Former U.S. Correspondent to Czech Radio, public service media, Jan Kaliba has recently (September 2023) turned into the very first Climate Correspondent in a nationally relevant media in his „climate change sceptic“ home country.
As a lifelong sports enthusiast, during his studies at Charles University in Prague Jan started to work in Czech Radio as a member of the sports desk, covering predominantly soccer and skiing. As a radio journalist he attended and broadcasted live from two Winter Olympics, soccer World Cup in Brazil, two soccer European Championships and many other events. His storytelling gained him a place among the top 10 in 2016 AIPS Sport Media Awards where the best sport stories of the world are recognized. In 2017, he also co-founded Football Club, Czech quarterly magazine for soccer culture.
In 2017 he was selected by Czech Radio to serve as its Foreign Correspondent to the USA. In the following six years until summer 2023 he experienced and covered on the ground the 2020 Presidential Election, storming of the national Capitol in Washington D. C. on January 6, 2021, covid-19 pandemics, the protests after the murder of George Floyd and many other events, just to name a few. He also focused on the topics of systemic racism, climate change, situation of Native Americans, refugee crisis and other issues on the southern border, Czech-American community etc. His stories on Tangier Island and on the US southern border won the international category of reportage at the annual radio festival Prix Bohemia Radio two times.
In July 2023, Jan moved back to Czechia with his wife Adela (Head of International Relations in Czech Radio and an international production of Czech Radio´s broadcasting of 2020 US Elections) and two kids who were raised in Bethesda, Maryland, and Washington D. C..
Jan has turned into the very first Climate Correspondent to Czech Radio, based in Prague. Inspired by many international media outlets, figuring out his future within Czech Radio, Jan came up with a new position of a Climate Correspondent. This is the very first position of this kind in any national media in the Czech Republic. Jan is now trying not only to bring climate stories and the issue of climate change generally more into public awareness in Czechia, but also finding the best techniques to do so and trying to create networks with other journalists and experts. Just to illustrate his daily struggles let´s mention that Czechia is one of the most sceptical country in protecting climate and the debate about it among the EU member states.
Jan of course loves to play soccer and finds it as a worldwide language which took him to many great places and let him know many wonderful people, including members of Shahin AC, the international community soccer group in Bethesda, Maryland.