Pulitzer Center Update May 8, 2026
Practical Training for Journalists Investigating the Ocean
I have a cheesy confession to make. Last year, I made a resolution to celebrate every win—no matter how small. At work, that meant creating a folder on my desktop called Joy. There, I keep emails that made me smile, messages from journalists, and screenshots of training sessions that went well.
One of my favorite entries is an email titled “Thanks, I learned a ton.” It came from a Chilean journalist who had attended one of the Pulitzer Center’s ocean webinars. He wrote to say he was surprised by how accessible tools presented were, especially for reporting on supply chains and ship tracking. He ended his message saying that the session “literally saved a week of work.”
Pure joy. But we had a problem with our programming. While the training syllabus of our four Fellowship programs offers a clear progression of tools and techniques, our Environmental Investigations Unit’s open online training has been more scattered—useful, but harder to navigate. So this year, we’re doing something different. We’re launching a training series called Investigating the Ocean.
This four-part webinar series is designed as a practical path for journalists conducting ocean investigations. The sessions include:
- Webinar 1-May 19: Understanding ocean regulation and governance
- Webinar 2-June 9: Using OSINT tools for ship tracking and port monitoring
- Webinar 3-July 7: Following the money and identifying actors that profit from the ocean
- Webinar 4-August 11: Reporting on labor and human rights at sea
All sessions will take place at 4:00pm GMT and will be led by the Pulitzer Center’s Data and Research team, alongside former Ocean Reporting Network Fellows. Each webinar will run for 90 minutes and include time for participants to ask questions related to their own investigations.
Our goal is simple: to share everything we know about ocean investigations.
From creative OSINT research to workarounds when information is hard to find, we want these sessions to be as useful and transparent as possible. We’d love for you to participate, bring questions, and share your own methods to inspire the group.
Because if my ever-growing Joy folder has taught me anything, it’s that better reporting isn’t just about skill. It’s about community. Having people to test ideas with, learn from, and push our ambitions further allows us to work smarter, not harder. And, hopefully, saves us time to pursue the stories that matter most.
Fernanda Buffa
Editor, Environmental Investigations
This message appeared in the May 8, 2026, edition of the Pulitzer Center's weekly newsletter. Subscribe today.
