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Investigate Europe

Cross-border journalism cooperative holding the powerful to account in Europe Our investigations deal with key issues related to major changes in Europe.

Coming from France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Norway, Poland, Portugal and Great Britain, we are nine experienced reporters.

08/06/2026

▶︎ • "Across Europe, thousands of historic landfill sites remain hidden in plain sight."

In our recent Toxic Ground webinar, Investigate Europe's Juliet Ferguson spoke with journalists and environmental experts about the hidden legacy of Europe's historic landfill sites and the risks they continue to pose to waterways, coastlines and public health.

The discussion built on our investigation with Watershed Investigations, supported by Journalismfund Europe, which mapped more than 60,000 historic landfill sites across Europe and the UK, many created before modern environmental regulations existed.

Juliet was joined by Leana Hosea of Watershed Investigations, Kriton Arsenis of reLife Earth, Luke Douglas-Home of A Future Without Rubbish CIC and Théo Tostivint of Surfrider Foundation Europe.

The discussion showed how local communities are often the first to spot the consequences of historic landfill sites, including pollution concerns, coastal erosion and buried waste becoming exposed. Audience members shared examples from their own regions and highlighted sites across Europe that they believe deserve closer scrutiny, providing valuable leads for future reporting.

Thanks to everyone who joined us and shared their questions and experiences.

🔗 If you didn't have time to follow the conversation live, you can now watch the recording via the link in our bio!

28/05/2026

Europe is preparing to triple its data centre capacity.

However, the public is being denied access to key environmental information, including how
much energy and water each facility uses.

Our latest investigation found that a secrecy clause, promoted by Microsoft and DigitalEurope –whose members include Amazon, Google, and Meta – was adopted by the European Commission almost word for word.

Now, following reporting by Investigate Europe, 35 MEPs are calling on the Commission to
remove the clause and restore transparency.

As AI infrastructure expands across Europe, communities are being left in the dark about its
environmental impact.

In this video, our colleague Ella Joyner explains the consequences of
keeping key environmental data from data centres hidden from the public.

Watch the video and read the investigation at the link in bio.

26/05/2026

Investigate Europe is heading to in Mechelen!

Across three days at Dataharvest, organised by Arena for Journalism in Europe, our team will present some of its latest investigations: a hands-on masterclass on investigating EU institutions; reporting on the legality of gambling sponsorships in European football; investigations into AI scam ads and platform failures; scrutiny of European defence funding; and data-driven reporting exposing violations of transgender rights.

📍Find us here:

- Thursday, May 28:

• 10:00am CEST
Masterclass: How to investigate the EU (Pascal Hansens with Jean Comte from MLex)

- Friday, May 29:

• 2:00pm CEST
Using data to expose violations of transgender rights (Ella Joyner)
• 2:00pm CEST
Inside the European Defence Fund: hidden decisions, weak ethics, and funding for an Israeli arms manufacturer (Maria Maggiore & Konstantina Maltepioti, Reporters United)
• 3:45pm CEST
Tracking AI scam ads and platform failure under the DSA (Nico Schmidt)

- Saturday, May 30:

• 9:30am CEST
Gambling on the beautiful game: Following the money and suspect sponsorships in European football (Lorenzo Buzzoni & Chris Matthews)

Will you be there? Come say hello! We're always up for new collaborations and conversations about cross-border reporting!

👉 Full programme available on the Dataharvest website: https://dataharvest.eu/program/

20/05/2026

🚨 Webinar today, 16:00 CEST — join us online.

Across Europe, thousands of historic landfill sites may be polluting soil, waterways and surrounding ecosystems. Join us this afternoon to discuss the findings of the Toxic Ground investigation by Watershed Investigations and Investigate Europe— and learn how to investigate landfill sites in your own community using our mapping tool.

All attendees will also receive a practical guide to find landfill sites and in their own communities.

Speakers:

• Kriton Arsenis — reLife Earth
• Luke Douglas-Home CEnv — A Future without Rubbish CIC
• Théo Tostivint — Surfrider Foundation Europe
• Leana Hosea — WATERSHED INVESTIGATIONS

Hosted by Juliet Ferguson, journalist at Investigate Europe.

The Toxic Ground project was supported by Journalismfund Europe

🔗 Register now: https://eu01web.zoom.us/meeting/register/VmpUvmgRR56_5d7WbEIK4Q #/registration

14/05/2026

As Europe prepares to triple its data centre capacity, our latest investigation revealed that key environmental data on individual facilities, including energy consumption and water use, is being withheld from the public under EU law.

The confidentiality clause at the heart of the story was proposed by Microsoft and DigitalEurope, a lobby group whose members include Amazon, Google and Meta, and adopted by the European Commission almost word for word. National authorities were then instructed to keep all individual data centre information secret, effectively blocking freedom of information requests.

Ten leading legal scholars told us the clause may violate EU transparency rules and the Aarhus Convention, an international treaty guaranteeing public access to environmental information.

The result is that communities, researchers, journalists and the wider public are left in the dark about the environmental impacts of Europe’s growing number of data centres.

This investigation was published on our website and with media partners internationally, including The Guardian, Le Monde, El País, Altreconomia, Die Zeit, EUobserver, The Journal, Público and Tech Policy Press.

➡️ https://www.investigate-europe.eu/posts/big-tech-data-centres-secrecy-eu-law-environment-footprint

11/05/2026

Thousands of landfills across Europe are located in flood zones, near drinking water sources and inside protected conservation areas — yet the scale of the problem has remained largely hidden.

For the first time, our cross-border investigation Toxic Ground mapped more than 60,000 landfill sites across Europe, revealing environmental and public health risks linked to historic waste sites.

Join us for an online discussion on the findings of the investigation and what they mean for communities across Europe.

🔴 Webinar: Europe’s toxic legacy: how historic landfills harm communities today

📅 20 May
🕒 16:00–17:00 CET

Speakers:

• Juliet Ferguson — Investigate Europe
• Kriton Arsenis — reLife Earth
• Leana Hosea — Watershed Investigations
• Luke Douglas-Home — A Future without Rubbish CIC
• Théo Tostivint — Surfrider Foundation Europe

We’ll discuss:

• How the investigation was carried out
• Why historic landfills remain a blind spot in Europe
• The risks linked to flooding, coastal erosion and toxic leakage
• What climate change could mean for communities living near these sites

📲 Register here: https://eu01web.zoom.us/meeting/register/VmpUvmgRR56_5d7WbEIK4Q

The original Toxic Ground investigation was supported by Journalismfund Europe and produced in partnership with Watershed Investigations.

20/04/2026

One of our latest investigations, in partnership with the Pulitzer Center, revealed how facial-recognition technology restricted in Europe has been deployed in over 1,700 Brazilian schools, monitoring the attendance of up to a million students.

Beyond the surveillance questions, the stakes are high: errors in the system could affect families' access to welfare.

Just weeks after publication, Brazilian Congresswoman Ana Paula Lima introduced a draft law regulating biometric technology in schools, directly citing Investigate Europe's findings. The investigation also sparked an inquiry by Portugal's data protection authority, after we revealed the same system had been quietly piloted in a Lisbon school.

Read the full investigation on our website via the link in bio – published with media partners worldwide, including Núcleo, EUobserver, Denník N, Público, Tech Policy Press, Folha de São Paulo and Agencia Pública.

➡️ Swipe to see the findings.

17/04/2026

⚠️ Big Tech secures secrecy in EU data centre law, keeping critical environmental information out of reach.

Investigate Europe can reveal how Microsoft and DigitalEurope – a lobby group whose members include Amazon, Google and Meta – pushed for an amendment explicitly classifying information on individual facilities as confidential. The provision was included almost verbatim in the final 2024 legislation.

The European Commission collects data on key indicators such as energy use and water consumption. However, under the rules, information on individual data centres is not made public, even under freedom of information requests.

The EU is aiming to triple its data centre capacity in the coming years, with €176 billion in investment projected over the next five years.

The rapid growth of the sector has raised concerns about pollution, energy demand, and impacts on communities and natural habitats.

Legal experts told Investigate Europe that the clause may conflict with EU transparency rules and the Aarhus Convention.

This investigation is published with media partners across Europe, including Altreconomia, Die Zeit, El País, EUobserver, the Guardian, The Journal, Le Monde, Público and Tech Policy Press.

A Microsoft spokesperson said: “We support greater transparency around data centres, as sustainability disclosure can help drive better outcomes and build public trust.”

DigitalEurope did not respond to requests for comment.

🔎 Read the full investigation: https://www.investigate-europe.eu/posts/big-tech-data-centres-secrecy-eu-law-environment-footprint

10/04/2026

🟥 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐄𝐮𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞

Viktor Orbán has governed Hungary with a constitutional majority since 2010. He rewrote the constitution and has since amended it 15 times; he has filled the most important public offices with loyalists and changed the electoral law.

He has built a loyal media empire broadcasting his propaganda while cracking down on the independent press.

Largely through EU funds, a business elite was cultivated, closely tied to political power. Orbán adapted the Putin system: today, oligarchs no longer influence politics — instead, they depend on it.

This model is a classic case of state capture. One of its most striking consequences is the rapid enrichment of business circles close to the government, as well as Orbán's own family.

Orbán has established such unequal conditions that a diverse, united opposition has still been unable to defeat him. In 2024, however, a new political figure emerged: Péter Magyar, who came from within the system and entered the political arena by criticising it from the inside.

Despite a massive disparity in resources, Magyar's Tisza party is poised to win according to the latest polls. Yet Fidesz has tried everything in this campaign to crush its opponent.

Both sides are using AI-generated videos to distort reality, but Fidesz has gone further, claiming an AI-generated document was Tisza's secret election programme.

One of the most alarming developments is that intelligence agency involvement and smear campaigns are appearing more prominently than before. According to leaked information, state agencies may have attempted to infiltrate Tisza.

Russian secret agents have arrived in Hungary to assist Orbán, while European intelligence agencies appear to be working to counteract this interference.

Major forces are mobilising both for and against Orbán. This election is about more than Hungary. Orbán has become a model for far-right leaders across Europe — his victory could validate movements from Germany's AfD to France's RN, while his defeat would signal that an alternative is still possible. And Mr. Putin is also watching the election with keen interest.

👉 Analysis by Attila Kálmán.

08/04/2026

Investigate Europe is heading to the International Journalism Festival, and we’d love to meet you there!

We’re excited to connect with journalists, researchers and media organisations from across Europe, and to see what new cross-border collaborations might come out of it.

Come and meet the team:
• Mei-Ling McNamara – Editorial Director
• Chris Matthews – Investigations Editor
• Lorenzo Buzzoni – Italian Reporter
• Nico Schmidt – German Reporter
• Lisa Pace – Social Media and Video Producer Intern
• Thomas Riedel – Finance Manager

🤝 During the festival, we’re also joining forces with our Reference Circle partners – IrpiMedia, Follow the Money, Fumaça, Oštro, Direkt36 and The Bureau of Investigative Journalism – for a night of journalism, community and celebration.

📅 Friday, 17 April — 20:00

🔗 https://lnkd.in/e7jTkxmr

If you’re attending, come and find us or drop us a message; we’d love to connect!

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