New Media and Climate Change Communication: An Assessment of Utilization of New Media Platforms in Publication of Glocalized Climate Change Information by East Africa’s Science Journalists

Africa’s Agenda 2063 recognizes climate change as a major challenge for the continent’s development (UNFCCC, 2020). In East Africa, economies are largely dependent on climate-sensitive sectors, such as agriculture, water, energy and tourism and their vulnerability has greatly been increased by adverse climatic change events. As such, the East Africa Community (EAC) has developed a Climate Change Policy, Climate Change Strategy (2011-2016; 2017-2022) and Climate Change Master Plan (2011-2031) with the overall aim of the Policy being to contribute to sustainable development in the region through harmonised and coordinated Climate Change adaptation and mitigation strategies, programmes and actions (EAC, 2011). The need for improved capacity building through increased public awareness that comes with enhanced information dissemination in the region, cannot, therefore, be overemphasised. Emerging global communication trends suggest that audiences are increasingly more interested in hyper-local content yet climate change by its very nature, is a global phenomenon, even if its impacts are experienced at a local level. Digital platforms have made it easier for communities to connect their realities with global trends and benchmark with the best practices around the world in crafting local solutions. The crisis of climate change and communication around its impacts, thus provide a nexus between the global and the local and present both opportunities as well as challenges. The purpose of this paper, therefore, is to assess, through the lenses of the new media theory, how science journalists have utilized digital platforms to increase dissemination and access to localized climate change information so as to enhance climate resilience in East Africa. This is in cognisance of the fact that climate change information has largely been inaccessible owing to the mode and language of dissemination. There is therefore an urgent need to repackage and disseminate the globally shared information in newer accessible and locally-relevant formats.