Climate Change Media Coverage in Kenya: Is Bioeconomy Coverage an Orphan by Commission or Omission?

Abstract

Coverage of climate change and mitigation issues across all mediums and platforms in Kenya has been on the increase with newsrooms both print and electronic establishing Climate Change desks and dedicating pages as well as more airtime and programmes focusing on the topic(s). Whereas the quality of coverage of climate change issues has equally improved tremendously with a wide number of topics and areas given attention, coverage of the impact of climate change from the prism of bioeconomy is underwhelming. For instance, there is little coverage on the effect of increased heat on bees’ lives and how it impacts the current state of Kenya’s food systems or even the impact of heat on Nitrogen-fixing Bacteria in the soil that play a key role on the yields of crops. The objective of this paper to explore why Kenyan Climate Change journalists are challenged in generating stories about nature’s capacity in climate change mitigation and adaptation as well as on the role of bioeconomy in ensuring sustainable livelihoods through nature-based solutions. It will depend on secondary data as well as interviews with and panel discussions with journalists who cover climate change and affiliated to the Kenya Environment and Science Journalists Association (KENSJA). The expected findings and conclusions will inform whether there is need for capacity building and who the resource people are, and tools or if there is need for dedicating more coverage of bio-economy issues in Kenya