DEADLINE EXTENDED: Apply for Global Health Reporting Trip to Zambia by April 28

The International Reporting Project (IRP) is pleased to announce that applications are now being accepted for our new media reporting trip to Zambia. The fellowship consists of a ten-day reporting trip on July 14-24, 2013 to Zambia, a key southern African country where trip participants will examine and report on progress in combating HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria in the country.

The program is open to journalists and new media specialists from all countries. Some priority will be given to participants from the United States and the United Kingdom, but applicants from all nations are eligible. New media journalists include media professionals, bloggers, social media practitioners with large followings, photographers and videographers, new media commentators and freelance contributors.

This trip will focus on the issues of HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria in Zambia. Like other sub-Saharan countries, Zambia has made significant progress in addressing these diseases. At a time when global experts are examining the replenishment of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria to combat these diseases, what happens on the ground in this southern African country is vital to decisions that may influence policymakers and affect future funding for treatment.

Participants on this trip will have an opportunity to visit urban and rural sites, to examine mother-to-child transmission of HIV, the high rates of HIV/TB co-infection, the challenges of drug delivery in rural areas, drug resistance issues, use of bed nets and other low-cost solutions to malaria, malaria during pregnancy. We will also investigate the use of technology in healthcare, and social and environmental factors – for example, gender-based violence and concurrent sexual partnerships – that exacerbate the spread of these diseases.

All candidates must fill out an application form and provide a detailed essay describing the types of stories they might pursue during the Zambia trip. The deadline for applications has been extended to April 28.

The IRP would purchase the Fellows’ round-trip air tickets to Zambia, pay for hotel costs, meals and local transportation. Participants would have to obtain their own visas to Zambia, but the IRP will reimburse them for the visa costs. Participants who wish to extend their stay in Zambia after the fellowship have to arrange that at their own expense.

Participants will be required to post frequent stories throughout the fellowship–before, during and after the trip. Producing multimedia content, including blog posts, slideshows, tweets, video and audio clips, is encouraged. All of the content produced by the participants on the IRP trip to Zambia would be posted on the IRP site and co-owned by you (or your distribution partners, depending on agreements) and the IRP.

In addition, the works produced as a result of the trip would be made available for posting on the social media channels of the IRP’s funders. The IRP journalists’ trips are supported by a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Read our frequently asked questions and apply for the Zambia trip by April 28!