SIGNIS Asia Conducts Media Workshop for Religious Sisters in Bangkok

A two-day workshop was conducted by SIGNIS Asia under the title of “Wisdom Calls” on May 8–9, 2026, in Bangkok for religious sisters involved in media and communication ministry.

The workshop brought together 12 participants from nine Asian countries: Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, India, Timor-Leste, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Taiwan.

The resource persons for the workshop included Dr. Peter Rachada Monthienvichienchai, General Secretary of SIGNIS World; Mark Saludes, editor, writer, photographer, and contributor to The Christian Science Monitor; and Martino Tan, Managing Editor of Mothership.sg; Augustine Anthuvan, veteran journalist and Consultant to SIGNIS Asia from Singapore; Panu Wongcha-um, Thailand and Indochina Senior Correspondent for Reuters and President of The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Thailand; and Adeline James, Member of the Board of Directors Asia, SIGNIS World, Vice President of the SIGNIS Asia Board, and Head of the SIGNIS Asia Journalism Desk.

The workshop was an intensive training program aimed at helping religious sisters bring their mission stories to mainstream media.

During the sessions, Mark Saludes emphasized the importance of Solutions Journalism. He noted that many readers are turning away from news stories because they focus mainly on problems and negativity. “Today, we need to provide solutions and responses to problems,” he said. He explained that Solutions Journalism is built on four pillars: Response, Evidence, Insight, and Limitations.

Augustine Anthuvan highlighted that the main objective of the workshop was to foster networking and collaboration in mission. He said that the participants could become bridges within secular media for those whose voices need to be heard.
 

Martino Tan stressed the importance of having a presence on multiple social media platforms in order to reach wider audiences. “We should not limit ourselves to only one social media platform. Our stories must bring healing and enlightenment through our mission,” he said. He also noted that audience preferences change according to the social media platforms they use.

Mr. Panu Wongcha-um emphasized the importance of truth in journalism. He said that journalists must report the truth without harming individuals or institutions personally.

Sr. Nina Benedikta Krapić, Deputy Director of the Holy See Press Office, addressed the participants online. She encouraged the sisters by saying, “Sisters preserve human faces through loving service. Our faces and voices are unique gifts to the world; therefore, we have the responsibility to communicate God’s love in mainstream media through creative storytelling.”