Goodbye and good riddance 2020? Sure, it’s been a roundly crappy year on so many fronts: bushfires, COVID-19, climate, politics, toilet paper shortages. But it isn’t all bad.
For one thing, 2020 brought 58 people together as inaugural members of the Science Journalists Association of Australia. Thank you for being a part of this organisation’s first year, for participating in events, chatting and sharing on Slack, helping each other out, celebrating each other’s achievements, and making SJAA what we really hoped it would be when the founding committee first started sketching it out.
In 2020, SJAA is proud to have delivered six online events this year, including panels on Freedom of Information requesting, longform science journalism, covering COVID-19 and how to pitch editors.
What’s coming in 2021? The big news is SJAA is launching a grants program at the start of the year. We’re offering two $750 grants for members – one for student/early-career, and one for established writers – to support a science journalism reporting project with both money and mentoring.
Thank you to the founding committee of Dyani Lewis, Natasha Mitchell, Jonathan Webb, Stephen Pincock, Sara Phillips, Carl Smith, Nicky Phillips, Wilson da Silva and Fran Molly for putting so much time and thought into creating this organisation, for caring so much about science journalists and science journalism in Australia, and for being just a great bunch of people.
Thank you to SJAA’s first elected committee of Neena Bhandari, Ruby Prosser Scully, Michelle Starr, Sara Phillips, Carl Smith, Nicky Phillips, Dyani Lewis, Fran Molloy and Natasha Mitchell for building and nurturing SJAA through a challenging year, and making this organisation so valuable, relevant and exciting.
If you’re interested in being part of this great group, become a member!
Bianca Nogrady
President.