WACC - Global

Democracy needs journalism. Strong, independent journalism. So, when the rapid advancement of generative AI threatens journalism, it is a threat to democracy and democratic values itself.

On and beyond, we in civil society can and must step up for trusted journalism: https://waccglobal.org/world-news-day-2026/



World News Day WAN-IFRA

Just a few days until the Nigeria CCC – that’s community-centered connectivity – Bootcamp gets off the ground! Excited to be a supporting partner in this initiative to build an inclusive digital future 🌐

Alongside our amazing partners - APC, 48percent.org, Sida - Styrelsen för Internationellt Utvecklingssamarbete, DFID Nigeria, etc we are excited to announce the first community-centred connectivity bootcamp to strengthen locally led digital inclusion. We look forward to this important event starting Sept. 28, 2026

Hear the voices and stories of women on the move in Latin America. ⬇️

Caribbean media organizations are approaching issues like AI with a deliberate regional lens, says WACC President Embert Charles, in this look at the latest assembly of the CBU - Caribbean Broadcasting Union.

➡️ https://bit.ly/CBU57-EmbertCharles



WACC Caribe Carimac UWI

🌿 Did you know that local communication is a vital part of climate justice?

Find out more in WACC’s new advocacy resource “Filling the Infrastructure Gap: Why we need democratic communication and information to achieve climate justice”!

Launching today during our WACC-convened panel on building trust through democratic and local communication, happening at the Festival in Brazil hosted by our partner ARTIGO 19.

➡️ https://bit.ly/FillingInfrastructureGap



Brot für die Welt WACC América Latina WACC Africa WACC Caribe WACC Europe WACC North America

Festival is off and running in São Paulo, Brazil!

Community and Indigenous communicators from five countries are raising their voices that local media is a front-line defense against climate disinformation – and that funders and regulators should treat it as infrastructure rather than as a permanent pilot project.

Happening through 25 September, the Festival features panels on Indigenous media, community-centered connectivity, data sovereignty and digital market regulation, alongside workshops, a hackathon and a fair of grassroots technology collectives.

Our partner ARTIGO 19 is hosting the communication justice event.

From left: Vilma Pena Vargas (GEMA Costa Rica & WACC América Latina), Paulo Lara (Artigo 19/ARTICLE 19 Brazil & South America), Lorenzo Vargas (WACC Global), Yorman Galviz (Proyectos Escuchamos).

Photo: Vilma Pena Vargas/WACC

None of the Sustainable Development Goals, nor indeed, any of the immense challenges we face today – from worsening climate change to unregulated development of artificial intelligence – can be tackled without universal rights to communication in the fullest sense – what we are now highlighting as communication justice.
And a free and diverse press is an essential element of that.

Reflect with us in the latest WACC Comment: https://bit.ly/Comment-21Sept26

Climate communication has an elephant in the room.

A recent survey of over 500 articles in the field’s five top-producing journals revealed that:

✳️ 93% of authors were affiliated with institutions in the Global North
✳️ 57% of studies examined Northern countries while only 12% looked at the South
✳️ Latin America and Africa each accounted for a mere 1% of authors

There is also a deeper problem about what counts as knowledge and how knowledge is validated or discredited in media discourses.

We need a new approach to climate communication, one that takes a bottom-up perspective and understands communication as a right.

Will you join us in working together to put local voices at the heart of climate communication?

More in the latest WACC Comment ➡️ https://bit.ly/Comment-7Sept26



📷 Dev Kumar Sunuwar/Cultural Survival

WACC Africa WACC América Latina WACC Caribe WACC Europe WACC North America

"Truth, mutuality, and solidarity are the values that must guide AI if it is to serve humanity rather than exploit it."

WACC Deputy General Secretary Sara Speicher takes a closer look at communication justice in the age of AI and concrete steps people in church contexts can take in this new resource from the Council for World Mission.

INSiGHT 3/2026 explores artificial intelligence and the church - Council for World Mission Artificial intelligence is rapidly reshaping how we communicate, learn, work, and relate to one another. It is also transforming the contexts in which churches participate in God’s mission.

Harrowing news from our partners in Nepal:

"For many survivors, the disaster has completely erased a lifetime of earnings, their loved ones, and their means of livelihood. People have lost houses they built over generations and livelihoods that sustained their families. Some have lost parents, children, and other relatives, while thousands remain uncertain about the fate of loved ones who disappeared in the flood.

"In several communities, survivors say their future is now uncertain. Some settlements are no longer habitable, pushing communities back by centuries in terms of development and economic security.

"Local FM radio is a vital source of information for communities cut off from conventional communication systems. Yet, even radio operations face challenges due to a lack of battery backup and solar power. In remote settlements, residents need information about rescue operations, safe routes, food distribution, and emergency services, but damaged infrastructure makes communication increasingly difficult.

"Indigenous Peoples’ rights activists are calling for disaster response and climate adaptation strategies to incorporate Indigenous knowledge and values. They argue that development projects, including dams and hydropower facilities, which make lands fragile, must not become forms of 'destructive development.' They are calling for Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) from affected communities, protection of traditional ecological knowledge, and greater attention to forests, biodiversity, soil conservation, and traditional practices that can reduce vulnerability to landslides and erosion.

"The disaster has also intensified debate over climate change and state responsibility.

"Environmentalists have classified the Bhotekoshi disaster as climate-induced. Dr. Maheshwar Dhakal, Head of the Climate Change Management Division under the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Environment, said the catastrophic loss of life and property resulted from forces to which Nepal has contributed very little.

"Dhakal says Nepal should be viewed not only as a victim but also as a country that contributes to global climate stability through its mountains, forests, biodiversity, and freshwater systems. 'We deserve evaluation and restitution not merely as climate victims, but as active contributors to the global climate balance,' Dhakal said.

"What happened in Rasuwa and downstream along the Trishuli corridor has exposed the extraordinary vulnerability of Himalayan communities to sudden climate-related disasters. The immediate priority remains clear—save lives, find the missing, provide shelter and food, restore communication, and reconnect isolated communities.

"But recovery will require much more than rebuilding roads and bridges. For thousands of survivors, it will mean rebuilding their homes, livelihoods, communities, and sense of pride and security. For Indigenous communities whose ancestral lands have been devastated, recovery must also protect their rights, culture, knowledge, and relationship with the land.

"The flood may have lasted only minutes, but its consequences will be felt for generations."

Cultural Survival

Deadly Flood, Dubbed “Himalayan Tsunami,” Leaves Over 1,300 Dead and Thousands Missing in Nepal By Dev Kumar Sunuwar (Koĩts-Sunuwar, CS Staff)