Kathmandu, July 1
Among the five winners of this year’s Developing Asia Journalism Awards (DAJA) is Nepali environment journalist Sonam Lama Hyolmo, a Kathmandu-and Helambu-based staff writer for the global conservation news site Mongabay.com.
Her winning entry, “Indigenous Gurung farmers revive climate-resilient millet in Nepal,” published by Mongabay, tells the story of Indigenous Gurung farmers in central Nepal who are reviving the cultivation of an almost-forgotten, drought-resilient millet, which can grow well under changing climatic conditions.
Hosted by the Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI), the DAJA program rewards top journalism that accurately reports on global efforts advancing sustainable development amid intensifying climate risks, according to its news release.
Chosen from more than 160 entries from across Asia and the Pacific, the five winning journalists published articles that illustrate the diverse impacts of climate change on people’s lives and livelihoods, it says.
Reporting on the intersection of environment, Indigenous rights, climate science and conservation, Lama is a member of the Indigenous Journalists Association (IJA). She represents the Himalayan Indigenous community of Hyolmo in Nepal.
Lama was formerly a reporting fellow with the Nepal Investigative Multimedia Journalism Network and has published articles in local and national media outlets, including Indigenous Voice, OnlineKhabar, Nepali Times and Republica
She will collect her award during a ceremony in Tokyo on July 8. During the event, she and the four other award winners will discuss how journalism and research can complement each other to inform climate risks, adaptation and mitigation efforts with ADBI staff, the DAJA judges and the advisory panel.
