Stage Talks with Bellingcat

This week's stage talk is about using open sources in environmental focused investigations. We spoke to freelance journalist Luiz Toledo about his recent work covering deforestation policy gaps. He uncovered his stories using open databases and FOIA requests. Note that Luiz's mic has some distortion in the recording. The talk was hosted by Charlotte Maher on Thursday August 29th 2024. Music featured is courtesy of Artlist.Join our Discord Server for the next live talk at: https://discord.gg/bellingcatLinks discussed:Luiz's investigations: https://www.icij.org/investigations/deforestation-inc/https://piaui.folha.uol.com.br/desmatamento-amazonia-embargos-icmbio/https://www.occrp.org/en/feature/criminal-gangs-are-logging-the-worlds-last-brazilwood-trees-to-make-violin-bowshttps://www.occrp.org/en/investigation/operation-do-re-mi-the-brazilian-bow-makers-under-investigation-for-dealing-in-endangered-woodLuiz's newsletter: https://news.fiquemsabendo.com.br/ FOIA tools: https://www.404media.co/foia-forum-with-a-pacer-expert-7-31-1pm-est/https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/https://x.com/JasonLeopold/status/1804630789205942322https://portaldatransparencia.gov.br/Environmental/deforestation resources: https://brasil.mapbiomas.org/https://infoamazonia.org/en/https://ambiental.media/https://dadosabertos.ibama.gov.br/dataset/fiscalizacao-auto-de-infracaohttps://cruzagrafos.abraji.org.br/https://climatecrimeanalysis.org/https://oxpeckers.org/https://eia-international.org/

In this week's stage talk we discuss open source research methods of covering protest movements and any corresponding violent action. Using the example of recent clashes in Bangladesh, our team unpack how they go about reporting on this topic, sharing their favourite resources, techniques and advice.The talk was hosted by Charlotte Maher on Thursday August 15 2024. Music featured is courtesy of Artlist.Join our Discord Server for the next live talk at: https://discord.gg/bellingcatLinks discussed in the recording:Investigation: https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2024/08/07/bangladesh-overthrow-resignation-sheikh-hasina-footage-open-sourceLinks from UN/ Amnesty on policing and weapons here: https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/research/2023/10/repression-trade/Regarding rubber bullet usage https://www.amnesty.nl/content/uploads/2023/03/Amnesty-position-paper-kinetic-impact-projectiles.pdfPolicing manual from Amnesty https://www.amnesty.nl/content/uploads/2017/01/book_1_0.pdfUN : Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials https://www.ohchr.org/en/instruments-mechanisms/instruments/basic-principles-use-force-and-firearms-law-enforcementUN: Guidance on Less-Lethal Weapons In Law Enforcement https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/Documents/HRBodies/CCPR/LLW_Guidance.pdfBellingcat Auto-Archiver tool: https://www.bellingcat.com/resources/2022/09/22/preserve-vital-online-content-with-bellingcats-auto-archiver-tool/Bellingcat's Search Grid Generator tool: https://www.bellingcat.com/resources/how-tos/2024/08/05/tracking-your-search-a-guide-to-the-grid-generator/NASA-FIRMS: https://firms.modaps.eosdis.nasa.gov/Bellingcat guide to NASA-FIRMS: https://www.bellingcat.com/resources/2022/10/04/scorched-earth-using-nasa-fire-data-to-monitor-war-zones/Bellingcat's guide to maintaining mental hygiene as an open source researcher: https://www.bellingcat.com/resources/2022/11/23/how-to-maintain-mental-hygiene-as-an-open-source-researcher/

This week we were joined on stage by Sam Stecklow, from the not-for-profit newsroom The Invisible Institute. Within the talk we discussed their work on making police complaint data publicly accessible and explored their collaborative models, funding and large data projects.The talk was hosted by Giancarlo Fiorella on Thursday August 1 2024. Music featured is courtesy of Artlist.Join our Discord Server for the next live talk at: https://discord.gg/bellingcatFind the full list of links shared by Sam during the talk below:Civic Data Project Live site: http://CPDP.coKicking the pigeon: https://invisible.institute/kicking-the-pigeonCode of Silence: https://theintercept.com/series/code-of-silence/https://www.illinoiscourts.gov/Resources/61e475d6-97b0-4eef-8d62-23766553a041/1121846.pdfhttps://slate.com/news-and-politics/2015/02/laquan-mcdonald-shooting-a-recently-obtained-autopsy-report-on-the-dead-teen-complicates-the-chicago-police-departments-story.htmlhttps://champaign.cpdp.co/https://invisible.institute/ypphttps://invisible.institute/somebody-podcasthttps://chicagopolicetorturearchive.com/https://www.themarshallproject.org/2020/10/15/mauled-when-police-dogs-are-weaponshttps://forensic-architecture.org/investigation/the-killing-of-harith-augustus/https://www.btsurface.com/https://chicagomissingpersons.com/https://invisible.institute/illinois-police-datahttps://invisible.institute/data-access-transparencyhttps://ipmnewsroom.org/sean-grayson-sonya-massey-sangamon-county-sheriff-misconduct/https://www.chicagocopa.org/data-cases/case-portal/

This week we were joined on stage by Aram Shabanian, the Open-Source Information Gathering Manager at the New Lines Institute and long time Bellingcat contributor. Aram shared a long list of interesting open source tools that citizens and journalists alike can use to help monitor wildfires. Find the full list of tools shared by Aram here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1SJHzw5cSenCvEq7iGEyhHhRKAHq1vOcVlJy4sYAcchM/edit?gid=0#gid=0And additional tools referenced in the chat here: Aram's livestream guide https://www.bellingcat.com/resources/2023/11/09/using-livestreams-to-monitor-crises-in-gaza-and-beyond/Look up your local area's wildfire pocket card with this link: https://www.wildfire.gov/wims/pocket-card-tableBellingcat's OSINT Forest area tracker https://www.bellingcat.com/resources/2023/08/18/a-new-tool-shows-what-war-has-done-to-ukraines-forests/Canadian map resource shared by an audience member: https://cwfis.cfs.nrcan.gc.ca/interactive-mapOnXMaps: https://www.onxmaps.com/ Link to our Discord channel for tool idea pitches: https://discord.com/channels/709752884257882135/1173992891945861160Wildcad.net: http://www.wildcad.net/WildCADWeb.aspOregon specific references: Odffire https://odffire.com/Arcgis view: https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/6329d5e4e13748b9b9f7f33f06a3c376/?fbclid=IwAR2HH7Zxyi-vqihq8pWQJKzynrFK19bKFow-VjTAn3Puz6lZtHpz5JrTgP4Inciweb https://inciweb.wildfire.gov/Oregon Dept of Forestry Course: https://odftraining.thinkific.com/courses/media-accessThe IMSR report shows national fire deployments in the US. In the off season it's updated every Friday. Peak fire season it's daily. : https://www.nifc.gov/fire-information/nfnThe talk was hosted by Charlotte Maher on Thursday the 18th of July in the Bellingcat Discord server. Music courtesy of Artlist.

This Stage Talk is about the impact of conflict on cultural heritage sites and how, as open source researchers, we can monitor the scale of destruction. The discussion was based around our latest documentary with Scripps News, which you can watch in full hereTools: Planet Sentinel Hub Google Earth Ollie Ballinger's damage probability map tool of GazaWikimapiaAnnique's analysing satellite imagery to monitor settlements, video guideRelevant research:The Byzantine mosaic https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/emergency-safeguarding-recently-discovered-al-bureij-mosaics-gaza Jake's X thread on the demolition of the mosaic https://x.com/JakeGodin/status/1805965185653395721Bellingcat's investigation into the 8219 IDF unit. https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2024/04/29/weve-become-addicted-to-explosions-the-idf-unit-responsible-for-demolishing-homes-across-gaza/CNN visits a destroyed graveyard: https://edition.cnn.com/videos/world/2024/01/29/idf-gaza-graveyard-destruction-diamond-pkg-lead-vpx.cnnDamage to Ukraine's cultural heritage sites by Bellingcat and Scripps News: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6HiGgcuB2y4Organisations referenced:EAMENA: https://www.eamena.org/Heritage for Peace: https://www.heritageforpeace.org/Aliph Foundation: https://www.aliph-foundation.org/Caucus Heritage Center (Cornell) https://caucasusheritage.cornell.edu/This talk was recorded on July 3rd, 2024 in the Bellingcat Discord Server. To join the server, download Discord and visit www.discord.gg/bellingcat . Music courtesy of Artlist.

In this Stage Talk we discuss extremism on digital gaming platforms with experts Rachel Kowert and Linda Schlegel. We talk about how and why extremists are using digital gaming spaces for radicalisation and mobilisation efforts, but also about prevention efforts to stop extremists from exploiting these gaming communities.You can find Linda and Rachel's book here: www.routledge.com/Gaming-and-Extre…ok/9781032482996Other links that were mentioned in the talk: www.takethis.org/2024/05/resilient-resources/ www.stopspying.org/banned-for-being www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUoIVZ3vEHk www.theguardian.com/games/2024/mar/…ame-consultants www.isdglobal.org/explainers/discord-extremism/ www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.…791/html?lang=deThis talk was recorded on June 20th, 2024 in the Bellingcat Discord Server. To join the server, download Discord and visit www.discord.gg/bellingcat . Music courtesy of Artlist.

In this week's Stage Talk we were joined by Centre For Information Resilience's Sofia Santos. Sofia also runs a website called Gralhix.com which provides exercises and guides for those needing to practice their open source research skillsets. The discussion on stage was all about how to get into our industry, Sofia provided invaluable tips and resources for beginners. The links we shared during the talk can be found here: Centre for information resilience https://www.info-res.org/Eyes of Russia Project: https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2023/07/24/over-500-days-of-the-russia-ukraine-monitor-map/When starting to write up your conclusions its also worth checking your work against this list too: https://www.bellingcat.com/resources/2024/04/25/oshit-seven-deadly-sins-of-bad-open-source-research/Bellingcat's video guide to working with OSINT tools without coding knowledge: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ymCMy8OffHM&list=PLq6cQ--4f90icDJUwiGcPrFFLLguuZ0htBellingcat's mental health hygiene guide: https://www.bellingcat.com/resources/2022/11/23/how-to-maintain-mental-hygiene-as-an-open-source-researcher/Sofia's colleague Ben Strick's OSINT YouTube 'Bendobrown': https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrFPX1Vfqk3ehZKSFeb9pVIHqxqrNW8SyThis talk was recorded on June 5th 2024 in the Bellingcat Discord Server. To join the server, download discord and visit www.discord.gg/bellingcat . Music courtesy of Artlist.

In this week's Stage Talk we were joined by Bellingcat' Research Lead, Carlos Gonzales. Carlos unpacked a series of recent investigations, delivered by Bellingcat and partners into human smuggler operations across South America and into the US. You can find a link to Bellingcat's investigation into the digital coyote here: https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2024/04/30/a-phantoms-tale-the-coyote-influencer-on-tiktok/And the wider series of investigations via our partners El Clip: https://www.elclip.org/traileres-trampa-migrantes/The following investigations were also mentioned in the talk looking at other regions: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m001z1sthttps://www.arte.tv/en/videos/117240-001-A/data-sources/This talk was recorded on May 23rd 2024 in the Bellingcat Discord Server. To join the server, download discord and visit www.discord.gg/bellingcat . Music courtesy of Artlist.

In this week's episode, co-founder and director of The Continent, Sipho Kings joined us. The Continent is an award winning journal, distributed weekly to audiences, covering 54 countries. It's published as an old fashioned newspaper of sorts, on a beautifully designed PDF, and distributed via word of mouth, on closed messaging platforms. In the talk we spoke about the benefits and limitations of distributing on these platforms, and what it's like working in a small newsroom covering so many regions. Links: The Continent Chat 263The OxpeckersCode For Africa The talk was hosted by Charlotte Maher on Thursday the 9th of May in the Bellingcat Discord server. Music courtesy of Artlist.

This week we spoke to a representative from Bellingcat's Justice and Accountability Unit, Consultant Natasha Pereverzina. Bellingcat’s Justice and Accountability Unit is a joint project with the Global Legal Action Network. Through years of collaboration, we have developed and tested a step-by-step methodology for investigators to follow, hopefully ensuring the viability of open source information in a court setting. Its aim is to ensure that any material discovered by Bellingcat’s dedicated Justice and Accountability Unit is gathered in accordance with rules on admissibility of evidence so as to make it suitable for use in future legal proceedings and other accountability processes. Natasha unpacks what its like working within the unit and what their end goals are. You can find more information on the unit on Bellingcat's website here: https://www.bellingcat.com/what-is-bellingcats-ja-unit-december-2022/And on GLAN's website here: https://www.glanlaw.org/online-open-source-methodology You can also find the mock trial recordings here: https://www.glanlaw.org/osint-mock-trial and Nick Waters talk on this unit at the International Journalism Festival here: https://www.journalismfestival.com/programme/2024/war-crimes-investigations-and-accountability-using-open-source-techniquesThe talk was hosted by Charlotte Maher on Thursday the 25th of April in the Bellingcat discord server. Music courtesy of Artlist.