Five prominent journalists have been named to judge the 2006 entries to The Grantham Prize for Excellence in Reporting on the Environment.

The journalists, from the United States and Canada, bring a strong background in broadcast, newspaper, wire service, and book publishing. They will make the final determination in selecting the first winner of the $75,000 environmental journalism prize. The deadline for submissions is March 24, 2006. Pieces broadcast or published in English by U.S. or Canadian journalists between January 1, 2005, and December 31, 2005, are eligible for consideration. Additional information is available at www.granthamprize.org.

The five jurors are:

• David Boardman, Managing Editor, The Seattle Times, and President of the Board of Directors of Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE) (brief bio);
• Dennis Bueckert, National Affairs Reporter specializing in environment, health, and science with Canadian Press’s Parliamentary Bureau in Ottawa (brief bio);
• Diane Hawkins-Cox, Senior Producer, CNN's Science and Technology Unit in Atlanta (brief bio);
• Philip Meyer, Professor, Knight Chair in Journalism at the University of North Carolina School of Journalism and Mass Communication, Chapel Hill, author of Precision Journalism (first edition, 1973), and The Vanishing Newspaper: Saving Journalism in the Information Age (2004) (brief bio); and
• Robert B. Semple, Jr., Associate Editor of the Editorial Page, The New York Times, New York City, New York, and winner of the 1996 Pulitzer for editorials on environmental issues (brief bio).

The prize jury, which will be chaired by Phil Meyer, will begin evaluating entries in early spring 2006 and will select a single winning journalist or journalism team by early summer. Plans call for a fall 2006 event honoring the winner, to be combined with a special workshop/seminar on the subject of the winning entry.