Training opportunity: Telling stories about agricultural solutions that work for women

Positive stories that incorporate women’s voices are missing in regional and global discussions and media coverage on women’s roles in food systems. Evidence shows that it is paramount for researchers to consider women’s specific needs, preferences and realities when they develop agricultural solutions such as new seeds and crop varieties, machinery, information services and more. But we see too few compelling and convincing stories about the benefits that women and communities experience when agricultural innovations are gender responsive.

We’re inviting science communicators from CGIAR and partners—especially those based in Africa, South and Southeast Asia—to help us close that gap.

What will the training entail?

An 8-week training course on how to prepare and publish stories. Training will take place virtually between September 10 and November 26, 2024.

The training curriculum

The modules relate to the following topics, and will be tailored to participants’ needs throughout.

What is expected from participants?

• Dedicate 4 hours a week during the training to attend training sessions; complete exercises before the next session; and draft and pitch one news or feature story for publication in a local, national or international media outlet.
• Plan and complete 1 local field trip to gather information, interview farmers and other stakeholders, take photos and video between Oct 2 and 21.
• Draft and pitch one news or feature story for publication in a local, national or international media outlet
• Provide 5-10 captioned compelling photos about your story (with the appropriate consents to use)
• Have the support of your manager to attend the training module sessions; complete work outside of the module times; and conduct the field trip for gathering the story, photos and videos.

What support is provided?

• 8-week training course free of charge, including ongoing feedback, editing and mentoring support between modules (via email, Zoom and calls). We also provide a private blog site where participants can practice writing their stories, and get feedback from the presenters and fellow participants.
• Each participant can access a small travel stipend (up to US700) for domestic/local travel in support of a local field trip.

Who will train the participants?

The training modules will be prepared and presented by internationally recognized science communicators from Econnect Communication. Econnect has run 2 of these storytelling courses before, and has been running science communication workshops for more than 30 years. They will also involve leading local journalists and editors to provide advice and feedback.

Who can join?

We are inviting science communicators from CGIAR’s centers and their partners who must be able to:

1) dedicate minimum four hours a week between September 10 and November 26, 2024, to:

• attend the online training modules held weekly on Tuesdays (at 10am East Africa Time, 12.30am Indian Standard Time and 2pm Indochina Time), starting on September 10, 2024
• undertake a local field trip to conduct interviews and collect photos/videos
• produce stories
• have the support of their manager to attend the modules, do the out-of-module work, and conduct the field trip

2) have close access to women and men smallholders who benefit from a gender-responsive agricultural solution to facilitate a local field trip

3) are early to mid-career communicators, with some existing skills in writing and photo or videography

How to apply

Please complete this Form by Thursday, August 29, 2024.

Applications will be assessed by members of Econnect Communication and the CGIAR GENDER Impact Platform to select participants meeting the requirements above and to ensure a wide representation across CGIAR centers, partners and geographies (with a focus on Africa and Asia). Note that a limited number of spots is available.

Important dates

Questions?

Please contact Vivian Atakos, Lead: Global Engagement and Policy, CGIAR GENDER Impact Platform.

v.atakos[at]cgiar.org

“I liked the guidelines on how to produce stories on gender-responsive technologies, the use of different formats and also the guidance and realization that I can pitch to many publishing outlets.”

“For me the gender-responsive technology was an approach I had not delved into, and I have gotten so many insights from this training. I will definitely explore this in my future stories.”

“I will take into account the gender biases in hindsight when writing, limiting the stereotypes.”

“I will tell stories differently by structuring them better, knowing what should come first that will interest readers and also editors.”

“I received a lot of reactions and comments from my country representative. They were of the view that we should have more stories like these, where we show the gender-inclusive aspects of this project. We are doing a lot to bring women in the forefront, but that had not been documented anywhere, except for in project reports. But a story like this is definitely something people will read.”

“Actually, people in my organization feel happy about the story. The global team, they even want to make their own take on the story, and they want me to write a deeper take on what’s going on within the project. Our partner organization also wants to do their own take, and they really want to revisit the project site.”