Oligarchs use vast wealth and political connections to shield corrupt business empires from scrutiny. This panel features reporters who have successfully penetrated these powerful networks despite legal threats and intimidation. Learn methodologies for tracing shell companies, identifying beneficial ownership, and mapping political relationships. Speakers share techniques for investigating hidden assets, following international money trails, and building bulletproof cases against well-protected targets while managing personal and legal risks.

Cryptoassets have revolutionized financial crimes, creating new opportunities for illicit actors to hide their money trails. This workshop equips investigative journalists with tools and methodologies to track suspicious cryptocurrency transactions, unmask bad actors, and identify the platforms enabling financial crimes. Participants learn practical techniques for following digital breadcrumbs, analyzing blockchain data, and connecting pseudonymous wallets to real-world identities through advanced investigation methods.

Journalists in data-scarce environments face unique challenges due to government restrictions on information access and lack of infrastructure. This panel showcases innovative methodologies that combine rigorous fieldwork with open source research to uncover hidden stories. Speakers demonstrate practical techniques for gathering data in restrictive contexts, integrating satellite imagery analysis with on-the-ground reporting, and building compelling investigations from fragmented sources. Through real case studies, attendees learn innovative strategies for data collection, verification methods for unofficial sources, and workflows that succeed despite limited resources.

This first part of the hands-on workshop introduces participants to R's powerful capabilities for data analysis, moving beyond traditional spreadsheet limitations. Learn to efficiently scrape, clean, sort, and visualize large datasets through reproducible code workflows. Perfect for reporters ready to enhance their data skills with this free, industry-standard tool that streamlines complex investigations.

Algorithmic systems are increasingly embedded in our societies – and it’s no longer good enough for reporters to declare AI models impossibly complex and unknowable. Instead, experts point out that "people make AI," and that the harms they create can be traced to corporate choices and human values. In this advanced workshop, a Pulitzer Prize-winning data journalist shows how investigating datasets that are used to train AI systems can penetrate the algorithmic black box, and expose the causes of the gaps, errors, and biases that can emerge.

Most bad actors — from extremists to scamsters and oligarch enablers — seek to hide information about themselves, their projects, and their assets. But open source tools, social media connections, and leaks databases hold the power to surface their true origins with as little as an email address or footnote reference. Even Google reviews and fitness apps like Strava can offer insights that can unlock a powerful investigation. In this panel, journalists who train others in open source research share powerful tips and tools to defeat secrecy, as well as dig into case studies that show how they work in practice.

Environmental crimes routinely cross borders, requiring innovative collaborative approaches to expose corporate wrongdoing and hold powerful entities accountable. At this panel, learn from veteran investigative collaborators on how to build trusted networks, leverage open source research tools, work with field reporters, establish collaborative databases, and use drones for territorial documentation. Panelists also cover budget optimization, practical and ethical newsroom cooperation techniques, safety protocols for information sharing, and innovative presentation formats.

This panel exposes how multinational corporations deploy sophisticated lobbying strategies to undermine public health regulations worldwide. Through concrete case studies, panelists reveal tactics used by tobacco corporations to target children with flavored products, how food giants add sugar to children's products in developing countries, and chemical companies' efforts to block PFAS bans. Speakers will also share investigative techniques for uncovering corporate influence networks and discuss cross-border collaboration strategies to counter global threats to public health.

Our networking sessions are just that: informal meet-ups where you can introduce yourself, talk about your work, brainstorm, and find colleagues to collaborate with. Here is a chance to meet colleagues from across South Asia — Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and more — and help strengthen the region's investigative networks. All sessions are first come, first served. Be aware that some sessions are in relatively small rooms and they will fill up quickly.

Our networking sessions are just that: informal meet-ups where you can introduce yourself, talk about your work, brainstorm, and find colleagues to collaborate with. Here is a chance to meet colleagues from around the world in a relaxed atmosphere and help strengthen investigative networks across Spanish and Portuguese-speaking countries. All sessions are first come, first served. Be aware that some sessions are in relatively small rooms and they will fill up quickly.

Investigative journalism exposes reporters to online harassment, physical threats, and legal repercussions. This hands-on workshop, led by safety trainers, addresses common safety concerns in investigative reporting and teaches comprehensive risk assessment and mitigation strategies. Participants learn to conduct digital risk assessments, use encryption tools for sensitive communications, employ best practices to avoid censorship, and implement digital hygiene to protect themselves and their sources.

Top-tier hacking tools like Pegasus and Predator command headlines, but the invasive surveillance market also has a raft of cheaper, more easily scalable tools for monitoring targeted individuals and intercepting their communications, which are often used against dissidents and journalists. In this panel, speakers will share resources and techniques for understanding the surveillance ecosystem, mapping the companies in this space, tracking supply chains, and identifying sanctions evasion schemes.

The search for information for cross-border investigations does not have to start from scratch. Multiple organizations have systematically compiled vast volumes of public interest data and previous investigations often share their source materials to enable new searches, uncover connections, and generate fresh findings. This panel convenes four experts leading global database initiatives to reveal the untapped potential within these resources and demonstrate techniques for maximizing their investigative value.

Satellite imagery can be a potential game-changer for investigative journalists – if you know how to access, choose, and analyze the image for little to no cost. In this hands-on workshop, a veteran journalist with deep knowledge of satellite providers will share insider tips on how to acquire medium and even high-resolution images from commercial and public sources, as well as how to filter and use these resources to give investigations into topics like the scars of war or environmental disasters much greater reach.

Increasingly, authoritarian governments abuse laws, manufacture security concerns, deploy oligarch allies, and misuse state organs to intimidate and persecute independent journalists: an autocrats’ playbook tactic to “investigate the investigators.” In this critically topical keynote session, Gustavo Gorriti, the pioneering director of IDL-Reporteros in Peru, shares lessons learned and key insights about the power of collaboration, new tools, and uncompromising independence in the face of repression.

Investigative journalism is increasingly threatened by restrictive regulations and abuse by bad-faith actors launching SLAPP suits in many countries. This panel examines diverse regulatory frameworks worldwide, from Europe's GDPR influence to emerging regional standards. Attendees will learn tailored strategies to counter legal threats and navigate "right to be forgotten" challenges while protecting press freedom and public accountability across different jurisdictions.

Hanayo Oya and Thanos Panagopoulos from Fresno State, USA, will present the paper "Cultural and Ethical Challenges in Training Global Journalists: A Comparative Study of Global Journalism Curricula Across the World." The study examines how journalism education programs in different cultural contexts integrate four core competencies — intercultural communication, global citizenship, digital information literacy, and AI ethics.Ahallya David from Eastern University, Sri Lanka, will present the paper “Out-of-Classroom Learning for Investigative Journalism: Lessons from Sri Lankan Universities,” co-authored with M.B.M. Fairooz, R.M.Ramees, and S. M. Ishaq. The research examines how unconventional, workshop-based approaches influence students’ understanding, motivation, and engagement with investigative journalism.David Leloup from University of Liège, Belgium will present the paper "Immersion and 'Accelerated' Learning in Investigative Journalism Training." David analyzes a pedagogical immersion experiment conducted within a university newsroom that identifies the conditions under which these experiences generated accelerated learning—rapid assimilation of knowledge, skills, and professional attitudes—as well as “learning leaps,” that is, qualitative transformations affecting epistemic, ethical, or identity-related postures.🪑All sessions are first-come, first-serve. That means people who arrive first will get seats. Be aware that some sessions are in relatively small rooms and they will fill up quickly.

Following international supply chains can be challenging. But whether you are covering labor abuses or sanctions evasion or environmental damage as a by product of consumer goods, this session will give you the basics on where to get the documents you need, including major governmental and commercial shipping databases. Also, it will feature tips on how to dig through customs and corporate records as well as other tools and methods useful for journalists anywhere in the world.

Exiled journalists face unique challenges in maintaining credible reporting while operating under constant surveillance and restricted access to their home countries. This panel explores practical strategies for building secure source networks, implementing digital and physical security protocols, and circumventing censorship from abroad. The session also covers lessons learned from successful exiled journalists, including how to avoid intelligence tracking, maintain investigative impact despite geographic barriers, and create sustainable workflows for accountability reporting under authoritarian pressure.

Even groundbreaking investigations can struggle if they fail to reach engaged audiences. In today's attention-fragmented environment and with news avoidance on the rise, connecting with readers presents mounting challenges — especially for long-form journalism. This session explores proven engagement strategies and real-world examples of how to ensure investigative stories are read, shared, and spark meaningful public conversations that drive impact.

Investigative journalism can broaden its impact through strategic partnerships with civil society organizations. This session explores innovative methodologies for collaboration that strengthens democratic practices and serves the public good. Through real-world case studies and lessons learned, attendees discover concrete approaches to foster meaningful partnerships and enhance their investigative reporting's reach.

International legal frameworks are facing unprecedented challenges as globally authoritarianism is rising and democratic institutions are weakening. This keynote features Dr. Charles A. Adeogun-Phillips, whose distinguished career spans genocide investigations and white-collar crime prosecutions. He examines whether international rule of law remains viable amid geopolitical fragmentation and explores how weakening legal accountability creates urgent challenges for investigative journalism. Learn how journalists can navigate jurisdictional complexities, leverage international legal mechanisms, and hold powerful actors accountable when traditional enforcement systems fail.

Journalists often rely on personal computers for their work and have no feasible alternatives to enhance security or separate highly sensitive communication from their personal devices. This workshop will introduce Tails, a secure, portable, and low-cost operating system that runs directly from a portable USB memory stick. Tails helps mitigate surveillance and network censorship while leaving no trace on the computer it is used on. It includes a suite of secure applications tailored for journalistic work and secure whistleblowing.