Tuesday was a big night for our B.C. team, attending the annual Jack Webster Awards in person for the first time. We were nominated in three categories — excellence in legal journalism, excellence in environment reporting and excellence in multimedia journalism — and we came home with all three awards at the ceremony in Vancouver.
“I wasn’t expecting to win,” said biodiversity reporter Ainslie Cruickshank, who won the award for best environmental reporting. “It was an exciting night and I’m really proud of our team.”
Cruickshank’s award-winning feature takes a look at the efforts being made by non-profits, governments and First Nations to fight the invasion of European green crabs in B.C. waters. The story reveals many of the critters rot in a landfill — even though they’re edible — which is why some people wonder if we should just eat the crabs, especially when inflation is driving up the cost of groceries.
The awards, created to recognize long-time B.C. reporter Jack Webster, celebrate outstanding journalism in the province.
The Narwhal’s wins at the Websters wouldn’t have been possible without the more than 5,500 members who donate whatever they can afford to support our independent, non-profit journalism.
Our mining reporter, Francesca Fionda, won best legal reporting for her in-depth coverage of a court case which could change the future of mining in B.C. Fionda spent 14 days in the B.C. Supreme Court as the Gitxaała Nation and Ehattesaht First Nation brought forward their case, fighting against how mineral rights are handed out in the province.
Her time in court led to four articles explaining the significance of the case and raising concerns of Indigenous leaders, the exploration industry, mining reform advocates, community groups and environmental advocates.
Our northwest B.C. reporter, Matt Simmons, was the final winner of the night for The Narwhal. He won best multimedia journalism for his work breaking down the truth about pipelines crossing Wet’suwet’en territory — and charting their proposed paths. Simmons spent months collaborating with our art director Shawn Parkinson to visually show the pipeline routes and how they intersect with Wet’suwet’en governance structure.
“So many people made time for me, trusted me with their stories and shared space around fires or over bowls of moose stew. It’s an honour to have this work recognized like this,” Simmons said.
Other winners from the night include Global BC, The Globe and Mail, the Vancouver Sun, the Tyee, Hakai Institute, Hakai Magazine, RedFM, The Discourse, IndigiNews and the Vancouver Tech Journal.
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