Investigative Journalism Foundation

What Investigative Journalism Foundation does

The Investigative Journalism Foundation (IJF) is a Canadian federally incorporated nonprofit newsroom founded in 2020 and headquartered in Toronto, operating as a nonpartisan investigative outlet covering money and power in Canadian democracy. Its core product is a portfolio of proprietary, searchable public-records databases — the Open By Default repository (7.4M+ pages of completed federal access-to-information requests), the Procurement Database (1M+ entries across federal, B.C. provincial, Vancouver and Victoria municipal contracts from 2004 to 2030), the Lobbying suite (registrations, communications, government funding, revolving-door data across federal, nine provincial, and one territorial jurisdiction), the Appointments Database (175,000+ orders-in-council), the Charities Database (tax returns, compensation, gifts), the Political Donors Database, and newer West Coast Accountability and Residential Schools databases. The underlying technology stack is a web-based publishing platform with integrated search and download functionality, deployed on AWS infrastructure and supported by a small R&D function that has begun operationalizing ChatGPT for structured extraction in the Appointments pipeline and experimenting with LLMs for entity standardization.

IJF monetizes through a diversified, nonprofit revenue stack: individual donations processed via CanadaHelps, paid annual subscriptions (including group, student, and financial-hardship tiers), merchandise sales through a Shopify storefront (CAD 40,177 in FY2025), and — most significantly — institutional funding from Canadian government research grants (NSERC, SSHRC, Mitacs, Canada Periodical Fund, Local Journalism Initiative, First Nations and Inuit Youth Employment Strategy, Canada Summer Jobs), private foundations (Tiny Foundation, Balsillie Family Foundation, Avanti Foundation, McConnell Foundation), technology-company grants (Splunk, Google, Microsoft, AWS, Thomson Reuters Social Impact Institute), the Labour Journalism Tax Credit, and academic partnerships with the University of Toronto Data Sciences Institute and University of British Columbia. It also operates a Free Access for Journalists program that grants complimentary unlimited subscriptions to eligible working journalists across Canada, and it pursues story-syndication and broadcast partnerships with CTV News and The Narwhal for investigative collaborations. The organization is governed by an editorial team with a stated firewall between business and editorial functions and practices radical transparency, publishing all donor identities publicly.

Name

Investigative Journalism Foundation

Legal name

Investigative Journalism Foundation of Canada

Website

https://theijf.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2022

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Investigative Journalism Foundation is a Toronto-based Canadian nonprofit newsroom that publishes investigative journalism on money and power in Canadian democracy and operates a suite of proprietary, searchable public-records databases covering lobbying, procurement, appointments, charities, and political donations, funded by grants, donations, and subscriptions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Investigative Journalism / Public Records Data

NAICS

Newspaper Publishers (513110)

SIC

Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711)

akta.pro primary industry

Investigative & Nonprofit News Organizations (MPAJADAF)

Keywords

• Investigative journalism
• Public records databases
• Nonprofit newsroom
• Government transparency
• Open data platform

Headquarters

HQ city

Toronto

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: Tax-receiptable gifts made through CanadaHelps platform or direct contact with IJF development staff
2. Subscriptions: Annual and potentially monthly subscription fees for individual access to IJF content and databases
3. Government Grants: Funding from Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council ($385,889), Canada Periodical Fund ($180,978), Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council ($141,691), First Nations and Inuit Youth Employment Strategy ($104,337), Canada Summer Jobs ($38,939), Local Journalism Initiative ($56,000), Mitacs ($164,333), and others
4. Corporate Grants: Funding from foundations including Tiny Foundation ($213,066), Balsillie Family Foundation ($50,000), Thomson Reuters Social Impact Institute ($35,678), Chawkers Foundation ($3,000), and technology companies including Splunk ($34,203), Google ($14,900), Microsoft ($2,779), AWS ($1,389)
5. Merchandise Sales: Sales of merchandise including t-shirts, sweatshirts, toques, and hats through their Shopify store ($40,177 in FY2025)

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Investigative Journalism Foundation (IJF) is a Canadian nonprofit newsroom that produces investigative journalism and maintains a suite of proprietary searchable databases covering lobbying, political donations, government procurement, access to information releases, government appointments, and charities. The organization publishes original articles and briefs focused on money and power in Canadian democracy, offers paid subscriptions and a free access program for working journalists, and sells branded merchandise through an online store.

Product overview

The Investigative Journalism Foundation is a nonprofit nonpartisan newsroom offering investigative journalism and public-interest databases focused on Canadian democracy. The core product is a suite of searchable databases that aggregate and make accessible public records on lobbying, political donations, government procurement, access to information releases, government appointments, and charities. Key databases include: Open By Default (7.4M+ pages of federal ATIP requests), the Procurement Database (1M+ entries), Lobbying Databases (registrations, communications, government funding, revolving door), the Appointments Database (175,000+ records), the Charities Database (tax returns, compensation, gifts), and the Political Donors Database. The IJF also publishes investigative articles and briefs on politics, power and influence, and offers subscription access, a free program for journalists, merchandise, and an educational Misinformation Curriculum.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Open By Default Database Searchable repository of more than 7.4 million pages of completed federal access to information (ATIP) requests, allowing keyword searches through the content of all completed requests. Targeted at journalists, researchers, and the general public.
• Procurement Database Database with more than one million entries of federal, provincial (B.C.), and municipal (Vancouver, Victoria) procurement data including contract awards, tenders for prospective work, and other procurement documents spanning 2004 to 2030.
• Lobbying Databases Four interconnected databases covering Lobbying Registrations (federal, nine provinces, one territory), Lobbying Communications (B.C. and federal), Government Funding, and Revolving Door (federal, Saskatchewan, B.C.) tracking former public office holders who registered to lobby after leaving government.
• Charities Database Three tools tracking Canadian registered charities: Charity Tax Returns (earnings, spending, assets), Charity Staff Compensation (top 10 highest earners), and Gifts Received By Charities (money movement between registered organizations).
• Appointments Database Database containing more than 175,000 records of orders-in-council announcing appointments made by federal and provincial governments (excluding Quebec), searchable by keyword, region, and date range. Uses AI (ChatGPT) to extract values from text.
• Political Donors Database Database tracking political donations to Canadian political parties and candidates, enabling analysis of money in politics.
• West Coast Accountability Database Database focused on accountability and transparency issues specific to Canada's West Coast region.
• Residential Schools Database Database documenting information related to Canadian residential schools, supporting investigative reporting on this sensitive historical topic.
• IJF Subscriptions Paid individual and group subscription offering full access to IJF's investigative reporting and database content. Annual billing cadence with benefits including a free merchandise item shipped within Canada. Discounts for students, people experiencing financial hardship, and groups of three or more (libraries, companies).
• Free Access for Journalists Program Program granting eligible working journalists across Canada free unlimited IJF subscriptions, providing full access to investigative reporting and database content in support of journalism work.
• Misinformation Curriculum Educational curriculum of 45 minutes to 1 hour for post-secondary students to understand and engage with AI and AI-generated information online. Includes PowerPoint presentations differentiated for Natural Sciences, Humanities, and Social Sciences students. Developed with funding from CIRA's Net Good program.
• IJF Merchandise Store Shopify-based online store selling branded merchandise including t-shirts, sweatshirts, toques, and hats, which generated $40,177 in fiscal year 2025.

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability1 record

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• The NarwhalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative investigative partnership producing major investigations including the story on TC Energy and CSIS intelligence sharing, which received a CAJ Award nomination and Dr. Eric Jackman Award nomination. The collaboration brings together investigative journalism capabilities from both nonprofit newsrooms.
• CTV NewscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on investigative stories including the CAJ Award-winning gold medal investigation revealing Canadian meth exports to New Zealand and Australia. Story broadcast and published across both platforms.
• CanadaHelpsminorOthersThird-party platform for processing tax-receiptable donations to IJF. Donations can be made through canadahelps.org/en/dn/139954.
• University of TorontominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with researchers at U of T Data Sciences Institute for research and development associates working on projects tied to lobbying, procurement, and political donations data.
• University of British ColumbiaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with UBC researchers through the research and development associates program, with students working on data journalism projects.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• ProPublica: U.S.-based nonprofit investigative newsroom producing data-driven accountability journalism funded by donations and grants. Closest analog to IJF's nonprofit investigative model with award-winning database work; IJF was a finalist alongside ProPublica for the 2025 Online Journalism Awards General Excellence.
• The Narwhal: Canadian nonprofit investigative newsroom focused on democracy, environment, and accountability. Direct collaboration partner with IJF on the B.C. oil and gas regulator investigation, operating a similar nonprofit data-journalism model in Canada.
• The Bureau of Investigative Journalism: UK-based nonprofit investigative newsroom producing accountability journalism funded by foundations and grants. Closest non-North American peer operating the same donor-funded, public-interest investigative model with cross-border story syndication.
• Bellingcat: Netherlands-based nonprofit investigative collective specializing in open-source intelligence and data-driven investigations. Comparable on the data/database-plus-investigative model and recognized globally as an innovative nonprofit newsroom.
• OpenSecrets (Center for Responsive Politics): U.S. nonprofit tracking money in U.S. politics through comprehensive lobbying, donations, and procurement databases. Closest direct analog to IJF's Political Donors, Lobbying, and Procurement databases — same transparency-focused data publishing model.
• Canadaland: Canadian independent investigative media outlet focused on media criticism and accountability journalism. Comparable in Canadian investigative market with similar audience and donor-supported revenue model.
• The Tyee: Canadian independent online news magazine covering politics, environment, and accountability stories. Comparable reader-supported nonprofit model with B.C. focus overlapping IJF's West Coast Accountability database.

Broad incumbents

• Global News: Major Canadian broadcast news organization where IJF's Director of Technology previously worked. Broader incumbent in Canadian investigative market producing some data-driven journalism at scale; collaboration partner with IJF on award-winning stories.
• CTV News: Canada's largest private broadcaster and major investigative news producer. Co-published the CAJ Gold Award-winning meth exports investigation with IJF; overlapping accountability journalism mandate but at vastly larger scale as a commercial broadcaster.

Emerging players

• The Logic: Canadian subscription-based digital media outlet focused on technology, policy, and accountability reporting. Emerging peer with similar digital-first subscriber-supported model and intersecting coverage of public-sector accountability.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/IJFMedia

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Investigative Journalism Foundation