Noted journalists, analysts to speak at Crisis Publishing Initiative

(Colorado Springs, CO) – Seventeen speakers from six countries will cover topics ranging from terrorism to natural disaster to religious persecution and ethnic cleansing at the Crisis Publishing Initiative in Hungary, Oct. 15-18, 2017. The speakers include publishers, analysts, researchers, editors, and authors with decades of experience covering all types of crises.

Nearly 100 Christian publishing professionals are expected to gather in Sopron, Hungary, for the one-of-a-kind conference, eager to learn best practices for covering the refugee and migrant crises, natural disasters, and war. And they will gain tools for reporters and editors, tips on how to stay safe in dangerous situations, how to photograph crises, and deal with secondary trauma.

“We are pleased to offer this conference,” says Sharon Mumper, president of Magazine Training International, “and excited by the high caliber of speakers who will share from wide-ranging experience in covering crisis situations.”

Plenary speakers include Patrick Johnstone, author, futurologist, and strategist, who will address “Migration–Crisis or opportunity;” Dr. Miriam Adeney, professor at Seattle Pacific University and author of Kingdom without Borders: The Untold Story of Global Christianity and God’s Foreign Policy: Practical Ways to Help the World’s Poor, who will speak on “Where is God in the crisis?”; and Elizabeth Kendal, international religious liberty analyst and advocate, who will cover “A voice for the suffering church.”

Workshop speakers include Julia Bicknell, executive editor and director of World Watch Monitor; Mindy Belz, senior editor of World Magazine; Andrew Steele, senior associate of ICMC Partners in Communication; Gary Gnidovic, designer and photographer; Tom Albinson, president of International Association for Refugees; Jeremy Weber, senior editor of Christianity Today; Josué Guebo, professor at Félix Houphouët-Boigny University; Laura Leonard, communications specialist at Humanitarian Disaster Institute; Jenny Hwang, program manager at Humanitarian Disaster Institute; Asif Aqeel, newspaper journalist and World Watch Monitorcorrespondent; Dr. Randall Everett, president of 21st Century Wilberforce Initiative;  Dr. Sandra Morgan, director of Vanguard University’s Global Center for Women and Justice; and Joseph Benjamin, editor and publisher of Gujarati Christians magazine.

Workshop topics include the future of migration, ethical reporting on conflicts, photographing crises, safety measures for reporters, covering the refugee crisis, understanding the Middle East, global trends in religious liberty, discussing human trafficking, harnessing social media and video, and much more.
Case studies will be presented by Gökhan Talas, co-founder and publisher of Miras Publishing Ministries in Turkey, and Joseph Benjamin, editor and publisher of Gujarati Christians magazine in India.

Conference sponsors include coalition members Lydia Stiftung, Tyndale House Foundation, Christianity Today, and Stiftung Christliche Medien.

Other coalition members include Evangelical Press Association, Humanitarian Disaster Institute, Evangelical Christian Publishers Association, World Watch Monitor, International Christian Media Commission, The Media Project, and Comix35.

One-day workshops “Write for Publication” and “The Art of Editorial Photography” will be held following the conference on Oct. 19.