Governments around the world are busy setting emission targets to transform their economies for a greener, net zero future.
A move away from coal fired energy is seen as fundamental to this transition, yet coal remains a key export commodity for Australia and a primary energy source for some of Asia’s fastest-growing economies.
In a special investigation, journalists from Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea, Singapore and the UK have come together to provide a unique regional perspective on the environmental, economic, political impacts of this transition.
Organisations collaborating include:
- Tempo in Indonesia
- Centre for Media and Development Initiatives in Vietnam
- The Australian Financial Review‘s South-East Asia bureau
- Tokyo-based investigative newsroom Tansa
- Korea Center for Investigative Journalism Newstapa in South Korea
- Malaysiakini
- UK-based ‘slow news’ publisher Tortoise Media
By supporting quality reporting collaborations, JNI aims to help independent journalists produce regional stories and better connect Australian audiences to them.
The Institute is funding more reporting collaborations between Asian and international journalists in an effort to foster informed debate about the many social, economic and technological issues that define and challenge the region.
Read the stories
Malaysiakini
- Shedding coal: The good, the bad and the ugly of Malaysia’s coal power industry — Darshini Kandasamy and Edward Gomez
Tempo
- Voices against the waste — Riky Ferdianto
- Processing coal the Asian way — Abdul Manan
- Taking toxic waste off the hazardous waste list — Riky Ferdianto
- The geothermal holding debate — Khairul Anam
- The end of coal power plants — Retno Sulistyawati
- The geothermal powerhouses — Aisha Sheidra
- PLN’s problems in the pandemic — Retno Sulistyawati
- The enticement of coal prices — Aisha Sheidra
- Steam power plants running on fumes — Devy Ernis
- Cleaning up our electricity chaos
Newstapa
- South Korean government continues investing in overseas coal projects — Shin Dong-yoon and Kim Ji-yoon
- Why does Korea continue coal financing? — Shin Dong-yoon and Kim Ji-yoon
- South Korean ‘Green New Deal’ a greenwash, less about carbon neutrality — Hwang Il-song and Cho Won-il
The Australian Financial Review
- South Korea’s state-owned banks can’t give up on coal — Emma Connors
Tansa
- The coal plant that “reduces” CO2 emissions from zero to 7.26 million tons — Annelise Giseburt
- Ministry of Economy feigned ignorance of basic climate science in lawsuit over coal plant — Annelise Giseburt
Tortoise Media
- Hooked on coal: Asia’s energy addiction — Giles Whittell
Asian Stories
Asia is home to half the world’s population. Its economy is bigger than the rest of the world’s combined. It is a growing source of technological innovation and its cultural influence is expanding.
Asia is once again at the centre of the world. The world’s story is now an Asian story. But to tell that story the world needs great journalism — great journalism in Asia and great journalism about Asia.
Media coverage of Asia does not always keep pace with the region’s importance. Journalism in Asia is often domestically focused and collaborations by Asian media on regional issues are still relatively rare.
Asian Stories is JNU’s multi-year, multi-dimensional effort to help Asian and international journalists tell the region’s most important stories in intelligent and compelling ways.
It aims to encourage rich engagement between media in the region and counterparts outside it.
