The Open Notebook's 15th Anniversary

Want to rally your friends and family to support TON?

Many people who care about our work have asked how they can help beyond making their own personal gift. One way is by helping spread the word to your friends, colleagues, family, and neighbors! As a tiny non-profit that punches way above our weight, we depend on individual gifts, and we’d really appreciate your help!

For 15 years, The Open Notebook has been the trusted home for journalists worldwide who cover science. What started as an experiment to demystify the craft of science writing has grown into a vital, global resource—supporting tens of thousands of journalists with free tools, training, and community.

This year, as we celebrate our 15th anniversary, we invite you to honor the past, elevate the present, and invest in the future of science journalism.

Science journalism matters. Trust in facts matters. Community matters. Thank you for being part of TON’s story. Here’s to the next 15 years.

Today through December 31, your gift will be matched!

Your support helps:

Expand mentorship and peer-support programs
Launch innovative trainings and Master Classes
Sustain TON’s free archive of resources used daily by journalists across the globe

We Appreciate Our Matching Donors!

The following individuals have contributed toward a pool of matching donations for our end-of-year fundraiser. From now through December 31, gifts made to TON will be matched, up to a total of $7,500. (If you’d like to join our matching pool, it’s not too late! Email editors@theopennotebook.com.)

Christie Aschwanden
Madeline Bodin
Siri Carpenter
Shraddha Chakradhar
Rachel Ehrenberg

Heidi Flood
Cynthia Graber
Laura Helmuth
Sabrina Imbler
Robert Irion

Kathy Kornei
Bruce Lewenstein
Linda Marsa
Ivan Oransky
Julie Rehmeyer

Ashley Smart
Abdullahi Tsanni
Sisi Wei
Alexandra Witze

Thanks for Celebrating with Us at #SciWri25!

Well that was fun! On November 8, we celebrated our 15th birthday at the Harp & Fiddle in Chicago, basking in our community at the ScienceWriters meeting. Thank you to all of you who helped make our birthday such a joyful occasion, and to our event sponsors, the University of Chicago Press and the Burroughs Wellcome Fund, for helping make this celebration possible!

Get Your 15th Anniversary Merch Here!

Yep—you heard that right. After many years of pleading, mainly from our own team, The Open Notebook has opened up a merch store, and it includes items celebrating our 15th anniversary!

Our Impact

More than 600 articles on craft published

Mentoring and peer support for 400 journalists

10,000 Master Class registrations

Global reach across 150+ countries

Together, we’ve built a foundation of knowledge and community that strengthens science journalism worldwide.

"What TON offers is incomparable to anything else you can find online. These amazing people are committed to training, mentoring, and guiding anyone who wants to pursue a career in journalism. And not just with an open mind, but with the goal of giving those who are underrepresented an unprecedented opportunity."

"For me, what really stands out about TON is its unwavering belief that everyone can be a better science writer, and a firm moral stance that “everyone” truly means everybody. In these turbulent times when it seems America couldn’t be further from evidence-based discourse, The Open Notebook is a city upon a hill, showing the world what science could achieve if we came together as a community: bringing clarity, wonder, and nuance to a world that sorely needs it."

"I decided to give to The Open Notebook because it is more than just a how-to site; it's an organization on a mission to improve science communication all over the world, and helping journalists access opportunities that seemed inaccessible while becoming better reporters and humans in the process.”

“The Open Notebook takes the intimidation out of doing the evidence-based work that our communities rely on us to do. Through The Open Notebook, I’ve gotten the support that I’ve been wanting my whole career."

“I support The Open Notebook because it provides invaluable support for fledgling science journalists. The field can be tough to get into, especially when coming from outside of journalism, and The Open Notebook’s helpful resources, from the pitch database to features on craft, helped orient me, and many other journalists, towards success.”

“The Open Notebook is the home of science journalism. It’s not surprising that all science writers are devoted to the priceless resources it offers. TON’s legacy will be defined by how it has shaped the careers of journalists from across the world, including me.”

“The Open Notebook is an incredibly generous project, a gift to the science writer community…. Everyone involved—the TON creators, the interviewers, the writers who reveal their methods—is helping teach the rest of us a master class in science writing.”

"I support The Open Notebook on a regular basis because I use it on a regular basis. The Open Notebook provides resources that I recommend to all my students, introductions to both some of the basic tools of science writing and to stories and comments that show my students the ideas, challenges, and complexities of science writing. Reading this material—and talking about it in class—helps my students become more reflective practitioners as they move into professional positions in a wide range of science communication activities."

"When I began my freelance journey years ago, The Open Notebook’s pitch database helped me craft my very first successful pitch. Since then, TON’s resources have consistently supported me and so many other journalists in improving the quality of science reporting. My recurring gift to TON is my way of giving back."

"The Open Notebook is the best resource out there. It gives you a lot of the information that you could get from a journalism program without you having to pay for it. This is where you can go to have almost any question that you might have about the craft of science writing answered. The Open Notebook is the most essential resource for aspiring or growing science journalists."

“The Open Notebook is a singular treasure in the journalism community because it stays passionately devoted to its mission of serving journalists who cover science. From its many valuable resources on how to be a better writer and reporter to its ongoing support of early and mid-career professionals, TON makes a ton of positive impact Every. Single. Day.”

"I give back to The Open Notebook through monthly giving because it’s a fantastic resource for journalists covering science and those who cover other beats. The Pitch Database, asynchronous courses, and deeply reported feature stories offer practical advice, training and inspiration. But most importantly, The Open Notebook has built a thriving, inclusive community that supports a diverse range of perspectives and voices around the world."

"The TON fellowship is a primary reason why I am still a science journalist, regularly reporting on public health. The fellowship solidified my writing skills, and connected me with colleagues and mentors whose advice I still trust today. It sharpened my interviewing skills, and taught me to laser focus on writing clear-cut advice."

"In 2014, I was a recipient of the early-career fellowship through The Open Notebook. This invaluable opportunity introduced me to a lifelong mentor and made me feel like there was truly a place for me in the science writing community. I’m proud to be part of a community that centers care, diversity, and giving back to each other. I support The Open Notebook so that others can have similar opportunities and find that sense of belonging."

"Coming from academia, The Open Notebook’s early-career fellowship program taught me how to be a journalist through interviews with dozens of other journalists. Writing about writing built my understanding, confidence, and rigor, and with the help of my incredible TON mentors, I’ve since had the opportunity to write at some of my dream outlets. I owe my career to this place."

"I owe my whole career to The Open Notebook. Having TON take a shot on me was monumental, in a country like Mexico where there was no clear path. That gave me the courage to take the next steps in my career. That’s why it’s always been The Open Notebook for me."

"TON is just a really incredible resource for science journalists, and particularly freelancers. It's just great having a sense that you're part of a global community as well, and seeing what other science journalists around the world and doing and achieving. It's an amazing resource. Absolutely amazing."

"Writing is a lonely art. The vast majority of the process, from coming up with ideas to structuring a piece, is carried out in solitude. When you start out, you barely have a clue about what you're doing, let alone what seasoned professionals get up to. Getting those pros to deconstruct their own methods for all to see is a massive boon to aspiring science writers."

"The TON Fellowship was foundational to my career as a science journalist. Plus, never would you find a kinder, more caring, and more talented family of peers and veterans who are eager to help early-career journalists like me in navigating the craft and industry."

"When I discovered The Open Notebook as a newbie engineer-turned-science-writer from India, struggling to understand the nuances of science writing, I was blown over by the wealth of resources that were free! Reading each of those carefully curated articles, written by writers from all over the world, has helped me become a better science journalist. If there is a way to democratize science writing, TON has shown us how to do it, and I hope it will continue to guide many like me."

"My mentor’s thoughtful guidance, generous support, and deep knowledge have helped me see science journalism from a wider perspective and has given me the confidence to think more globally, trust my voice, and explore new directions in my reporting. I’m so grateful to The Open Notebook for making this program possible."

We Met Our Day of Giving Goal!

On Friday, October 24th we celebrated 15 years of The Open Notebook with a special Day of Giving. We set an ambitious goal of raising $10,000 to start off this season of giving strong. And thanks to the generosity of our community, we did it, raising more than $12,000 in just one day! Thank you for helping ensure our work continues.

Institutional Matching Partners

Through the generosity of our institutional matching partners, donations made on October 24 were matched 1:1. Thank you to these partners for their support!

Chemical & Engineering News
Hothouse
KSJ & Undark
STAT
Thomas Lin, publisher of Quanta Books
The Trans Journalists Association

Learn More About The Open Notebook

We are a small, nimble, globally distributed team that works to assure that the resources needed to cover science can be provided to any journalist, anywhere in the world, for free. We’re building a robust training, professional development, and community infrastructure to transform science journalism. Learn more about who we are, why we’re here, our core values, and our impact; or find details about our educational, training, and mentoring programs.