GESI-responsive climate storytelling workshop for Bhutanese journalists 09-10 September 2026 | Paro, Bhutan

Organisers: ICIMOD and Tarayana Foundation

About the workshop

The Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) region is increasingly experiencing the impacts of climate change, including changing precipitation patterns, drying springs, increasing water scarcity, biodiversity loss, and heightened vulnerability of rural mountain communities. In Bhutan, these changes are affecting livelihoods, agriculture, water security, and the well-being of communities that depend heavily on natural resources.

To address these challenges, the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), with support from Global Affairs Canada (GAC), is implementing the Integrated Climate Adaptation Solutions for the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HI-CAS) project in Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Nepal. In Bhutan, the project is implemented by Tarayana Foundation in close collaboration with national and local partners to strengthen climate resilience through community-led and gender-responsive adaptation approaches.

The project promotes Integrated Adaptation Solutions Packages (IASPs) that combine springshed management, agrobiodiversity conservation, renewable energy, and gender equality and social inclusion (GESI) principles to enhance the resilience of vulnerable communities, particularly women, youth, Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs), and other marginalised groups.

While these integrated and locally led approaches are already making significant progress at the community level, many of the stories and lessons remain untold. This is where the media can play a vital role, bridging the gap between scientific knowledge, community experiences, and policy discussions by documenting local adaptation efforts and bringing community voices to wider national audiences. Through effective climate reporting, the media can highlight not only the challenges communities face but also the innovative and locally led solutions that are strengthening resilience across Bhutan.

Recognising this important role of journalists in shaping public understanding of climate change, Tarayana Foundation, in collaboration with ICIMOD, is organising a two-day ‘Climate storytelling workshop for Bhutanese journalists.’ The workshop aims to strengthen journalists’ capacity to report on climate adaptation through compelling, ethical, and inclusive storytelling that reflects the realities, aspirations, and resilience of Bhutanese communities.

Workshop objectives

The workshop aims to:

• strengthen the capacity of Bhutanese journalists to produce accurate, ethical, and engaging stories on climate change adaptation and community resilience.
•  enhance participants’ understanding of the HI-CAS project, including its IASPs and GESI approach.
•  build practical skills in identifying compelling story angles, interviewing communities, and developing human-centred narratives that highlight local adaptation solutions.
• promote GESI-responsive storytelling by encouraging journalists to amplify the voices and experiences of women, youth, IPLCs, and other marginalised groups.
• foster stronger collaboration between journalists, development practitioners, and climate experts to support informed and sustained reporting on climate adaptation in Bhutan.

Expected outcomes

By the end of the workshop, the participants are expected to:

• demonstrate enhanced knowledge and practical skills in climate storytelling, ethical reporting, and GESI-responsive journalism.
• develop story ideas and reporting plans that showcase community-led climate adaptation initiatives under the HI-CAS project.
• produce more informed, accurate, and human-centred reporting on climate resilience, highlighting both challenges and locally driven solutions.
•  contribute to increased public awareness and national dialogue on climate adaptation through balanced, evidence-based journalism.
•  strengthen a network of Bhutanese journalists committed to reporting on climate change, environmental sustainability, and community resilience.

Agenda summary

The workshop will be interactive and participatory, combining expert-led sessions on climate storytelling and GESI-responsive storytelling. The participants will work in mixed groups from Paro, Punakha, and Thimphu.

Day 1: Understanding HI-CAS and climate reporting

• What is HI-CAS? What are its objectives and its components like IASPs?
• What is the role of media and why do stories matter for promoting locally led climate adaptations?
• How to build narratives around resilience rather than vulnerability?
• What is ethical storytelling, and how can we ensure that communities remain at the centre of the storytelling process?

Day 2: Understanding and reworking on GESI-responsive storytelling

•  Whose voices are missing when stories about climate vulnerability is published?
• How to reframe the narratives with GESI-lens?
• How to pitch and develop GESI-responsive climate stories in Bhutan?