Bouderbala, who has reported extensively on Africa during her career and is a former DRC Bureau chief for AFP, was among 10 journalists from eight media outlets around the world selected for the prestigious fellowship.
Now in its sixth year, the RIN fellowship supports investigative journalists from around the world to undertake ambitious projects that investigate those responsible for destroying tropical forests.
“For me, as someone who has always worked as a news agency journalist, this experience is a unique opportunity to slow down, reflect and dig deeper: a different way of doing journalism, while remaining at the heart of today’s major issues. A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” Bouderbala said.
“It seems to me that in our profession, one of the most important things remains describing and showing: in this case, explaining how what’s happening in the forests of the Congo Basin affects us all. That’s the goal of my project: to help document the causes of deforestation linked to mining activity in the context of the global energy transition.”
Bouderbala’s fellowship is part of AFP’s philanthropic partnerships initiative, which involves partnering with foundations and non-profits to expand capacities for in-depth and consequential journalism.
"We are excited to welcome AFP's Sofia Bouderbala to the Rainforest Investigations Network 2026-2027 cohort of fellows," said the Pulitzer Center's executive editor, Marina Walker Guevara. "We look forward to continuing to deepen our partnership with AFP on high-impact public interest journalism."
The Pulitzer Center’s announcement is available on its website here.