The Andes-Amazon region spans five countries: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia. It is home to spectacled bears and tapirs, with an abundance of orchids and hummingbirds and condors that soar over the tops of mountains. The varied ecosystems have evolved into tropical, temperate and cold climates, turning the Andes-Amazon region into one of the most biodiverse regions on the planet.

But this biodiverse region is seriously threatened, with mining, the construction of hydroelectric dams and climate change putting several species in danger of extinction. As the ecosystems become more fragile they can no longer support many of the animal, bird and plant species in the mountains and jungle of the Andes-Amazon region.

InquireFirst is launching a call for proposal for a new reporting initiative that will provide financial support for multimedia projects that focus on the threats that affect the biodiversity the communities, and the water sources and climate of the Andes-Amazon region.

With the support of the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, our Mountains and Jungle: Voices from the Andes and Amazon initiative will provide a US $ 3,000 grant to support an in-depth journalism project in the region. The deadline for proposals is February 1, 2023.

We invite you to propose projects that tell the stories of the communities in the region that are being impacted. We are looking for intimate stories, transmitted by the voices of those who are affected, people who are suffering first-hand from the damage being caused to biodiversity, the climate and their own health. By writing these stories, you will be telling the story of the Andes-Amazon region and your reports will tell the larger story of an environmental crisis that is affecting us all.

Your project will be edited by Eduardo Franco Berton, a seasoned environmental journalist and editor based in Bolivia. There will be a calendar for submitting and editing the project, as well as a non-negotiable deadline. Reporters selected to receive an InquireFirst grant agree to adhere to the project’s editing and publishing schedule. As many corrections and modifications will be made as necessary during the editing process.

The project will be presented to the editor Eduardo Franco Berton in Spanish and translated into English and Portuguese.

Eligibility: Our Mountains and Jungle: Voices from the Andes and the Amazon initiative is open to any journalist who frequently collaborates with newspapers, magazines, radio, television or digital media organizations in Latin America. Journalists working at media organizations as well as freelance journalists are eligible to apply. Those who work in public relations or who are institutional spokespersons are not eligible to apply.

To ensure transparency and fairness, an international panel of three judges will select the winning team. The decision of the judges will be final.

Credit: Grant recipients agree to credit the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation and InquireFirst for all publications and communications mentioning the winning entry.

Distribution: The selected projects will be published by media organizations in Latin America and the United States. Editor Eduardo Franco Berton and Project Coordinator Lynne Walker will work with media organizations to ensure projects are distributed as widely as possible.

Deadline:The deadline for proposals is February 1, 2023.

Applications must include the following:

InquireFirst is a 501c3 nonprofit journalism organization founded in January 2016 in San Diego, California. InquireFirst organizes professional workshops in Spanish for Latin American journalists and offers several grant programs for journalists throughout the region.

Questions? Email Lynne Walker

Questionnaire