Nepal Investigative Multimedia Journalism Network (NIMJN) organized an in-person NIMJN Talk Series titled ‘Collaboration in Investigative Reporting’ in Kathmandu Valley on Monday, January 15, 2024. Dilrukshi Handunnetti, co-founder of the Center of Investigative  Reporting (CIR) Sri Lanka and Editor at Mongabay Sri Lanka, was the key speaker for the event. Rajneesh Bhandari, CEO and Chief Editor at NIMJN, moderated the session. A total of 23 journalists from various media outlets participated in the event.

This NIMJN Talk was organized to highlight the importance of collaboration between investigative journalists, with a special focus on cross-border collaboration, and how reporters can connect across countries to share skills, knowledge, resources, and networks. 

During the session, Dilrukshi discussed on the following points:

• How collaborative journalism has become increasingly popular and beneficial in recent years and how partnerships across news organizations have led to more accurate, high-impact reporting.
• Different types of collaborations that can exist among journalists, not just limited to news collaboration
• Different ways that journalists can collaborate across borders
• The strengths of investigative reporting when done collaboratively
• Challenges that can arise during any kind of collaboration
• How to do cross-border storytelling effectively
• Tips for effective collaboration among journalists.
• Tips on global organizations that support cross-border investigative journalism.

The presentation was followed by a Q&A session with the participants, which included questions and discussions related to how collaborations can fall apart, how to collaborate in foreign cultures as an outsider, how collaborations can be different for female journalists, and how collaborations across organizations and borders can create a mutually beneficial and effective storytelling opportunity for journalists.

Overall, this session on ‘Collaboration in Investigative Journalism’ with Dilrukshi Handunnetti as the key speaker was quite impactful, and NIMJN greatly looks forward to future collaboration opportunities with the Center for Investigative Reporting Sri Lanka.

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