BNT Launches Weekly Climate Segment Following BlueLink Training

The Climate: The Hot Truth is the title of a new weekly segment in Bulgarian National Television’s main evening news Around the World and at Home. With this initiative, Bulgarian National Television (BNT) has taken the next step in applying the journalistic knowledge and approaches developed through the project Capacity for Quality Climate Coverage (3CTV), implemented by the BlueLink Foundation.

The new segment, titled The Climate: The Hot Truth, airs every Monday during BNT’s main news bulletin. It focuses on climate change, adaptation and the transition to a sustainable economy, presented through fact-based reporting and expert sources. The first editions have already showcased examples of innovative farming practices addressing drought and initiatives for smart, climate-resilient gardens in Bulgaria.

The creation of the segment resulted from a two-day training programme, Expert and Scientific Support for Publicly Responsible Journalism on Climate Issues, held on 11–12 September 2025. The workshop brought together ten journalists and editors from national and regional BNT teams. It was organised by the BlueLink Foundation in partnership with BNT and featured briefings and discussions with leading Bulgarian and international experts in climate science, economics, health, communication and migration.

The programme’s resource experts included Prof. Diana Ürge-Vorsatz (Vice-Chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change – IPCC), Assoc. Prof. Maria Trifonova (Sofia University St Kliment Ohridski), and researchers from the National Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology, the Institute for Economic Research at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, the National Centre for Public Health and Analyses and others.

Establishing a permanent climate segment on the national broadcaster is an exciting outcome of the efforts to build capacity for quality and responsible climate reporting in Bulgaria’s public media, said Dr Pavel Antonov, Executive Editor of BlueLink and Project Lead. The segment demonstrates the value of BlueLink’s network-based approach – how cooperation between journalists, scientists and civic organisations, grounded in trust in independent science, can bring real change to public communication on key issues.

The Hot Truth About Climate on National Television

The BNT segment The Climate: The Hot Truth was launched by journalist Viktor Borisov with a report on smart gardens that address drought (screenshot above). The second broadcast in the series, by Ali Misankov, explores how farmers in Southwest Bulgaria are experimenting with new crops such as kiwis, olives, almonds and lemons in response to climate change. More about the initiative can be found in BNT’s announcement.

The 3CTV initiative of the BlueLink Foundation is supported by the European Climate Foundation (ECF) and aims to help Bulgarian media cover climate issues in a professional, accessible and science-based manner. The programme with BNT represents the first pilot step towards building a sustainable model for expert support and collaboration between journalists and the scientific community on climate and environmental issues.

About BlueLink

BlueLink is a Bulgarian non-governmental organisation founded in 1998 as a network for civic action. It strengthens citizen participation, public-interest journalism and environmental protection. BlueLink develops online platforms, training programmes and partnerships promoting sustainable development, democracy and climate justice in Bulgaria and the wider region. The network encourages the free exchange of ideas, solidarity and responsibility towards people and nature, and conducts both academic and applied research on the processes shaping civil society and the digital environment.

The project Capacity for Quality Climate Coverage is implemented by the BlueLink Foundation with support from the European Climate Foundation. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the donors.