The IJ4EU fund will launch a series of free online discussions taking audiences behind the scenes of ambitious cross-border investigations in the public interest.
Scheduled for the third Friday of every month, starting in June 2024, “IJ4EU Confidential” will delve into the backstories of collaborative journalistic projects that have set the agenda in Europe and beyond.
The live sessions will feature first-hand accounts from the reporters who drove complex investigations supported by the Investigative Journalism for Europe programme.
Speakers will offer tips and tricks while sharing stories of success and failure. Audience members will be encouraged to ask questions. The sessions will also be released as video podcasts.
“Hundreds of journalists across Europe and beyond have taken part in IJ4EU-supported investigations into every conceivable topic, using every device in the investigative reporter’s toolkit,” Timothy Large, who manages the IJ4EU fund at the International Press Institute (IPI) in Vienna, said.
“If you think of all those journalists as collectively making up an enormous international newsroom, you have a remarkable pool of expertise. We’d like to capture some of that knowledge in a series of frank and lively chats that dig into the nitty-gritty of investigations that have had a major impact.”
Here is a list of the first five scheduled sessions. Please register to attend, using the links provided.
June 21, 2024 | 15:00 CEST
IJ4EU Confidential: When journalists become gold diggers
The making of The Gold Chain
Investigative journalists Ludovica Jona Lasinio (Italy) and Quentin Noirfalisse (Belgium) will reveal how the gold in your wedding ring or hard drive may have been illegally mined in the Amazon, “laundered” in the Middle East and refined in Europe. Learn about the intricate “gold chain” that connects Amazonian gold to European markets via Dubai, and how a lack of regulation has allowed the unlawful destruction of 1.2 million hectares of rainforest and rights abuses against indigenous people.
July 19, 2024 | 14:00 CEST
IJ4EU Confidential: Investigating Russia’s drone war in Ukraine
The making of Russia’s War, Europe’s Burden
Tune in as we uncover the chilling realities of drone warfare in Ukraine with the journalists behind a groundbreaking investigation into Russia’s drone supply chain. Discover how Iranian-made kamikaze drones and European components are fueling Russia’s war efforts despite strict sanctions. Learn about the devastating impact of Shahed suicide drones on Ukrainian cities and the civilian toll of these relentless attacks. Featuring journalist Sanjana Varghese.
August 13, 2024 | 14:00 CEST
IJ4EU Confidential: Can journalists stop a ticking climate bomb?
The making of Defusing a Russian ‘Carbon Bomb’
Hear from journalists behind an investigation into how European companies have continued to supply high-tech equipment and engineering services to a mega Russian gas project in the Arctic despite sanctions. Discover how these actions support one of the world’s most significant carbon emission sources, undermining global climate goals. This collaboration between newsrooms uncovers the involvement of key European firms and the broader implications for international sanctions and environmental policy. Featuring Frederik Obermaier and Sophia Baumann (Germany) and Louis Goddard (UK).
September 18, 2024 | 14:00 CEST
IJ4EU Confidential: Exposing the extent of Europe’s bear crisis
The making of Bears Uncovered
Dive into the complex world of European bear conservation with the investigative team behind a cross-border documentary and data project that reveals the challenges of managing rising brown bear populations in southern Europe, where human-bear conflicts are escalating. Join us as journalists Michael Bird (UK) and Ovidiu Dunel-Stancu (Romania) share their findings from Romania, Italy, Slovenia, Albania and Kosovo, exploring the stark choices between culling and coexistence.
October 18, 2024 | 14:00 CEST
IJ4EU Confidential: How EU migration policy fails the dead and the living
The making of The Border Graves Investigation
We interview the journalists behind a powerful investigation that unearthed the unmarked graves of 1,015 migrants across eight European countries. Discover how the reporters uncovered the hidden truths of Europe’s migration crisis, revealing the human stories and institutional failures behind each grave. Learn about the bureaucratic hurdles faced by families searching for lost loved ones and the impact of Europe’s fragmented approach to migrant deaths. Featuring Tina Xu and Gabriela Ramirez (Germany) and Daphne Tolis (Greece).
‘IJ4EU Confidential’ will be co-hosted by Timothy Large, IPI’s director of independent media programmes, and Milica Miletić, IPI’s projects and events coordinator.
IPI leads the consortium of non-profit organisations that runs the IJ4EU fund, which acts as an independent intermediary to channel public and philanthropic money to world-class investigative journalism without fear of editorial interference.
Alongside IPI, the IJ4EU consortium comprises the European Journalism Centre in Maastricht, the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom in Leipzig and the Amsterdam-based Arena for Journalism in Europe.
The IJ4EU fund will provide €2 million in grants to support cross-border investigative journalism as a public good during the 2024/25 edition of the programme. The consortium also provides legal assistance, training, mentoring and networking opportunities.