PETROSANI - The Just Transition Mechanism promised Europe's coal regions that their communities would not be left behind as coal-intensive industries close. This team of journalists investigates what's happening in the coal regions of  Poland, the Czech Republic, Romania and Bulgaria.

BARUTH / ORTONA / TÂRGU NEAMȚ - Across Europe, communities are facing a water crisis fueled by decades of poor groundwater management and climate change. This investigation examines the causes and consequences of water scarcity related to groundwater reserves in three of the most affected EU countries: Italy, Germany, and Romania.

BELGRADE - Cocaine production and trafficking has reached record levels, with organised crime groups from the Western Balkans playing a major role in the EU market, working with Dutch groups. The recent hacking of the encrypted messaging platform Sky ECC has revealed the inner workings of criminal organisations. A team of journalists from Serbia and the Netherlands investigated the impact of the violent cocaine trade linking their countries.

ROME – Over 300 thousand people have subscribed to an Eni bond advertised as "green," including by publications the major Italian media outlets. They may have contributed, without knowing it, to global warming.

JOHANNESBURG - The EU's ban on Russian coal imports has led to an eightfold increase in coal exports from South Africa, making it Europe’s third largest supplier of coal. This surge has exacerbated unregulated mining practices in South Africa, leading to serious environmental and social issues, including contaminated water, health problems, and a surge in illegal mining activities.

IHOSY - What can possibly be wrong about planting trees? This investigation digs deeper into a conflict unfolding in southern Madagascar, between the local community and an Italian multinational. As similar green projects multiply, this case highlights a critical challenge.

LONGROÑO - In this investigation, two journalists followed the Spanish bulk wine route in Europe to analyse and provide an exclusive insight into how wine companies and industry insiders use wine to commit fraud.

MAR MENOR/AMALFI - Since their invention in the 1940s, modern sunscreens have become an essential vacation item, ubiquitous on beaches around the globe. However, after decades of mixing with the world’s seas and oceans via the lathered skin of tourists and sunbathers, the damage caused to sub-aquatic ecosystems by sunscreen ingredients has started to surface. This investigation reveals how sunscreen manufacturers are contaminating Mediterranean waters in Spain's Mar Manor and Italy's Amalfi Coast.

SURABAYA - Plastic waste from the European Union is making its way to Indonesia in shipments destined for Indonesian paper mills. Non-recyclable plastic ends up in landfills, waterways, or is incinerated, polluting the environment and endangering vulnerable communities.

GOMA - Romanian, Moldovan, and French security contractors deployed as instructors for the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s army in Goma, violated international law, faked their numbers and lacked military training.

CHAMONIX / VIOLA / PRAGELATO / TEGLIO – "Who Owns Our Winter" is a cross-border investigation into the lead-up to the 2026 Winter Olympics in Cortina and the 2030 Winter Olympics in the French Alps which explores the environmental, social, and economic implications of adopting a development model based on winter sports in an era of climate change.

DUBLIN / BARCELONA - AI has exploded but when its cutting edge software is stripped back, carbon intensive hardware is whirring busily behind, at a high cost to the environment. What exactly does it amount to for Europe?

BAHIA – This cross-border investigation analysed how wind parks owned by Enel, the major Italian energy company, appear to be linked to green grabbing in Brazil.

GENOA - This investigative project uncovers the various factors that lead to increasing numbers of inmates taking their own lives by systematically exploring how different prison environments operate.

VALENCIA - In recent years, several European countries have faced devastating floods, sparking discussions on how to mitigate or prevent such disasters. In Spain, the tragedy in Valencia in October 2024 has led to the exploration of solutions like early warning systems, architectural adaptations, and better regulation of flood-prone areas. 

ROTTERDAM - In the late 1980s, an existing plans to convert Rotterdam The Hague Airport into a residential area was already underway. A team of investigative journalists aims to find out how closing down airports within close proximity to a city delivers a higher quality of life to the residents of the surrounding cities.

SIFNOS/AEOLIAN – In Italy and Greece, the number of tourists on the islands in southern Mediterranean is reaching unprecedented levels, while residents and farmers are experiencing a water shortage. This investigation explores the situation on Sifnos and the Aeolian archipelago, to understand how water scarcity intertwines with the tourism industry, and the impact on local residents and the environment.

AGADIR - Grown mainly in the Souss region of Morocco, tomatoes have become one of the Kingdom's most widely grown and exported vegetables. What is wrong with the environment and agriculture if Europeans continue to import them - and eat them in winter?

LIVNO - In Bosnia and Herzegovina, many quails are killed by Italian hunters, and environmentalists are concerned that wildlife crime is rapidly growing out of control. A team of investigative journalists travelled to Bosnia and Serbia and busted an illegal hunting operation.

BERN - ‘Lost Cells’ is an insightful exploration of the emerging cord blood banking industry that resonates deeply with our anxieties about health, technology, and the future.

BAHIA – This cross-border investigation analysed how wind parks owned by Enel, the major Italian energy company, appear to be linked to green grabbing in Brazil.

LITOMYSL – Agrivoltaics offers farmers a way to adapt to economic challenges and the climate crisis while reducing the environmental impact of agriculture. The focus was both on companies that have been exploiting agrivoltaics for years and are now looking to switch panels, as well as new companies entering the market also thanks in part to government incentives.

BERLIN - This investigation focuses on the winners and losers in the online sex work revolution, where people can buy digital subscriptions to explicit content. A pioneer of this model is OnlyFans, a booming platform whose users spent $6.6 billion in 2023 alone.

SKOPJE / SOFIA – North Macedonia faces record forest loss for the second year in a row, outpacing other countries in the Western Balkans. According to the European Forest Fire Information System, between 2020 and 2024, wildfires have ravaged 134,314 hectares of forest and woodlands in North Macedonia, the largest loss in the region.

KAMPALA / PARIS  - This investigation reveals that investments in Uganda's controversial oil projects, led by France's TotalEnergies and totalling $20 billion, primarily benefit President Museveni's inner circle, including his family members, military officials, ministerial staff and diplomats.

AMSTERDAM - This investigative project explores how Big Food and pharmaceutical companies profit from both the causes and "solutions" to obesity. Research by The Investigative Desk for Follow the Money shows that Big Food not only promotes unhealthy eating habits, but also invests in products that are marketed as solutions to diet-related conditions.

ALICANTE/BARI – Southern Europe, especially Italy and Spain, is facing a growing environmental crisis — the rapid desiccation of olives as well as other kinds of trees. In Italy it has caused significant ecological and economic losses, but several scientific approaches show that the plants could be cured from the bacteria. In Spain, regional governments have adopted very different measures in response to tree epidemics, and farmers are divided in their opinions about them.

PARIS - An in-depth investigation of the We Report network looked in the cockpit of the privatised airplane industry. Behind the scenes, the polluting footprint of a few rich is infinite.

ATHENS - The surrogacy landscape in Europe reveals a complex interplay of ethical issues and varied legal frameworks as the demand for surrogacy services continues to grow in the global North. This investigation examens the surrogacy practices in Spain, Greece, Ukraine, and Georgia, highlighting their different legal environments and market conditions.

IZMIR / CATANIA – Forest wildfires have increased in size and impact. Every year, 375,000 hectares of land in Mediterranean countries are scorched. Journalists tried to identify the main factors that lead to these disasters, which treaten entire ecosystems.

RIGA - In February 2023, the European Union agreed on the 10th package of sanctions against Russian goods, including the import of bitumen. Despite these bans, 29,5 thousand tonnes of bitumen worth $7.8 million were exported from Russia to Latvia in 2023, as calculated by The Chronicles.Media using data from the customs database.

VIGO/TARANTO - Extreme weather events made more frequent and intense by climate change — including marine heatwaves and torrential rain — are wreaking havoc on shellfish production across southern Europe, threatening the livelihoods and traditions that depend on this important sector.

TALINN - AMSTERDAM- A new and powerful type of drugs is rapidly emerging in Europe: nitazenes. In this joint investigation with Bellingcat and Postimees, the team looked at where these drugs are coming from and who they’re affecting. 

ATHENS -The European Union is deploying AI-driven technologies along its borders in an to attempt to control migration flows, raising legal and ethical concerns about the impact on migrants' rights. While these systems are promoted as improving efficiency and security, they have raised concerns about privacy violations and restrictions on the right to asylum, concerns that this research confirms.

KIAMBU - Across Europe - the world's largest coffee market - millions of people start their day with an espresso or cappuccino. But behind Europeans' ever-growing love affair with coffee lies a bitter truth about environmental degradation and human exploitation.

BRUSSELS - Over a year, a team of 46 journalists in 16 countries investigated an ongoing massive, orchestrated lobbying and disinformation campaign led by the PFAS industry and their allied organisations to water down a proposal to ban “forever chemicals” in the EU and shift the burden of environmental pollution onto society, threatening the economic equilibrium of European nations.

CLUJ-NAPOCA – This investigation reveals widespread illegal gravel extraction from riverbeds in Romania, exacerbated by corrupt practices and poor law enforcement. Ongoing dredging is causing serious damage, threatening freshwater resources, agriculture, and biodiversity.

BERLIN/PRAGUE – This investigation examines migration trends in the care sector, focusing on foreign workers in Germany, the migration of older people to the Czech Republic and the dependence of the Czech healthcare system on foreign professionals.

AMSTERDAM - What happens when one of the millions of migrant workers living and working in the Netherlands - often in dangerous jobs - is permanently injured in an accident at work? This investigation sheds light on workplace accidents among migrant workers in the Netherlands.

PRAGUE/ROME/LATVIA A joint investigation by Investigace, IrpiMedia and The Insider has revealed how thousands of European and American small arms were smuggled into Russia and used in the war with Ukraine.

EDINBURGH - Europe’s marine environment faces a plethora of severe threats. What are the key species in decline, and which interest groups are lobbying against marine protection laws? This investigation looks into Europe’s interconnected marine systems, and how they can be preserved.

ZURICH - Baby number 12 is a global investigation into an adoption scheme that began in Switzerland in the ‘50s, and the trauma that haunt the victims today. The investigation aims to expose the responsibilities of the Swiss authorities and will ask for their action.

AMSTERDAM / ANTWERP / IMMINGHAM / LAGOS – International oil traders continue to dump toxic waste products into road fuels sold to African countries, polluting the environment, damaging engines and causing life-changing health problems for citizens, despite the efforts of the regulators and civil society.

BRUSSELS - In this investigation, a diverse group of journalists analysed climate risk reports, academic literature and EU strategies for climate adaption to grasp the current state of adaptation in Europe. They also looked at local climate adaptation in Oradea, Romania, Loulé, Portugal and Rostock, Germany to see what local circumstances hinder or encourage good climate adaptation practice.

ILE-ALATAU - This project shows that the protection of a special natural heritage – namely the wild apple forests of Kazakhstan, — is in Europe's strong interest, as it might help to make European apple growing more environmentally friendly.

DÜSSELDORF – Investigate Europe's 'Arming the World' project reveals how German arms giant Rheinmetall has been quietly pursuing its global expansion strategy by supplying ammunition factories abroad, away from public scrutiny.

NUUK — This cross-border investigation focuses on how the increasing interest in the Arctic area – especially in Greenland and in the Russian northern shores – is re-shaping the economic and political equilibrium and is impacting the environment on a global level.

ASUNCIÓN - The investigation reveals the links between the European car industry and massive deforestation in Paraguay's Chaco region. It reveals how major luxury car brands such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz buy leather from Italian companies, which in turn source the material from Paraguayan companies involved in illegal deforestation, particularly in the Ayoreo indigenous territories.

QUINCHÍA – How sustainable are the sustainability certification programmes set up by the coffee producers themselves — can coffee lovers trust the Nespresso AAA label? 

VILNIUS / RIGA / TALINN – This investigation reveals a complex web of industry influence and political manoeuvring that threatens the future of the Baltic forests. Powerful timber lobbies, backed by industry-funded research and political connections, appear to be shaping the narrative around forest management.

CHIMOIO / SANTARÉM – The EU countries consume more cellulose than they produce, and this growing demand is creating new business opportunities for some while resulting in the loss of land for others. This cross-border investigation examines the land grabbing in Mozambique fuelled by the European demand for eucalyptus pulp.

BODO - This investigation, led by a team of journalists with diverse backgrounds, delves into Shell’s divestment strategy in the Niger Delta and its far-reaching effects on communities.

OBERHAUSEN - Statistics for juvenile offenders with foreign citizenship in Germany show that the number of crimes is increasing. This reporting project analyses the number of kids and juveniles who appear in the statistics with Macedonian, Serbian, and Romanian citizenship. It also demonstrates that the spectrum of crimes is broad.

TBILISI / YEREVAN / ODESA / KHERSON –  The Silent Threat of Untreated Wastewater investigates the growing public health and environmental crisis caused by untreated wastewater in Armenia, Georgia, and Ukraine.

BERLIN / LONDON - The team of journalists investigated the financial ties between the fossil fuel industry and medical research. The data analysis reveals over 180 medical articles published in the last six years acknowledging funding and 1000 featuring authors affiliated with fossil fuel companies.  

MILAN / BOLOGNA / BARCELONA / DRESDEN – This investigation looked in the climate action plans of leading cities in Italy, Spain and Germany, scrutinising their use of EU funding, and identifying effective solutions for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

DUBLIN / BARCELONA - AI has exploded but when its cutting edge software is stripped back, carbon intensive hardware is whirring busily behind, at a high cost to the environment. What exactly does it amount to for Europe?

ROTTERDAM - The Netherlands is a hub for Russian whitefish such as cod, and thus indirectly facilitates Russia's war chest. Millions of kilos of Russian fish arrive in the port of Velsen every year, but controls on illegal catches are seriously inadequate. 

NUMAN – On land surrounding a huge sugar refinery in Nigeria, dangerously high concentrations of heavy metals appear to have had a devastating effect on people’s lives and farming output.

THE HAGUE - The Ministry of Defence is considering hiring private companies to guard the North Sea because the navy and coastguard do not have enough equipment and personnel. The decision follows research findings on Russian spying activities in the region among others investigated by Pointer KRO-NCRV and VRT NWS in cooperation with six other countries.

ROME / SOFIA / BUCHAREST – Proper recycling of PV panels can generate large quantities of raw materials crucial for the energy transition. Yet, due to the presence of harmful and toxic substances, solar waste can become extremely dangerous when it ends up in the wrong hands.

LECCE / THESSALONIKI / VLORA – This investigation uncovers critical regulatory and environmental issues surrounding the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), Europe’s largest fossil fuel project which spans Italy, Albania, and Greece. 

PARIS / LONDON / STOCKHOLM – This investigation reveals how European countries have been spending the “climate finance” that they have pledged to help developing countries tackle climate change.