Youth Initiative to Focus Ongoing Attention on Gulf Recovery in Wake of the Deepwater Horizon
Disaster
Washington, DC (November 09, 2010) – EarthEcho International (www.earthecho.org), a leading
environmental education nonprofit, today announced plans to launch its first STREAM (STudents
Reporting Environmental Action through Media) youth citizen journalist bureau in the Gulf region.
STREAM will kick-off with a training workshop in New Orleans on December 1-2, 2010.
Unveiled this September at the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI)’s Sixth Annual meeting, the program
provides students with the training and resources to bring national attention to important stories of
environmental and human impact in their own communities. The New Orleans STREAM workshop will
be held at the Audubon Aquarium of the Americas, where 40 middle and high school students and their
teachers from communities in Louisiana and Alabama will receive hands-on training and coaching from
leading journalists, environmental experts, service-learning professionals, and EarthEcho Co-Founder and
CEO Philippe Cousteau, Jr.
“The continuing aftermath of the Gulf oil disaster underscores the critical need for real-time reporting
and local perspectives in highlighting the important events and stories impacting our planet and life in our
own backyards,” said Cousteau. “The insights and experiences of youth in Gulf communities are an ideal
starting point for STREAM’s mission to give young people everywhere a voice in shaping the future of
our world.”
The two-day workshop will walk teams of students and educators through the stages of service-learning
as they explore the concept of citizen journalism and learn skill-building techniques on topics such
as sourcing subjects, interviewing, writing, editing, and the use of technology in telling their stories.
Students will complete the workshop by sharing their finished media pieces on www.earthecho.org/
STREAM. Students and educators from Edna Karr High School, Mount Carmel Academy and Isidore
Newman Middle School in New Orleans and Louisiana State University Laboratory School in Baton
Rouge will attend from Louisiana. Alabama schools will include Gulf Shores Middle School and Gulf
Shores High School, as well as Alma Bryant High School from Irvington and Peter F. Alba Middle
School from Bayou La Batre.
An impressive list of partners are joining EarthEcho in support of STREAM’s launch, including the
Audubon Aquarium of the Americas, Louisiana Public Broadcasting, Louisiana Serve Commission,
Mobile Baykeeper, Singing for Change, Society of Environmental Journalists (SEJ), The Wallace Global
Fund, and Waterkeeper Alliance.
About STREAM:
STREAM provides students, educators, and community leaders with the resources they need to establish
youth-focused citizen journalism bureaus in their own communities. STREAM’s resources and tools
include:
- A multi-media digital publishing platform for student journalist stories;
- Professional development resources for youth citizen journalists, including downloadable guides,
instructional videos, and on-line workshops; - In-person training workshops with industry professionals and leadership programs for youth in
the field of environmental journalism; and - The establishment of the youth citizen journalism “news bureaus” in multiple markets across the
country.
About EarthEcho International:
EarthEcho International is a leading environmental nonprofit committed to youth engagement, action, and
leadership through education. EarthEcho helps young people everywhere understand the critical role we
play in the future of the planet through the one thing that connects us all – water. EarthEcho International
is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization founded by siblings Philippe and Alexandra Cousteau in honor
of their father Philippe Cousteau Sr., son of the legendary explorer Jacques Yves Cousteau. For more
information about EarthEcho International, visit http://www.earthecho.org.
Website:
Email: afiner@comcast.net
