About us
SourceMaterial was founded in 2017 to carry out investigations around climate change, corruption and democracy. We look for stories where these topics intersect, and for gaps where public-interest stories have been underreported.
Our aim is always best-practice reporting: we work to a strict editorial code and our partners in the mainstream media rely on us for accuracy, fairness and a commitment to ethical journalism.
How we work
A small team of experienced reporters, SourceMaterial is built on an ethos of collaborative reporting. Our journalists work together on investigations so that each story benefits from our range of skills.
SourceMaterial is a non-profit organisation; we are entirely funded by our donors and do not charge for our work. This means we can share our stories freely with a range of partners, increasing their impact.
Working with us
SourceMaterial’s philosophy is to make collaboration simple. We tailor our approach to meet each partner’s needs. Some of our investigations begin as full collaborations, others are almost finished when we contact a partner. Usually we do something in between. We also regularly help other publications with their own investigations on an informal basis, so if you or your organisation are stuck with a story or just need an extra pair of eyes on it, please feel free to get in touch. We’ll treat anything you share with us with absolute confidentiality.
Our reporting
At SourceMaterial, we never shy away from tackling complicated investigations. We’ve unravelled a £1 billion farm subsidy scandal, unpicked the offshore finances of commodities traders, oligarchs and Brexit donors, and cracked open the opaque world of carbon offsetting. We’ve exposed secret conversations between Donald Trump’s top adviser and the Italian far right, BP’s role in fuelling the Russian military, and the ties between Vladimir Putin and a notorious neo-Nazi. Our reporting has sparked an official government inquiry and been cited in court cases and in the UK parliament.
Our funding
Our work is made possible through the generous support of the Meliore Foundation and the Grantham Foundation.
Our team
Leigh Baldwin
Leigh Baldwin is the editor of SourceMaterial. He previously worked as an investigative journalist for Global Witness and as a reporter for Bloomberg News.
Atika Rehman
Atika Rehman joined SourceMaterial in 2024 from Dialogue Earth, a platform dedicated to environmental journalism. She has reported on current affairs for Pakistan’s Dawn newspaper, and written for The Guardian and Prospect Magazine.
Marcus Leroux
Marcus Leroux joined SourceMaterial at its launch from The Times, where he covered Brexit, business and the natural resources industry.
Luke Barratt
Luke Barratt joined SourceMaterial in 2020 from Unearthed, where he published investigations on climate change and the environment.
Jess Staufenberg
Jess Staufenberg joined SourceMaterial in 2023 from Schools Week, a digital investigative newspaper. She has also reported for BBC Inside Out, The Guardian, The Independent and Eastern Daily Press.
Costanza Gambarini
Costanza Gambarini joined SourceMaterial in 2023 from the BBC, where she worked on current affairs documentaries.
Rosa Furneaux
Rosa Furneaux joined SourceMaterial in 2025. She previously worked as an investigative journalist for Reuters and the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, covering global health.