When Mongabay India first launched in 2018, the bureau initially reported exclusively in English. In late 2020, Mongabay began reporting in Hindi, one of India’s most widely spoken languages, particularly in the northern part of the country. Reflecting on the five years that have since passed, editors of Mongabay Hindi say in a recent article that the move has helped Mongabay connect with a large, mostly untapped readership eager for well-researched environmental stories, while also helping cultivate a deeper connection with communities less familiar with English.
Reporting on environmental issues in Hindi hasn’t been easy, write Shailesh Shrivastava, senior editor at Mongabay India and Mongabay Hindi, and Manish Chandra Mishra, assistant editor at Mongabay India. Through the years, Shrivastava and Mishra say, they have learned that a lot of globally used scientific and environmental concepts and definitions require thoughtfully crafted explanations in Hindi.
“To serve the present situation, we simplify the scientific language as much as possible, yet make sure we don’t trivialize the issue. Unlike English, here we need to explain most of the terms and also keep a tab on the amount of information so we don’t end up confusing the reader,” Shrivastava says.
Yet, finding suitable words for terms such as carbon footprint, loss and damage, and sequestration can be challenging. Direct translation into Hindi comes with the risk of either dramatizing or trivializing the concepts, Shrivastava adds. So, in such scenarios, the team retains the English terms, explaining them clearly the first time they appear in the story.
Reporting in Hindi has helped Mongabay reach audiences directly impacted by the issues or events. For example, a 2024 Hindi story and video on Gond art — a traditional folk art which uses geometric patterns and nature-inspired motifs — reached audiences in regions where Gond art is prominently practiced.
“Local residents shared the story across Facebook and WhatsApp groups, helping it reach the very people the article focused on. This engagement showed how Hindi made the story more relatable and accessible, creating real readership within the community,” Mishra says.
“Many rural readers use voice search to find local news, which brings significant traffic to our content,” Mishra adds. “To engage these audiences, we also leverage Facebook as a marketing tool, as it has strong reach within local communities.”
Hindi narratives of locally relevant subjects like agriculture, nature-based solutions and water pollution, in fact, tend to outperform stories in English locally, Shrivastava says.
Mishra adds that there’s a growing community awareness and willingness to talk about local environmental issues on social media, and reporting in local languages creates a stronger connection with those audiences.
Read the full story on Mongabay India here.
Banner image: Artist Bhajju Shyam paints himself immersed in nature, playing the bana and singing traditional songs. Image by Manish Chandra Mishra/Mongabay India.
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