Journalists and journalism students lately act like they’re one step away from being added to the endangered species list.

Never before has there been a greater demand for "green” news, and our audience is looking to a growing variety of non-traditional media outlets — such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube — to satisfy their appetites.

Though these new media outlets will not replace television news, magazines and newspapers, an increasing number of outlets for environmental news is a good thing for current students who have learned how to use these tools as a journalist.

Adapt or die: This platitude no longer applies only to the endangered species we cover. No longer can environmental journalism students leave school thinking they are going to simply be a newspaper reporter, television producer, photographer or Web content manager.

Roll all of these jobs into one, add a proficiency with social media networking, and that’s closer to what will be expected of future environmental journalists.

Ivona Lerman
BIO: Knight Center graduate student 1999-2001. Deputy editor-in-chief at the Croatian edition of National Geographic Magazine, won a prestigious Croatian Journalists’ Association award for her story on overfishing in the Adriatic Sea.

Layoffs and cuts make it harder to be a responsible journalist everywhere in the world. The financial crisis is just starting to hit Croatia and we are already seeing increased pressure to find ways to be more profitable. We are facing a great challenge: how to stay afloat while not compromising the integrity and quality of journalism. This is, I believe, the biggest challenge of modern journalism, and environmental journalism as well.

But for environmental journalism, not all news is bad. National Geographic Magazine, for example, recently decided to strengthen and deepen its environmental coverage by forming a new team within the magazine dedicated solely to energy and the environment.

Global warming is one of our major priorities. Climate change is a continuously growing and evolving story: Now it’s not only about weather patterns and melting of the ice caps — it’s also about energy efficiency and green building. As countries struggle to survive the financial crisis, green technology and building will become increasingly important, and environmental journalists will have a crucial role in covering that story.

Katie Coleman
BIO: EJ’s editor 2006-2007. Grant writer for the Environmental Law & Policy Center, a nonprofit environmental law firm based in Chicago.
RECOMMENDED READ: Earth Odyssey, by Mark Hertsgaard, who investigates like a reporter and writes like a storyteller, breaking down without dumbing down some of the most complex global environmental issues.

The most significant environmental change since I studied at the Knight Center has been the increased excitement surrounding high-speed rail development. In a country where cars rule, creating the same kind of clean, modern, convenient, affordable, comfortable and fast trains found in Western Europe and parts of Asia simply was not realistic — politically or financially.

But as the old adage goes: There is opportunity in crisis.

The economic stimulus package contains $9.3 billion for high-speed rail development and other passenger-rail improvements. This is significant for our economy and for our environment. It not only will help create real-time construction and engineering jobs but will also pull new jobs, businesses and people into our urban centers over the long haul — this, in turn, will help reverse sprawl and thereby reduce pollution.

Laura Sams
BIO: Studied in the Knight Center in 2002. Co-owns Sisbro Studios, which creates wildlife films, books and educational media.
RECOMMENDED READ: Beyond Ecophobia, by David Sobel, highlights the importance of giving children time to love the natural world before burdening them with saving it.

Over the last 10 years, I have become increasingly more sensitive to the effects that "doom and gloom” stories can have on young people, as well as adults. While filming a recent project, I asked a third-grade student what he liked about the ocean.

"The dolphins are being killed and the coral are dying,” he said. "We need to save them.”

I paused and said, "That is what is wrong with the ocean. Now what do you like?”

He looked at me with a slightly furrowed brow before his face lit up with a smile. "I think octopus are really cool because they can fit their bodies into a tiny soda bottle,” he said.

We should teach kids what is right about the world before we teach them what is wrong. I encourage environmental journalists to give adults and children more reasons to celebrate the world.

Kristin Johnson
BIO: Knight Center graduate assistant 2005-2007. Former design editor, The Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

Journalism students are in a unique position to experiment with new forms of communication in a supportive environment, such as the Knight Center. The more skills you have, the better. I encourage every journalist — student or professional — to aggressively seek new experiences with technology: Have a friend walk you through a video-editing program or start a blog.

In the midst of cuts and closures, multi-faceted journalists are the least expendable and most attractive to potential employers.

Brian Foley
BIO: Knight Center graduate student 2004-2005. Writes online media for the Sierra Club.

The old model of muckraking, investigative, Woodward-esque journalism with deadlines and typewriters is obsolete. For environmental reporting, online diaries, blogs and videos are the real deal. Look how quickly the mainstream media abandoned the TVA coal ash spill — a disaster that dwarfed that of the Exxon Valdez.

Thanks to activists with video cameras and keyboards, we can still get updates on the cleanup or lack thereof. With newspapers disintegrating and laying off investigative reporters, citizen journalism is filling the void.

Alex Nixon
BIO: Studied in the Knight Center in 2004. The Kalamazoo Gazette’s business reporter, Nixon fits environmental stories in his coverage.

RECOMMENDED READ: Cradle to Cradle: Rethinking the Way We Make Things, by William McDonough and Michael Braungart, forces readers to re-imagine businesses as providers of sustainable solutions instead of polluters.

Environmental reporting faces a perfect storm. The public seems more aware and interested in environmental stories, and the Pulitzer committee now recognizes these stories. But print reporters, and the newspapers that employ them, are squeezed by economic forces. That reduces newshole, reporting staffs and investments in investigative journalism.

To combat the challenges, journalists must commit to reporting on these critical issues. Because space is tight and deadlines tighter, it is essential that reporters convince their editors of the importance of environmental coverage. And then they must be willing to experiment with new ways of presenting their work online through print, photos, graphics, maps and video.

Ike Iyioke
BIO: Inaugural Knight Center Class: 1997-1999. Editor and graphic designer for MSU’s Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology.
RECOMMENDED READ: Silent Spring, by Rachel Carson.

Encouraging for the environment is the enthusiasm among journalists who, despite massive job elimination, have maintained a strong journalistic standard. My anxieties are two-fold: the immediate economic problems; and in maintaining focus at a time of upheaval.

The role of the environmental journalist does not lie simply in scientific investigation and writing; he or she must also participate in the general national planning necessary to steer a course through upcoming environmental hazards.

Aileo Weinmann
BIO: EJ's editor 2004-2005. Communications manager at National Wildlife Federation.
RECOMMENDED READ: Silent Spring. "Fearless and unrelenting in her call to action, Carson inspired me to pursue a media career to protect the planet.”

Unfortunately, the collapsing world and domestic economies are threatening to deal many of America’s newspapers a fatal blow. No one reading this will be surprised to hear that journalism is undergoing a radical transformation. But it’s worth repeating that anyone entering the field must be realistic about a recipe for success.

Find a niche and work hard to make it your own. And be ready to change gears when the ground shifts beneath you. If that sounds glum, look at my daughter Malia’s face. If you hang on to your passion and embrace the change, there’s plenty to smile about.

Jacqelyn Halas
BIO: Studied in the Knight Center 2003-2007. Corporate communications at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan.
RECOMMENDED READ: Green Collar Economy, by Van Jones, ties environmental facts and sustainable philosophy to real time, people and situations. It explains issues, provides cause-and-effect scenarios and offers real solutions to current problems.

Equipping students with knowledge about how to effectively use multimedia, communication strategy and public relations has given Knight Center students an edge over the competition. By teaching different skill sets and widening journalistic scope, students become even more versatile and marketable in this unstable economy.

Many newspapers and communications departments are going under because many employees don’t know how to tie the bottom line to their work. Most newspapers and magazines are corporations. If we’re able to incorporate dollars saved into our work philosophy, we’re more valuable to the corporation and community. Getting rid of us won’t make sense.

By drawing lines of sight between environmental issues and average people through our work, we’ll get the public buzzing. The masses need to know why going green matters, where opportunities to support green initiatives lie, how sustainable living can improve well-being and how it can bolster our national security.

Kristen Tuinstra
BIO: Founding editor of EJ, 2002. Edits and writs for a nonprofit Christian ministry devoted to children; is writing an environmental book.
RECOMMENDED READ: Silent Spring.

I have always tried to work environmental angles into most of the magazines, nonfiction and fiction that I have edited and written for children. I encourage new writers or editors in any field other than environmental to do the same. Get creative. Whether it’s using recycled paper for the publication, initiating a recycling drive in the community, or instigating a "green” feature, you can use your enviro background to help the planet. No effort is too small.

Focus on the kids. If we grab these guys when they’re little and educate them on recycling, conserving resources and other environmental issues, we’ll have a cleaner earth in the future — they will naturally consider the environment in every choice they make.

Corbin Sullivan
BIO: EJ’s editor 2002-2003. In third year of medical school at the Medical College of Wisconsin, will soon apply for residencies in otolaryngology.
RECOMMENDED READ: Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, by J.R.R. Tolkien. The message is plain and clear, regardless of the garnishes.

The world’s economic situation could tip either for or against the environment. The knee-jerk reaction would be to cut taxes on oil, make it easier for companies to use and abuse the environment for profit, and to worry less about recycling and other acts that may benefit the environment, but also require time and money. The environmental and pragmatic approach would be to invest in clean energy, improved public transportation and more extensive and efficient recycling, hoping the investment profits the world, as well as our wallets.

Of course, it will take every ounce of charisma our new leadership has to ask for such a sacrifice in return for such seemingly uncertain future benefit. But most of the impetus will have to come from a public addled by the constant ups and downs of the markets, and worried more about preserving their financial futures than preserving the planet.