The European Journalism Centre and the Foundation for Investigative Journalism (SKUP) of Norway are sponsoring a competition for journalists from the West Balkans that participated in the EJC's 'Computer Assisted Reporting" seminar series run by Jan Gunnar Furuly and Per Anders Johansen of Norwegian daily, Aftenposten. The series began in Sarajevo in November, 2007 and continued on to Nis, Serbia and Skopje in 2008 and was funded jointly by the Fritt Ord Foundation (NO) and Democracy and Media Foundation (NL).
A scholarship fund has been set up jointly by the EJC and SKUP for eight journalists to attend the Fifth Global Investigative Journalism Conference 2008 (GIJC) in Lillehammer, Norway, September 10th to 14th. Airfare, conference registration, hotel and all meals are included. Journalists should apply online and submit all materials no later than 10 June, 2008.
"The GIJC is an important event where journalists share their experiences and can attend a long series of workshops in order to update their investigative journalism techniques. It will also be a unique opportunity to engage in networking with colleagues and peers from around the world." said Josh LaPorte, EJC project manager for the workshop series. "We are pleased that EJC and SKUP can provide this opportunity to journalists from what are usually under-represented countries at this event".
Jan Gunnar Furuly, chairman of the GIJC-2009 added, "If you want to improve your knowledge and skills to become a better journalist, you should really aim for this chance to come to Norway. In the workshops the main focus will be methods, methods, methods and methods again."
Furuly said SKUP aims to make this a showcase of global investigative journalism, and to ensure that the voices from all the world's regions are heard. In the past he felt that GIJC's were not real global events, but rather dominated by West European or North American content and views. Thanks to generous funding from, among others, the Norwegian Foreign Ministry, Open Society Institute and EJC, SKUP is able to bring in a record high number of participants and speakers from Eastern Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia and Latin America.
The GIJC-2008 event will hold 80 seminars and workshops during the four days. Over 500 journalists from 60 countries are expected to attend the conference, which takes place in Lillehammer, the home of the 1994 Olympic Winter Games.
For further conference information, visit the conference website
