Fiji and Solomon Islands dominated the inaugural Pasifika Environews awards which were announced in Suva this week to celebrate World Ocean Day.
The award is a collaboration between the Pacific Islands News Association (PINA), Internews Earth Journalism Network (EJN), Office of the Pacific Ocean Commissioner (OPOC), and the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Program (SPREP).
The awards were to honor exemplary reporting on environment, ocean, and climate change in the Pacific.
Three main categories were included for the awards and the winners will each receive USD$1,000 (about K3, 546) prize money while the runner-ups will each receive USD$500 (about K1, 773)
The winners of the Pasifika Environews Awards included:
- SPREP Best Environment Story – Charles Piringi, Solomon Islands
- Runner Up- Sera Sefeti, Fiji Islands
- OPOC Best Ocean Story- Vijay Narayan, Fiji Islands
- Runner Up- Ben Bilua, Solomon Islands
- Pasifika Environews Best Climate Change Story- Moffat Mamu Ghala, Solomon Islands
- Runner Up- Irwin Angiki, Solomon Islands
Winner of the OPOC Best Ocean Story was Fijian journalist Vijay Narayan who submitted an editorial campaign on the proposed FJ$600million tourism investment project on Suva’s Queen Elizabeth Drive by Tian Lun Investment Limited that prompted the Fijian Government to take action against the company, and winner of the SPREP Best Environment story was Solomon Islands based investigative journalist Charley Piringi who won for his investigative piece on mining in Guadalcanal.
Islands Business International journalist, Sera Sefeti was a runner up in the SPREP Best Environment story for her piece on the plight of Moce Island villagers, in the Lau Group in Fiji following the volcanic eruption in Tonga last year.
Makereta Komai, Pacific Islands News Association Manager and PACNEWS Editor, commended the winners and journalists who submitted entries, expressing that the entries were impressive.
