Selected to pursue their own story ideas within the broad theme of ‘energy’, each of the reporters from Southeast Europe devised local, regional and European research agendas before embarking on a summer of chasing stories, sources and statistics.
Under the supervision of their individual mentors – the editors who make up the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network, BIRN – they came up with a range of interesting approaches to their chosen investigations.
Fellows will have to overcome many difficulties in their pursuit for stories, and to test their organisational capabilities and adventurous spirit. This year they will travel not only to their neighboring countries and EU, but their stories will also take them to further and less known destinations such as Russia, Georgia and Abkhazia.
To learn more about their experiences and impressions read the fellows’ blogs, and in addition you can check the fellowship gallery for 2008.
Fellows’ reports will be published in a book and on BIRN’s Balkan Insight after the Fellowship’s Selection Committee announces the winning result in late November at a closing ceremony in Vienna.
The Balkan Fellowship for Journalistic Excellence is an initiative of the Robert Bosch Stiftung and the ERSTE Foundation, in cooperation with the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network.