"Happy anniversary, GIJN. It’s 20 years since a band of nonprofits gathered in Copenhagen – at the second Global Investigative Journalism Conference – to found a network that would bind together the world’s most enterprising, most determined reporters. At that 2003 meeting, 35 groups came together, signing an organizing statement to “support the training and sharing of information among journalists in investigative and computer-assisted reporting.” Our conferences grew, as did our global community. But our gatherings bounced from country to country, with no dedicated funding or staff, and no institutional memory. What we needed was an organization that could plan events, raise funds, provide resources, and spread investigative and data journalism around the world. In 2012 – 10 years after Copenhagen – we launched GIJN as a fledgling nonprofit. We had a couple volunteers and just $35,000 in startup funds. Since then, our growth has surprised even us. GIJN’s expansion coincided with the global spread of kleptocracy, even as digital age tools from data analysis to satellite imagery made it easier to investigate across borders – and harder to keep secrets. The international backlash against democracy and civil society – with independent media in its crosshairs – only increased the demand for our work. By the end of 2022, GIJN had a staff of 38, an annual budget of $2.3 million, and daily operations in a dozen languages. Membership in GIJN had jumped five-fold – to 244 groups in 90 countries. The world now recognizes that a watchdog press is as fundamental to development as are good schools and sound economic policy." (Page 2)