Investigative and high-quality journalism in practice: a three-day gathering of reporters, editors and media innovators in September 2026.
Across Europe, democratic societies are facing increasingly sophisticated information threats. Foreign influence operations, disinformation campaigns, growing political polarization, unprecedented access to information, and declining trust in democratic institutions as well as editorial media, challenge the quality of public debate and in the end our democratic systems. A rapidly evolving AI landscape contribute to amplify these trends.
Many initiatives focus on identifying and correcting false information, but fewer address the broader question of how to strengthen the information ecosystem that allows societies to resist manipulation in the first place. Breakwater is designed to address this challenge.
Building on the historical legacy of Gdańsk as a symbol of democratic solidarity and connecting Nordic traditions of trust and transparency with the realities faced by frontline journalists in Central and Eastern Europe, Breakwater aims to strengthen the actors, networks and professional communities that underpin information integrity across the wider Nordic, Baltic Sea and Central-Eastern European region.
Breakwater is not only an initiative to protect journalism, but a long-term contribution to strengthen democratic resilience and information integrity in this region. The purpose is to strengthen the conditions that enable citizens to form their own opinions necessary for democratic societies to function, based on access to credible information, independent journalism, critical reflection, and trusted spaces for security dialogue.
Breakwater’s flagship event is the annual festival, taking place in Gdańsk for the first time in September 24-27, 2026.
The festival consists of workshops, lectures, debates, meetings, and networking. From data exchange and cross-border investigations to OSINT techniques, creative uses of AI, uncovering disinformation, and transforming investigative stories into film, audio and television productions. Hands-on sessions with some of the best experts, sharing of tools, methods, and professional standards.
This festival is for journalists, reporters, media professionals, freelancers, podcasters, NGO activists, watchdogs, whistleblowers, students – and everyone who believes in the power and purpose of quality journalism.
Secure your tickets on the festival website, breakwaterfestival.org.
Who is behind Breakwater
Lead organiser is Fundacja Reporterów (Reporters Foundation), Poland’s only dedicated investigative-journalism hub, with deep experience in cross-border reporting and training. Core partners are Nordic and Baltic media organizations and universities, in particular the Barents Press Norway and UTSYN – Centre for Security and Resilience, as well as the European Solidarity
Centre, the City of Gdańsk and other regional institutions.
An experienced trio combining investigative reporting, Nordic security expertise and European philanthropy and network-building know-how constitutes the Breakwater leadership:
- Wojciech Cieśla is a leading Polish investigative reporter, founder of Fundacja Reporterów and editor-in-chief of FRONTSTORY.PL, with more than two decades of experience exposing corruption and abuse of power across Central Europe.
- Amund Trellevik is a Norwegian investigative journalist specializing in Russia, security policy and the Arctic, and a long-standing Barents Press leader with deep links to Nordic investigative and press-freedom networks.
- Peter Matjašič is a civil-society and media-development leader with 15+ years of pan-European experience in philanthropy, EU advocacy and organizational development, currently directing Reference Circle and bringing strong fundraising and governance expertise.
