Young reporters clinch international awards

Rebecca Ashcroft (left) and Bethany Copsey's article on Zealandia Wildlife Reserve won the top prize. Photo / Mark Mitchell

One wants to be a travel writer, the other a television or radio presenter.

But 15-year-olds Bethany Copsey and Rebecca Ashcroft might find themselves being head-hunted as future environmental journalists.

The pair beat 12,000 entries from 22 countries to take top prize in a writing competition run by an international environmental education body, Young Reporters for the Environment.

Their story on the Zealandia wildlife sanctuary in Wellington was the first time they had tried writing an article rather than "just writing through school."

The pair, year 11 students at St Mary's College in Wellington, said they grew up visiting Zealandia and felt it had made a real difference to wildlife around Wellington.

"We now see tuis and kakapos regularly ... in many ways it is a world first," said Bethany. "We like that we have been able to show [it] to the rest of the world."

The article, entitled Urban Development's Pressure on Endangered Species, talked about the history of the sanctuary and the challenges of building a protected area in a city. It took out the biodiversity category as well as the overall prize.

Auckland Central MP Nikki Kaye, who will help judge the 2010 awards, said it was amazing that two young New Zealand writers won the award, the first time a local team had entered.

Bethany has long wanted to be a travel journalist while Rebecca leans toward presenting the news on radio or television.