World Conference of Science Journalists (#WCSJ27)
South Africa 2025, London 2027
13th World Conference of Science Journalists (WCSJ25)
1-5 December, Pretoria, South Africa
The World Conference of Science Journalists (WCSJ) will take place at the CSIR International Convention Centre, Pretoria, South Africa from 1 – 5 December 2025, with the theme “Science journalism and social justice: journalism that builds understanding and resilience”.
The conference is organised by the South African Science Journalists’ Association (SASJA) and the Science Diplomacy Capital for Africa (SDCfA), an initiative and entity of the National Department of Science, Technology and Innovation (DSTI), in collaboration with the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research.
The WCSJ gives science journalists and their stakeholders an opportunity to interact, share ideas and information, stimulate debate and discussion and form solutions regarding how science journalists can contribute to building resilience amongst humanity given the challenges we face.
14th World Conference of Science Journalists (WCSJ27)
September 2027, London
The World Conference of Science Journalists returns to London in 2027. This biennial event was last held in London in 2009 when nearly 1000 science & technology journalists met under the theme 'Stories that matter to a changing world'.
On the need for this international journalism conference, Andy Extance, Chair of the ABSW said:
The world needs a networked, independent and strong science & technology journalism profession as never before. Throughout the world science & technology journalists strive to interpret pandemics, environmental degradation, AI, genetic engineering and so many other key areas for the public. They critique sectors, private and public, that often deploy lavishly resourced public relations machines. They battle mis- and disinformation. And many of them do this as freelancers lacking the supportive infrastructure that an employer would provide.
Planning is already underway for the 2027 Conference and by signing up to our newsletter you will be kept up to date with key milestones in our journey towards WCSJ27.
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Partner with the ABSW on WCSJ27
Hosting WCSJ27 will be challenging, and will only be achieveable by the ABSW partnering with other organisations who share our vision for this key event. To find out more about the opportunites available contact our Conference Director, Sallie Robins [email protected] 07733 330344
World Federation of Science Journalists
The mission of the World Federation of Science Journalists is to be a forum where science journalists from all over the world share and learn from each other, participate in training activities, and mobilize resources, with the objective of strengthening and professionalizing science journalism.
The World Federation of Science Journalists is a not-for-profit, non-governmental organization of some 70 science journalists’ associations, including the ABSW, which represent up to 10,000 individual science and technology journalists from around the world. It has the status of a charitable organization with the government of Canada, the country where it is legally registered. The WFSJ seeks to: Promote and strengthen the role of science journalists as key players in society; Improve the quality of science reporting, promote standards, and support science and technology journalists worldwide; Mobilize resources and expertise for the training of science journalists, particularly training activities and programs designed and implemented by science journalists.
The WFSJ’s biennial World Conferences of Science Journalists has become its main achievement, bringing together more than a thousand science journalists from dozens of countries. The 12th World Conference of Science Journalists was successfully held in Medellin (Colombia) in 2023. South Africa will host the 13th World Conference in Pretoria in December 2025, with the London conference then taking place in 2027 hosted by the ABSW.
