Environmental Journalism as a Management Tool for Poverty Reduction: Considerations on Albanian Current Developments

Elda Zotaj

doi:10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n23p187

Abstract

The paper is conceived on an empirical study explaining the relationship between different actors dealing with environmental and poverty reduction issues, such as journalists, NGOs as well as educational institutions, aiming to raise the public awareness and participation while proposing concrete policies for improvement. Interviews and surveys have been conducted to better understand if the link between the environmental communicators and the civil society is actually at the level of efficiency it should to bring the significant change they are expected to. As current developments stress the linking environmental concerns with poverty reduction measures for sustainability, the study answers questions on the level of knowledge and training journalists gain since during their higher education as well as through common environmental focused activities with local environmental NGOs. Conclusions raise problems about lack of proper specialization of journalists, and the need for a better cooperation between different stakeholders in order to achieve sustainability and concrete results. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n23p187

Highlights

In these last years, 2005 - 2014, “EU Integration” has become Albania’s key foreign policy priority and is having, and will continue to have a significant influence on the preparation of local strategies, including environmental and sustainability policies.(National Environmental Strategy 2008)
Civil sector dealing with environment issues operating in Albania grew bigger during the last years, aiming to implement activities and to educate the population have a better attitude on the environment
One question was directed at relevant representatives of stakeholders groups asking them about the main constraints that they encountered in implementing sustainable development objectives in the area they operate. 90% of them highlighted the lack of financial resources and capacities. 87% of them listed the lack of information or public awareness and the unfavorable economic situation as the main reason of the difficulties the NGOs are confronting with

Summary

Introduction

2005 - 2014, “EU Integration” has become Albania’s key foreign policy priority and is having, and will continue to have a significant influence on the preparation of local strategies, including environmental and sustainability policies.(National Environmental Strategy 2008). Like most other developing countries, during this transition period the environmental problems affected the quality of lives of Albanian people. Many of these problems have resulted due to a lack of understanding and concern about environmental and sustainable development issues which led to over-exploitation of natural resources and badly planned development and industrial projects, which added to the population internal migration helped increase of socio-economic problems and large scale air, water and soil pollution. The achievement of a balance between economic development and nature preservation was established after the fall of the social order during the last decades. The history of such developments was considered as a positive process, because the approach to sustainable environmental development could be initially taken during the process of structural transformations

Methods

Results

Conclusion