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Thomson Reuters Foundation is offering a free, instructor-led course on cutting-edge communications skills to CSO communicators in Bangladesh working in climate change, labour equity, and ‘Just Transitions’. 

INTRODUCTION

At Thomson Reuters Foundation, we believe CSOs/NGOs have a crucial role to play in supporting Just Transitions towards a greener national and global economy. We support this by leveraging our world-leading expertise in communications and journalism to support this free course for organisations in Bangladesh working in this crucial field. 

The 6-week programme will help you develop your organisation’s communications, media, and digital capabilities, and help you engage, inform, and inspire key stakeholders. You will learn to develop a strategic communication plan, identify and segment your audiences, monitor new media and digital trends, and ensure that important information about your work reaches the right people.

The programme will be delivered by world-class trainers and experts and uses Thomson Reuters Foundation’s unique ‘dual track’ approach, which trains journalists and CSO representatives in parallel, and provides opportunities for networking and collaborative story development. This approach strengthens trust between journalists and NGOs/CSOs. 

CSOs will learn how to effectively communicate their message to key stakeholders and target audiences and improve their media communication skills.

Journalists will learn how to better report on corporate social performance by examining the data and how investors can collaborate with different actors to get the necessary information and hold relevant parties to account.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

The media training element of this Programme aims to help civil society organisations to better communicate key messages to target audiences and the media, with a view to contributing to higher-quality communications and dialogue on issues relating to just transitions, climate, and labour equity.

At the end of the programme, you will be able to: 

• Define and segment audiences for CSO communications 
• Develop clear, accessible key messages for target audiences 
• Map a communications campaign 
• Understand the use of digital marketing and multimedia skills training tools 
• Understand the news cycle and how journalists work 
• Communicate with the media via day-to-day press relations and crisis management 
• Prepare a spokesperson for interviews and presentations 
• Practice interview skills 
• Interact with journalists using a ‘solutions journalism’ approach 

NOTE: Programme contents may be modified to best respond to the learning needs of the participants.

COURSE DATES AND STRUCTURE

Course Dates: January 18, 24, 31, February 7, 14, 22, 28, 2023

Joint Session with journalists: 22 February will be a joint session between CSOs and journalists.

Structure: The course will be delivered over 6 x 4-hour sessions, using online seminars and other interactive online tools. Participants will be given short activities to complete during and after each session to build skills and confidence. 

Timing: 09:00 - 12:30 Bangladesh Time.

Location: Online (Zoom)

Language: English

Application deadline: 8 January 2023

ALUMNI CLUB FOR GRADUATES

The programme will be followed by a 3-month Alumni Club where participants can focus on a specific communications output with monthly short sessions to receive trainer support and peer-to-peer feedback. We will also provide guest speakers, masterclasses, and networking opportunities. Alumni Club content will be driven based on topics and learning needs you request. Alumni members will also have the exciting chance to be selected as delegates to the Thomson Reuters Foundation annual Trust Conference in London with flights and accommodation covered. 

WHO CAN APPLY?

• Applicants must be full-time CSO staff in Bangladesh with a role in communications and media engagement. 
• Applicants must be fluent in English. The course will be run in English.  
• Applicants must have three years minimum of professional experience. 
• Applicants must have access to a minimum internet speed of 8Mb/second. (You can check the speed of your device by logging from it on www.speedtest.net). Financial support to purchase internet data can be made available for the period of the training.
• Applicants need access to a computer to participate in the training; participation from a mobile or smartphone will not be possible.

HOW TO APPLY

Complete the application survey before 8 January 2023.

If you have any difficulties applying, please email the project coordinator at Moe.Sasaki@thomsonreuters.com and cc Maria.Almyraki@thomsonreuters.com.

NOTE: Your application will need to include a maximum 250-word summary of a communications activity or media engagement campaign at your organisation where you played a pivotal role. Describe the activity, your communications goals, and the extent to which these were achieved. Describe the skills or strategic communications information you feel would help you achieve better outcomes from similar campaigns in future.

MEET THE TRAINERS

Viasen Soobramoney, Communications Lead-Trainer

Viasen Soobramoney is an experienced senior manager and multiple award-winning journalist with a demonstrated history of working in the media, marketing and communications industry. He is highly skilled in corporate and political communication, crisis management, operations and strategy. Viasen is a digital media specialist and media trainer.

Kavita Chandran, Communications Co-Trainer

Kavita Chandran is a former financial journalist who has worked in newsrooms across the United States and Asia. She worked with Reuters News as a Training Editor in India and as FrontPage Editor with the Asia Top News team in Singapore. Prior to Reuters, Kavita was an editor at Bloomberg, New York. Today, she is based in Singapore and continues to write for various publications including CNBC Asia. She teaches journalism to undergraduate students at the Kaplan Institute, and Media Communications to MBA students at S.P. Jain Global School of Management.

FURTHER INFORMATION ABOUT JUST TRANSITION

Climate change is a complex and pressing challenge that the world faces with impacts exacerbating inequality across demographics and - significantly - the lives of labourers. As economic sectors are pushed to greener business practices, poorly thought-through climate action (and inaction) often intensifies labourer vulnerabilities, exposing workers to insecure and unprotected work. Within this environment, Just Transition works to secure the future and the livelihoods of workers and local communities in the transition to a low-carbon economy.