Graduate turns news gathering in Wales green

A recent graduate from Aberystwyth University  is attempting to turn news gathering in Wales green.

Elkanah Evans graduated in July 2023 with a degree in media and communications. He is also a keen conservationist and wanted to try and reduce the carbon footprint of the company he had been volunteering with for a number of years but joined as a member of staff in September 2023.

23-year-old Elkanah set about gathering equipment to be as green as possible and move in line with Welsh Government policy and target for a Carbon Net Zero Wales. To do this Elkanah has taken to the bicycle.

He was helped to purchase an electric Dutch cargo bike, which he kitted out with a solar panel and a power pack. The green energy can run a laptop, lights, a phone and charge the bike battery.

His aim is to take the bike to towns across Carmarthenshire where he will gather news but also offer a 60 second platform for people to have their say via his dedicated Tik Tok platform tiktok.com/@60secondscarmarthenshire.

Elkanah is asking for schools, colleges, businesses, community organisations and members of the public to come forward with their news and views as he says he believes there is a real dearth of local reporting in Carmarthenshire he hopes to address.

He said: “I want to hear from the residents of Carmarthenshire about the issues they face on a daily basis. I want to hear the good news too. I want to hear about the person running for charity, the winner of the jam contest at the local show, the pupils who excel in exams and the daily events taking place across our county. This is their chance to come forward and have their say and to promote our county too.

Elkanah who is a Zoomer (Generation Z) and someone who has an interest in finding solutions to the issues around climate change. He supports the moves towards more sustainable energy sources, cycling and better public transport but says he is realistic about many of the failings and the amount of work needed to make changes.

He said: “One of the major issues is that the road network is still quite a risky place to ride a bike. Rural areas are particularly hard to travel too as the roads are so narrow and more often than not there are no pavements or cycle paths. Trying to take the bike on a bus or on a train would be difficult.”

Elkanah will be starting his journey across the county this month and is looking forward to meeting people. He says that he is also open to invites from local schools, colleges, businesses and organisations to take his bike along.

If you would like to contact Elkanah you can text 07377 211646 or Email 60seconds@carmarthenshirenewsonline.com

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