NEW YORK, N.Y. — Inside Climate News' "Planet China" series has been named a finalist for the John B. Oakes Award for Distinguished Environmental Journalism. The series investigated the global environmental and public health impacts of China's Belt and Road Initiative projects across several continents.

The Columbia Journalism School administers the John B. Oakes Award, which recognizes reporting that makes an "exceptional contribution to the public's understanding of environmental issues." The Oakes Award judges stated, "This trailblazing series connects the dots and unfurls a roadmap for environmental reporting in a globalized economy."

The "Planet China" series included reporting from Indonesia, Ecuador, Argentina, Peru, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Hungary. Vernon Loeb, the executive editor of Inside Climate News, stated that reporters Katie Surma, Nicholas Kusnetz and Georgina Gustin "seized on China's central role in the climate story and brought it to life around the world."

Inside Climate News reported on the environmental and public health impacts related to these projects. The series documented that Chinese-built dams threaten a glacial ice field in Patagonia and the world's most endangered great ape in Indonesia. Additionally, Chinese coal plants have been constructed in various global locations, and a Chinese-backed megaport is under construction in Peru.

The reporting also covered a Belt and Road mine's waste-pit spill in Zambia, which affected villagers' livelihoods. Villagers were restricted from seeing their lawyers and pressured to sign away their rights following the spill. Inside Climate News also reported that journalists in Belt and Road countries experienced intimidation when investigating problems related to the projects.

Loeb said, "The series was brilliantly edited by Managing Editor Jamie Smith Hopkins, and our publisher, David Sassoon, wasn't deterred from supporting their reporting on four continents." The Oakes Award judges stated, "These were not easy stories to do." They added that the reporting went "beyond showing specific impacts of specific projects" and instead "showed the larger systems of policies and practices that emphasize speed over caution as bulldozers charge forward, despoiling fragile environments and displacing local communities."

Inside Climate News, a 501c3 nonprofit organization launched in 2007, earned a Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting in 2013. The recognition of the "Planet China" series focuses on investigative environmental journalism regarding the global reach of China's Belt and Road Initiative. Beijing's initiative involves constructing and financing infrastructure such as dams, mines, ports, and railways beyond its borders. Chinese officials have characterized these investments as beneficial partnerships. The series' selection as a finalist notes the documented environmental and public health consequences associated with these development projects across multiple continents, including impacts on ecosystems, local communities, and challenges faced by journalists covering these issues.