What makes journalism not only a profession but a sustainable and fulfilling calling? EJTA Teachers’ Training: Beyond the Deadline – Teaching the Happiness of Journalism explores the happiness of journalism.
For decades, journalism scholars have thoroughly explored what’s going wrong with the profession. We know that journalism today is defined by burnout, job insecurity, harassment, declining public trust, and more recently, fears of being replaced by artificial intelligence. These challenges aren’t just personal – they’re structural, and they threaten the very sustainability of journalism as a profession.
But if we’ve become skilled at studying what is breaking down in journalism, we’ve only just begun to ask: what holds journalism together? What makes it not only a job, but a calling – and one worth staying in?
That’s the starting point for EJTA Teachers’ Training: Beyond the Deadline – Teaching the Happiness of Journalism, taking place in May 2026 in Tartu, Estonia. This event invites educators, researchers, and practitioners to shift the conversation: from problems to possibilities, from burnout to belonging, from surviving to thriving.
The idea is simple but urgent: if we want journalism to be sustainable, we must center the well-being of journalists. That means understanding the values, environments, and practices that support not just productivity but purpose, joy, and resilience. Teaching happiness in journalism isn’t about ignoring the challenges – it’s about equipping future journalists to navigate them without losing themselves in the process.
That’s why this conference asks: how can journalism education foster not only strong technical skills, but also emotional intelligence, ethical grounding, and a sense of mission? How can we design curricula, mentorship, and learning environments that promote well-being and professional sustainability?
We already know what makes journalism hard. Now it’s time to ask what makes it worth doing. Let’s build not just better journalists – but happier ones.
More information and registration on EJTA’s Teachers’ Training Tartu 2026 webpage.
Deadline for participation / submission for proposals is 10 March 2026.
Deadline for registration is 20 April 2026.
More information:
Marju Himma marju.himma@ut.ee /
Nadia Vissers nadia.vissers@ap.be /
Henna Turunen info@ejta.eu
