusiast from the Philippines.
Aside from photography, he also loves to paint using watercolor and does tutorials in his YouTube channel. He balances work and hobbies by staying fit through joining marathons that have worthy causes.
“My climate change Hero is my father. He was the one who taught me how to love the simplicity of living and appreciate nature. He taught me how to plant trees and cultivate our own backyard vegetables…At an early age, he taught me how to have a sustainable living.“
Andrea A. Gálvez, 28, Spain
Twitter: @Ana_Gaher
Andrea was born in Spain but she’s been living in Argentina for over two years. She graduated with a degree in Anthropological Studies and Philosophy and then got her Postgraduate degree in Journalism.
She has worked on social and educational projects in research and communication, and currently she collaborates from South America with Spanish media such as: El Salto Diario and Ctxt.
Andrea has simple tastes and says a perfect day is one spent at the sea. We concur! However, she gets complicated when it comes to building forts. When she was a child, Andrea built a shelter in her room that was so well-constructed that it was almost impossible to get in out out of it.
“I really admire the Bolivian families who live in very hard conditions on the outskirts of Buenos Aires but with great effort and community work, they are producing in their orchards in an ecological and sustainable way. The are my climate change heroes. “
Leopold Obi, 29, Kenya
Twitter: @finallyobi
Leopold Owino is an award-winning science journalist working with the Nairobi based Nation Media Group, the largest media house in East & Central Africa.
He has more than five years experience reporting widely on science and development, covering environment & conservation, agriculture & climate change, innovation & energy in Kenya and across Africa.
He has covered stories across East Africa on Reuters, Down To Earth, Daily Nation and Business Daily.
Leopold is excited to play a key role in empowering the masses through compelling stories at COP25. However, he admits, when he was a child, he often stole juice and then added water to what was left to hide his tracks.
“My climate change hero is the late Prof Wangari Maathai. She pioneered the conservation of the Karura forest among other water towers long before many knew climate change would be a big deal. She ensured that public recreational parks in Nairobi were not converted into sky-crappers and concrete jungles. “
Maroua Ben Abdennebi, 30, Tunisia
Twitter: @MarouaAbdennebi
Maroua has been channeling her passion for environmental issues and climate change as a journalist in the Tunisian Press Agency for the past 4 years, working on the economic and financial desk.
With the belief that climate change is not yet the priority of policy makers in emerging countries, she is determined to raise raise awareness of climate change risks and to encourage decision-makers to take action to reduce their impact.
Leonardo DiCaprio is my climate change hero! He is one of the few Hollywood actors who has been advocating for the climate cause for several years. Over the last few years, he has increasingly used his fortune and his foundation to support climate change actions.
Kartik Chandramouli, 29, India
Twitter: @kcmouli25
Kartik from Mumbai, India is the Digital Content Editor at Mongabay-India. He works with a network of video contributors to produce and edit videos about the environment and conservation.
He has also directed and shot a few assignments, including stories from the Sundarbans about the changing relationship between environment and people through an Earth Journalism Network grant.
As a multimedia editor, Kartik positions himself in the climate movement as a communicator and has the goal of informing and inspiring people around the world.
He longs to walk into dense mangroves in the Sunderbans, and loves the taste of cake dipped in water.
We won’t judge….
Petr Vodsedalek, 32, Czech Republic
Twitter: @wocet
Petr is a reporter, an editor of a local news magazine, and a freelance journalist.
In 2014 he launched a project called “Foreigners among us,” consisting of profile interviews of immigrants that came to the Czech Republic long before the crisis and long before the word refugee became a slur.
Recently, his series of articles about Turów, the Polish coal mine, had a big impact on national discussion around coal. He regularly publishes articles about local politics, climate change, culture and society.
When he was a child, Petr sent out a letter to all the director of the zoological gardens in Czech Republic, asking them for postcards of all the animals.
Naomi, 27, United Kingdom
Naomi is a freelance journalist based in London covering the environment, foreign affairs and culture for a number of British and international outlets.
She has covered stories around the world, reporting on farming in Kenya, the Venezuelan migration crisis, and biodiversity in Colombia.
Before becoming freelance, she was a writer and commissioning editor on the Guardian’s global development network, and contributed to their award-winning series on elephant conservation.
Rabiya Jaffrey, 25, Pakistan
Rabiya is a freelance journalist based in Saudi Arabia and the UAE. She covers stories on climate, culture, and conflicts from the Middle East.
Rahma Diaa, 28, Egypt
Rahma is an independent Egyptian journalist who is particularly interested in covering environmental and women’s issues. She got a diploma in media translation from the faculty of continuing learning, the American University in Cairo in 2018 . Rahma currently collaborates with Arabic and foreign media, including the Scientific American, VICE, and Raseef 22.
Now that you’ve met our COP25 Fellows, we’re officially ready to bring the climate negotiations to you.
Perspectives from this geographically diverse team will be published and posted on our website and social media, so be sure you Subscribe and Follow Us for the latest COP25 updates (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram).
Note: Due to unfortunate circumstances the Rabiya, Naomi and Rahma can’t join us in Spain, but they are great writers and we recognise the amazing work they are doing and will continue to do.