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The Narwhal wins Canadian Association of Journalists award for reporting on Canada’s oil and gas lobby

Carl Meyer’s work digging into the pledges and actions of the country’s largest fossil fuel companies received national honours

The Narwhal’s relentless reporting on the influence of the Canadian oil and gas industry has been recognized with an award from the Canadian Association of Journalists.

Climate investigations reporter Carl Meyer took home the national award in the online media category at a gala in Toronto on Saturday for a piece that examined the climate pledges of the Pathways Alliance of oilsands companies.

Meyer’s award-winning story — Are Canadian oilsands companies working to save the planet or save face? — was just one of his many meaty investigations into how the oil and gas lobby works to sway public opinion and government policy. 

“It’s a thrill to see Carl’s work honoured on a national stage,” The Narwhal’s managing editor Mike De Souza said. “Every day, I watch his tireless efforts to follow the money and documents at the heart of the climate crisis. Line by line, he has uncovered secrets and raised awareness about what lobbyists discuss with government officials behind the scenes.”

“None of this work would happen if not for our over 6,000 Narwhal members who donate whatever they can, so I’d also like to thank them for helping them make climate investigations possible.”

Other Canadian Association of Journalists award finalists in the online media category included journalists with stories published by independent news outlets Ricochet Media and The Independent as well as Radio-Canada.

The Narwhal’s work was nominated in five other categories, from photojournalism to human rights reporting.

Photojournalist Amber Bracken, a regular contributor to The Narwhal, took home the environment and climate change award along with Brandi Morin for work done with Ricochet and IndigiNews.

Another Narwhal contributor, Moira Donovan, won the written feature award for work published in Hakai Magazine.

The McGillivray Award, the Canadian Association of Journalists’ recognition of the best investigative journalism from 2023, went to the Montreal Gazette’s Aaron Derfel for his reporting on the health care system.

Like a kid in a candy store
When those boxes of heavily redacted documents start to pile in, reporters at The Narwhal waste no time in looking for kernels of news that matter the most. Just ask our Prairies reporter Drew Anderson, who gleefully scanned through freedom of information files like a kid in a candy store, leading to pretty damning revelations in Alberta. Long story short: the government wasn’t being forthright when it claimed its pause on new renewable energy projects wasn’t political. Just like that, our small team was again leading the charge on a pretty big story

In an oil-rich province like Alberta, that kind of reporting is crucial. But look at our investigative work on TC Energy’s Coastal GasLink pipeline to the west, or our Greenbelt reporting out in Ontario. They all highlight one thing: those with power over our shared natural world don’t want you to know how — or why — they call the shots. And we try to disrupt that.

Our journalism is powered by people just like you. We never take corporate ad dollars, or put this public-interest information behind a paywall. Will you join the pod of Narwhals that make a difference by helping us uncover some of the most important stories of our time?
Like a kid in a candy store
When those boxes of heavily redacted documents start to pile in, reporters at The Narwhal waste no time in looking for kernels of news that matter the most. Just ask our Prairies reporter Drew Anderson, who gleefully scanned through freedom of information files like a kid in a candy store, leading to pretty damning revelations in Alberta. Long story short: the government wasn’t being forthright when it claimed its pause on new renewable energy projects wasn’t political. Just like that, our small team was again leading the charge on a pretty big story

In an oil-rich province like Alberta, that kind of reporting is crucial. But look at our investigative work on TC Energy’s Coastal GasLink pipeline to the west, or our Greenbelt reporting out in Ontario. They all highlight one thing: those with power over our shared natural world don’t want you to know how — or why — they call the shots. And we try to disrupt that.

Our journalism is powered by people just like you. We never take corporate ad dollars, or put this public-interest information behind a paywall. Will you join the pod of Narwhals that make a difference by helping us uncover some of the most important stories of our time?

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Stories about the natural world aren’t always bleak. That’s why we believe in spotlighting solutions, too. Get a dose of good news by signing up for The Narwhal’s free newsletter!
An illustration, in yellow, of a computer, with an open envelope inside it with letter reading 'Breaking news.'
Stories about the natural world aren’t always bleak. That’s why we believe in spotlighting solutions, too. Get a dose of good news by signing up for The Narwhal’s free newsletter!