For years, Agence France-Presse has been doing some of the best climate coverage in the world. The news agency, which distributes test, video, photo, and other types of content in six languages (French, English, Spanish, German, Portuguese, and Arabic) to more than 4,000 newsrooms and governments around the world, made climate change and the environment core editorial priorities in 2019, the same year Covering Climate Now was founded. Since then, AFP has distinguished itself with prize-winning investigations, such as its exposé of the McKinsey consulting company’s unsavory climate activities; human-centered examinations of what makes people take action against climate change; rigorous fact-checking and debunking of climate disinformation; and, perhaps most important of all, sustained daily coverage of countless aspects of the climate story, from politics and business to health and justice and more.
This week at the COP31 UN climate summit, AFP unveiled a new dimension of its climate coverage: a new desk devoted to covering climate change litigation and other forms of legal accountability, headed by Ivan Couronne, the former editor in chief of the news agency’s Future of the Planet department. “Climate litigation, at its core, is a story of people using the law to protect the communities and places they love most,” AFP said in announcing the initiative. CCNow salutes AFP on this stirring example of leadership, which the agency explained further explained in the press release republished below:
Agence France-Presse has launched the Future of the Planet Legal Desk, creating a new team of journalists dedicated to reporting in depth on environmental and climate issues relating to the rule of law.
The desk is the first major project under AFP’s Philanthropic Partnerships Initiative, which began last year to expand the agency’s capacity for in-depth journalism with philanthropic support.
The desk’s operations have begun with the support of Australia’s Minderoo Foundation and The Climate Change Collaboration in the United Kingdom.
AFP is one of the world’s three major news agencies, with bureaus in 210 locations around the world. Its mission is to provide rapid, comprehensive, impartial and verified coverage of the news and issues that shape our daily lives.
The legal desk complements AFP’s existing environment reporting by adding specialist expertise and investigative capacity to cover litigation, legislation, corporate accountability, disinformation and other issues that shape the planet’s future.
The desk will have dedicated journalists in key regions around the world – including Latin America, Asia and Africa – creating the first global media desk providing sustained, specialist reporting on environmental and climate law.
The team will also build journalists’ capacities inside and outside the agency to report on environmental law, laying the foundations for enduring coverage.
Powerful multimedia reporting — which simplifies complex legal battles, amplifies underreported voices, scrutinises environmental law and examines solutions — will bring sustained global visibility to environmental and climate law.
“Environmental and climate law is becoming an increasingly important and complex area of coverage, but many significant developments remain under-reported or poorly understood,” said AFP Editor-in-Chief Mehdi Lebouachera.
“This desk will give AFP the specialist expertise and capacity to follow these issues over time, explain them clearly and work with our staff around the world to produce compelling journalism from the ground.”
Minderoo said its support would help amplify under-reported voices, particularly from the Global South, showcase legal solutions that inspire hope and action, and strengthen the capacity of journalists to report on critical issues.
“It is in Minderoo’s DNA to shine a light on injustice,” Minderoo Foundation CEO John Hartman said.
“At a time when the consequences of climate change are becoming increasingly severe, the law has a key role to play in keeping the world on track to reduce emissions, protect communities and avert the worst impacts of climate change.
“Independent journalism is essential to bringing these legal challenges to light, scrutinising corporate accountability and helping the public understand the cases and decisions shaping our collective future.”
The Climate Change Collaboration groups together The Aurora Trust, JJ Charitable Trust and Mark Leonard Trust.
The founding editor of the desk is Ivan Couronne, who in his previous role as AFP’s Future of the Planet Editor-in-Chief oversaw the Agency’s strategy of making climate and environment top priorities for all reporters and bureaus around the world.
“I have been covering climate change for years and this was the missing piece. This is where a lot of the climate action is moving, and I’m now proud to be able to tell sources, communities, litigators and everyone involved in these issues that there’s a desk at AFP to tell those stories,” Couronne said.
The desk will be embedded in AFP’s existing editorial structures and workflows, with its journalism distributed to the agency’s 4,000+ clients and across its social media platforms.
AFP has published a Code of Ethics for foundation-supported journalism that sets out how its philanthropic partnership projects operate in accordance with the Agency’s editorial standards and guidelines.
For more details on AFP’s Philanthropic Partnerships, or to get in touch with our partnerships team, please visit AFP’s partnerships page.
From Us
Reporting on COP31. Whether you’re reporting on COP31 from Turkey or remotely, we have you covered with this advance prep.
- WATCH: Prep Yourself to Cover COP31. These geographically targeted prep sessions will get you ready to deliver great coverage to your audiences.
- WATCH: Why COP31 Could Surprise Us. Dig into the climate summit with this panel of climate luminaries, including Kumi Naidoo, President of the Fossil Fuel Treaty Initiative; Johan Rockström, Director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impacts Research; Ana Toni, CEO and Executive Director for last year’s COP30; and Stientje van Veldhoven, Minister of Climate and Green Growth for the Netherlands.
RSVP: How to Cover Heat Impacts on Health in West Africa During an El Niño. Join CCNow on Tuesday, November 17, at 5pm West Africa Time, for a session digging into how the current El Niño will push temperatures beyond normal, impacting the Sahel and West Africa.
RSVP: CCNow Basics: Climate Science 101. Join us on Thursday, December 3, at 2pm UTC, for a Climate Science 101 training session specifically designed for journalists. Whether you’re completely new to climate reporting or a seasoned editor who needs a refresher and a simpler way to explain the science to your team, this session is for you.
Se llama climaflación y la sufrimos en todo el mundo. El encarecimiento del coste de la vida es una preocupación a nivel global, y el cambio climático está añadiendo presión. Lo notamos en el costo de la cesta de la compra, la vivienda y el transporte. Esta semana en Radar Clima, te damos ideas y contactos de expertos para ayudarte en tu cobertura. Échale un vistazo a las ediciones anteriores y suscríbete para recibir el boletín cada dos miércoles.
Quote of the Week
“Everything and everyone we love is at stake.”
– Greta Thunberg, the youth climate activist on COP31. She’s attending a UN climate summit for the first time in five years.
Resources & Events
- Monthly Summary for October 2026, Media and Climate Change Observatory at the University of Colorado, Boulder
- “12 free reports about climate change for COP31,” Yale Climate Connections
- Subscribe: Climate Action Against Disinformation’s COP31 newsletter “COP, Look, Listen.” Read the second issue.
- Subscribe: Climate Diplomacy Brief for expert insights on COP31 and global climate diplomacy. Read “COP31 day 2.”
- RSVP: The Monthly Climate Brief, hosted by Climate Central on Tuesday, November 17, at 12pm US Eastern Time, will focus on El Niño
- RSVP: “Generative AI and News Report 2026: From Standalone Tools to Information Infrastructure” on Tuesday, November 24, at 11am US Eastern Time
- RSVP: “Is the Future of Jobs Threatened by Heat and Climate Change?” on November 25, at 4pm West Africa Time
Jobs, Etc.
Jobs. Grist is hiring a Social Audience Producer (remote). The Guardian is hiring an Editor for its Seascape global reporting project (London). Semafor is hiring a Flagship Lead Editor (London). Alaska Public Media is hiring a Chief Editor & Vice President of Journalism (Anchorage, Alaska). The New York Climate Exchange is hiring a Digital Storytelling Lead (New York, N.Y.). The Wall Street Journal is hiring a South Asia Correspondent (New Delhi, India). Inside Climate News is hiring a Senior Editor (remote, American West preferred). WIRED is hiring a Features Editor (New York, N.Y.). SciLine is hiring an On-Call Reporter (remote). The Audubon Society is hiring a Senior Writer, Executive Communications (Washington, D.C.) and an Editorial Fellow (New York, N.Y.). Bloomberg Industry Group is hiring a News Team Lead – Environment (Arlington, Va.). Bloomberg News is hiring an Africa Broadcast Producer (Johannesburg, South Africa). Heatmap is hiring a Senior Editor (remote). POLITICO is hiring an Energy and Climate Reporter (Brussels, Belgium). ON PURPOSE is hiring a Senior Content Writer (Delhi, India).
Fellowships, Tours, Grants & Pitch Opportunities.
- Informed Earth has several opportunities for journalists in South Asia, Africa, the Western Balkans, and a three-day virtual workshop on covering fisheries transparency open to all journalists.
- The National Institute for Computer-Assisted Reporting is accepting applications for the Philip Meyer Journalism Award, which rewards outstanding work using social science research methods; apply by November 18.
- The New York Times is accepting applications for the Times Fellowship, its yearlong opportunity for early career journalists; apply by November 20.
- Investigative Reporters & Editors is accepting applications for its Data Journalism Bootcamp scheduled for January 11–15, 2027 in Columbia, Mo.; apply by December 6.
This week, to coincide with the commencement of COP31, we’re highlighting winners from the International Relations category. In this category, judges considered work about how climate change is reshaping diplomacy worldwide and how countries are working together, or not, to fight climate change, including at 2025’s COP30 in Belém, Brazil.
African Voices, Women of Faith, and Frontline Communities at COP30
By Doreen Ajiambo
Global Sisters Report
Revealed: Leak Casts Doubt on COP30’s ‘Informal List’ of Fossil-Fuel Roadmap Opponents
By Leo Hickman & Simon Evans
Carbon Brief (UK)
‘A Pretty Ugly History’: How Exxon Exported Climate Denial to the Global South
By Geoff Dembicki
DeSmog & The Guardian
Check out the citations for these winners and find links to their stories here.