Algoa FM contacted our department and asked us to create an environmental package in line with the South East African Climate Consortium (SEACC).
Algoa Country has the potential to be environmentally aware and play a role in sustainable development. Grahamstown’s Local Economic Department has begun a program which aims to establish the town as a Green City. This initiative is currently driven by the Department of Social and Community Services. For this system to be successful, other cities and towns throughout the world will need to become economically and socially ‘green’. Marcelle Liron spoke to the Environmental Manager of the Makana Municiplaity, Ndumiso Nongwe, who explains the concept of a Green City…
Story Pitch
1. WHAT IS THE STORY ABOUT?
A green city, or eco-city is a city designed with consideration of environmental impact, inhabited by people dedicated to minimization of required inputs of energy, water and food, and waste output of heat, air pollution - CO2, methane, and water pollution. I would like to focus on what being a green city entails and also map out Makana’s progress in becoming one.
The people I would interview include Local Economic Department (LED) Director, Riana Meiring. She would be available for a telephone interview only as her schedule is extremely busy. I could enquire what steps the LED is taking to ensure Makana becomes economically and environmentally sustainable. I would also include an interview from the founder of the Rhodes Investec Business School, Professor Gavin Staude. The school officially put forward the concept last year and is working with the Department of Social and Community Services to create sustainable partnerships between sectors such as agriculture, private business, government department and agencies and Rhodes University. I would also go to the director of the Economic Development sector at the Cacadu District Municipality, Mickey Mama, and enquire about the progress the town has made and what jobs have been created thus far. Once she has told me about the jobs, I will contact the relevant employers and employees to gain an understanding of what their jobs entail.
The story will be an informative one which will educate the public with regard to their area’s undertakings to become part of a global movement towards sustainable development and the reduction of our carbon footprint. I hope that by interviewing a diverse group of people who are involved in this project from many different angles, I will be able to create an interesting package which will encourage listeners to follow in the green city’s footsteps.
2. MOTIVATE FOR THE STORY: WHY IS IT WORTH TELLING?
This story is an example of development journalism because through telling it, listeners will gain an understanding of the conditions our community is facing. This is achieved by interacting with citizens and travelling to areas that listeners do not usually venture into, in order to report back on the issues at hand. The piece will propose solutions to the problem of global warming and sustainability and will encourage cooperation between citizens of this area. Important information will be spread throughout the community and citizens will be given access to the whole picture.
This is an important story as global warming is a problem which affects every human being and by offering ways for the community to get involved, the SABC’s audiences will be able to make a change within their environment. This is a topic which is on everyone’s mind and has a high news value no matter what part of South Africa one lives in. We are all affected by this global phenomenon.
3. HOW WILL YOU TELL THE STORY?
This package would be structured with a sound clip of one of the jobs the green city project has implemented and would develop into a package containing the three experts’ voices each explaining an aspect of the project with narration guiding the listener along the storyline, outlining the questions posed to the interviewees. The package could end with a “perfect solution” explanation and perhaps the sound of a natural setting which is thriving such as a stream and crickets in nature.
The sound elements, as mentioned above, could include natural sounds as well as the ambience of one of the industries involved in the project. The final narration describing the “perfect solution” could perhaps be read by a child as they are the future we are trying to save our planet for. This would lend a memorable identity to the package.
