Oxpeckers

Name

Oxpeckers

Legal name

Oxpeckers Center for Investigative Environmental Journalism

Website

https://oxpeckers.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Investigative Environmental Journalism

NAICS

Environment, Conservation and Wildlife Organizations (813312), Web Search Portals and All Other Information Services (51929)

akta.pro primary industry

Environmental Data Management Platforms (EHS/EMS, LIMS, ELN, Compliance Data Hubs) (EUAHAKAA)

Keywords

• Investigative journalism
• Environmental reporting
• Data journalism
• Wildlife crime tracking
• Geo-mapping tools

Headquarters

HQ city

Johannesburg

HQ country

South Africa

HQ region

Africa

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Donations and Grants: Oxpeckers is a nonprofit organization funded through donations and grants from supporting organizations and foundations. The website accepts donations through GiveEngain platform.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Oxpeckers is Africa's first investigative environmental journalism unit that combines traditional investigative reporting with data analysis and geo-mapping to expose eco-offences and track organised criminal syndicates. The organization produces investigative articles, investigations and reports on environmental crime, wildlife trafficking, illegal mining, and energy transition, and operates a portfolio of proprietary digital tracking tools including #WildEye, #PowerTracker, #MineAlert, #ClimaTracker, #GreenAlert, #PoachTracker, and Rhino Court Cases Map. All content and tools are freely accessible under Creative Commons licensing, with funding derived from donations and grants.

Product overview

Oxpeckers is Africa's first investigative environmental journalism unit that combines traditional investigative reporting with data analysis and geo-mapping to expose eco-offences and track organised criminal syndicates. The organization operates a platform of specialized geo-journalism tools and tracking databases, including #WildEye (global wildlife crime tracking), #PowerTracker (energy sector monitoring), #MineAlert/MineAlert Africa (mining permits tracking), #ClimaTracker (climate data), #GreenAlert (environmental impact assessments), #PoachTracker (rhino poaching data), and Rhino Court Cases Map (legal proceedings tracking). These tools are complemented by regional variants like #WildEye Europe and #WildEye Asia. The portfolio also includes the Chinese Environmental Journalism Project for transnational wildlife trafficking investigations. The products serve journalists, law enforcement agencies, policymakers, and civil society organizations working on environmental conservation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• #MineAlert: Tracking tool for mining applications and licences across Africa
• #WildEye
• #WildEye Europe
• #WildEye Asia
• #WildEye Eastern Africa
• #PowerTracker
• #GreenAlert
• #PoachTracker
• #ClimaTracker
• #Cryptotrafficking
• Chinese Environmental Journalism Project

Products and services

• #WildEye A digital geojournalism tool that tracks and maps environmental crime globally, providing open-source data on seizures, arrests, court cases and convictions related to wildlife crime.
• #WildEye Europe Regional version of WildEye focusing on wildlife crime data across Europe, tracking seizures, arrests and convictions.
• #WildEye Asia Regional version of WildEye tracking Asia's role in illegal wildlife trade and monitoring wildlife crime cases across Asia.
• #WildEye Eastern Africa Regional tracking tool for environmental crime in Eastern Africa.
• #PowerTracker A geo-mapping tool that allows tracking of renewable and coal-based energy sources, monitoring energy transition projects and their impact on local communities.
• #MineAlert A tracking tool for sharing and monitoring mining applications and licences across South Africa, providing transparency on mining permits and environmental impact assessments. Includes a continental Africa version (MineAlert Africa) that tracks biodiversity threats caused by mining licences across the continent.
• #ClimaTracker A tool for tracking weather changes and climate-related impacts, used for climate change investigations.
• #GreenAlert A tool for tracking and sharing environmental impact assessments, helping communities monitor proposed development projects.
• #PoachTracker A mapping tool providing instant access to data on rhino deaths and poaching incidents since 2010 across Southern Africa.
• Rhino Court Cases Map A tracker documenting prosecutions and court cases across Southern Africa involving alleged rhino poachers, monitoring developments in rhino poaching legal proceedings.
• Digital Dangers Map A platform exposing global environmental crime stories through data journalism.
• Chinese Environmental Journalism Project An international collaboration between Southern African and Chinese investigative journalists that investigates and exposes wildlife trafficking links between Africa and China through embedded fellowships.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 1,600 entries received for CNN MultiChoice African Journalist competition from 38 countries
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Wits Journalism DepartmentcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing academic partner providing support through the China-Africa Reporting Project and journalism training collaborations
• Code for AfricacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTechnology partner providing data journalism support and WanaData project collaboration
• Earth Journalism NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLaunched #WildEye Europe tool in partnership with EJN; provides grant funding and training for environmental journalists globally
• Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational network partner supporting investigative journalism capacity building and story sharing
• Wildlife Justice CommissioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvided data on over 200 Europe-based wildlife crime incidents to #WildEye database; collaborates on disrupting transnational wildlife trafficking
• C4ADSmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerData partner providing analysis and intelligence on global conflict and crime issues
• Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized CrimemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partner on organized crime and environmental crime intersection
• DW AkademiemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGerman international media development partner supporting journalism training
• FOJO Media InstituteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSwedish media development institute supporting journalism training
• Centre for Investigative Journalism (CIJ)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUK-based investigative journalism training organization
• Environmental Reporting CollectivemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partner on investigative environmental journalism projects

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Bellingcat: Bellingcat is an independent investigative journalism group specializing in open-source and data-driven investigations. It is directly comparable to Oxpeckers in methodology, combining data analysis and geo-mapping to investigate transnational crime and conflict.
• The Bureau of Investigative Journalism: The Bureau of Investigative Journalism is a UK-based nonprofit producing investigative reporting on global issues including environment and corruption. It is directly comparable to Oxpeckers in nonprofit structure, grant-funded model, and collaborative investigative methodology.
• Global Witness: Global Witness is an investigative NGO that exposes environmental crime, corruption, and human rights abuses linked to natural resource extraction. It is directly comparable to Oxpeckers in mission, nonprofit funding model, and focus on cross-border environmental crime investigations.
• Africa Uncensored: Africa Uncensored is a Kenya-based nonprofit investigative journalism organization producing long-form, data-driven reporting on African issues. It is directly comparable to Oxpeckers as a pan-African investigative nonprofit with a similar collaborative journalism model.
• The Intercept: The Intercept is an independent nonprofit newsroom publishing adversarial investigative journalism on environment, criminal justice, and global affairs. It is directly comparable to Oxpeckers in nonprofit funding model and adversarial investigative approach.
• Mongabay: Mongabay is a nonprofit environmental science and conservation news platform covering wildlife crime, deforestation, and climate issues globally. It is directly comparable to Oxpeckers as a nonprofit journalism organization with a similar environmental focus and global contributor network.

Broad incumbents

• ProPublica: ProPublica is the largest U.S. nonprofit investigative newsroom, producing data-driven journalism across many policy areas including environment. It is a broad incumbent peer to Oxpeckers in the nonprofit investigative journalism space, though its scope and scale are substantially larger.

Others

• Earth Journalism Network: Earth Journalism Network is an Internews program that supports environmental journalists worldwide with training, grants, and story distribution. It is comparable to Oxpeckers as a partner and ecosystem enabler in the global environmental journalism network, rather than a direct investigative competitor.
• Pulitzer Center: Pulitzer Center is a nonprofit that funds and promotes investigative journalism on global issues including environment and human rights. It is comparable to Oxpeckers as a journalism grant-maker and story-distribution platform, functioning more as a funder/partner than direct competitor.

Emerging players

• Code for Africa: Code for Africa is the continent's largest civic technology and data journalism initiative, building investigative tools and a newsroom network across Africa. It is an emerging player peer to Oxpeckers in combining data journalism with African investigative reporting and is an existing technology partner.

Market position

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/OxCIEJ
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCnvGYY5fk7oN5zcH6ZtJrUA
• Facebookfacebook.com/Oxpeckers
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/18161004
• Instagraminstagram.com/oxpeckers
• TikToktiktok.com/@oxpeckers_news

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 Oxpeckers