LECCE: Italy’s Euro-Mediterranean Center on Climate Change (CMCC) has named Agence France-Presse’s “Future of the Planet” desk and Sky TG24 Deputy Editor-in-Chief Daniele Moretti as the winners of the 2026 Romeo Bassoli Award for scientific journalism on climate and sustainability. The prize will be presented on Thursday, 15 October, in Lecce during the Conversazioni sul Futuro festival.
The award honours journalists who stand out for expertise, innovation and originality in covering climate and sustainability, at a time when the CMCC says accurate, evidence-based information on the climate crisis has become essential to public debate.
Two winners, one standard
Agence France-Presse, one of the world’s largest news agencies, set up its “Future of the Planet” desk to cover sustainability and climate change, which it describes as the greatest challenge facing humanity as it shapes its future. The desk is multidisciplinary, cross-cutting and global, and works to uphold the highest journalistic standards across the many facets of the climate story.
Ella Ide, a British journalist based in Rome who covers climate change and coordinates AFP’s news from Italy, will collect the award on behalf of the agency.
The second winner, Daniele Moretti, is Deputy Editor-in-Chief of Sky TG24 and the author of numerous investigative reports on environmental issues and television programmes on the climate crisis.
Who was Romeo Bassoli
The award is named after Romeo Bassoli (1952–2013), described as one of the most brilliant voices in Italian science journalism. In 1989–1990 he created the first daily science page in an Italian newspaper. He later served as press officer of the National Institute for Nuclear Physics (INFN) and, together with Eva Benelli, co-founded the Rome office of the scientific publishing agency Zadig.
The CMCC Foundation, which promotes the prize, says it carries Bassoli’s legacy forward by recognising climate journalism that combines scientific rigour with public relevance.
A ceremony inside a bigger debate
The award will be presented during a panel titled “Cambiamento mediatico: strumenti, fonti, dati e redazioni per informare sulla crisi climatica” (“Media change: tools, sources, data and newsrooms for reporting the climate crisis”), which runs from 8:15 pm to 10:15 pm on 15 October at Sala 500, Convitto Palmieri in Lecce.
The discussion brings together journalists and researchers to explore how climate change can be reported accurately and effectively. The panel features Eva Benelli of Zadig, Luca Carra, editor-in-chief of Scienza in rete and secretary of the Gruppo 2003 per la ricerca scientifica, and Antonio Navarra, President of the CMCC Foundation. It will be moderated by Mauro Buonocore, Communication and Outreach Coordinator at the CMCC Foundation.
The prize was decided by a jury comprising Silvia Bencivelli, Eva Benelli, Luca Carra, Cristiana Pulcinelli and Mauro Buonocore.
Climate newsrooms increasingly work with data, maps and science to report the crisis accurately — a theme at the heart of the 2026 Romeo Bassoli Award.
Festival programme around the award
The ceremony is part of the CMCC’s six-event programme at Conversazioni sul Futuro, the Lecce festival running from 14 to 18 October 2026. Other events include a panel on adaptation and climate decision-making on 16 October, an open day for schools at the CMCC’s supercomputing centre, and a discussion on war, climate and ecocide based on Stefania Divertito’s book “Guerra e Clima. L’ecocidio che uccide la Terra”.
Watan News International continues to follow developments in climate reporting worldwide. Read more on our climate page.
FAKTA
- Award: 2026 Romeo Bassoli Award for scientific journalism on climate and sustainability
- Winners: AFP – Future of the Planet; Daniele Moretti, Sky TG24
- Ceremony: Thursday, 15 October 2026, 8:15–10:15 pm, Sala 500, Convitto Palmieri, Lecce
- Festival: Conversazioni sul Futuro, Lecce, 14–18 October 2026
- Named for: Romeo Bassoli (1952–2013), pioneer of the daily science page in Italian newspapers
- Organiser: CMCC Foundation (Euro-Mediterranean Center on Climate Change)
Conclusion
By honouring both a global news agency desk and an Italian television editor, the 2026 Romeo Bassoli Award underlines a simple point: the climate crisis demands journalism that is scientifically grounded, innovative and brave — in every newsroom, in every country.
