Reporting climate change in the Pacific

Fredrick Kusu shares how journalism amplifies local voices, strengthens resilience and drives action on climate change.

Fredrick Kusu is editor at the Solomon Islands Broadcasting Corporation (SIBC), the only national broadcaster in the country. Since joining SIBC in 2014, he has risen from reporter to editor, managing the newsroom while continuing to cover climate and environmental issues.

“I always wanted to tell stories that matter,” Fredrick explains. “Radio is a powerful way to speak directly to people across our islands.”

His reporting focuses on the urgent challenges such as rising sea levels, deforestation, pollution and marine biodiversity loss in the Solomon Islands. “Being a journalist matters,” he says, “because the issues we report help people make informed decisions and be part of the decision-making process in our society.”

Journalist Fredrick sitting in radio studio in Solomon Islands

Strong journalism gives our communities the knowledge to act and the power to shape their own future.”
— Fredrick Kusu

Fredrick’s commitment to climate reporting has taken him beyond the Pacific. He has covered global summits including COP27, COP28 and the Oceans Conference in Nice, connecting local experiences in the Solomon Islands to international decision-making. “My passion is showing how global policy affects the daily lives of our communities back home,” he notes.

BBC Media Action’s media strengthening project in the Solomon Islands has been key to his growth as a journalist and editor. “This support has boosted the quality of our newsroom and helped me successfully cover major stories from elections to the Pacific Games,” Fredrick told us.

Group of journalists gathered around a laptop during a training session in Solomon Islands — MASI and SIBC Gizo based reporters and broadcasters in a BBC Media Acton training session

At the IUCN World Conservation Congress, Fredrick will explore how media can spotlight the urgent challenges of climate change and marine conservation, share innovative reporting strategies and highlight ways journalism can influence policy and drive real change. “Strong journalism gives our communities the knowledge to act and the power to shape their own future,” he says.

Fredrick hopes his work will inspire the next generation of journalists in the Solomon Islands. “My advice to young journalists is to work hard and bring issues to light,” he says. “Good journalism grounded in ethics will always matter - even as technology advances - because people will still depend on our role so people can make informed decisions.”

We are an official media partner of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature's World Conservation Congress in Abu Dhabi. Find Fredrick at 'Speaker's corner' alongside the rest of our journalists delegates on 9th October at 2pm (GST), and for a more in-depth session ‘Covering climate change and conservation in the Solomon Islands’ on 11th October at 12pm (GST).

As part of the collaboration, we will host a media pavilion throughout the Congress (9–13 October), with contributions from the BBC Studios Natural History Unit (NHU) exploring how storytelling can inspire and inform audiences on the intertwined issues of threatened biodiversity and the changing climate