The Inter American Press Association (IAPA) announced on Tuesday, August 25, that Países Minados II is the winner of the 2026 “Roberto Eisenmann Jr.” Environmental Journalism Award.
The investigative series, produced by La Voz de Guanacaste together with Interferencia de Radios UCR, Panama’s Revista Concolón and the Latin American Center for Investigative Journalism (CLIP), investigated and exposed irregularities surrounding the mining industry in Costa Rica and Panama.
The jury highlighted the investigation’s regional scope, its use of multiple sources and the strength of its methodology in exposing the impact of illegal mining and organized crime on Latin American ecosystems.
This recognition adds to nearly a decade of La Voz de Guanacaste’s coverage of mining in Abangares and, more recently, its connections to illegal gold mining in Crucitas.
“This award reaffirms the value of doing investigative journalism from Guanacaste and sustaining it over time. At La Voz, we have spent nearly a decade following irregularities surrounding mining, asking new questions and connecting findings that reach far beyond Guanacaste. Países Minados demonstrates that regional journalism can expose networks of power and produce investigations with national and global impact,” said La Voz director Noelia Esquivel Solano.
At a time when doing journalism is becoming increasingly challenging, strengthening regional media is more necessary than ever: We need newsrooms capable of investigating, holding the powerful accountable and reporting what some want to keep hidden,” she added.
An investigation that followed gold and cyanide in Costa Rica
Países Minados II followed up on an initial investigation published in 2024 and delved deeper into the economic and business networks surrounding mining in both countries.
In Costa Rica, La Voz investigated how gold continues to leave the country despite the expiration of a temporary permit that had eased restrictions on its export. Records from the Ministry of Finance showed that three business conglomerates accounted for more than 90% of the exports analyzed in the investigation.
The team also documented the growth in cyanide imports, a toxic substance used to separate gold from other materials. Imports rose from 62.1 metric tons in 2014 to nearly 450 metric tons in 2024: a 623% increase in a decade.
The investigation also found indications of irregular trafficking of this substance to legal mining areas, such as Abangares, and illegal ones, such as Crucitas, while police authorities have pointed to the possible existence of criminal networks dedicated to supplying this activity.
In Panama, the alliance investigated environmental damage linked to mining, business dealings involving land where extractive projects were developed and the corporate and political connections behind Minera Panamá and its owner, Canadian company First Quantum Minerals.
The Investigations in Costa Rica:
Países Minados II
- Costa Rica’s Gold Continues to Leave Through the Airport Despite Government Promises
- Illegal Gold Mining Grows 623% as Cyanide Imports Reach Record Highs
Países Minados I
- Abangares: A Laundering Hub for Illegal Gold From Crucitas
- Gold Bars Worth More Than ₡78 Billion Left Costa Rica
Among Hundreds of Journalistic Works
In late July, the IAPA announced that Países Minados II was among the three finalists in the environmental journalism category, alongside the series Terra do Meio, by Correio Braziliense of Brazil, and SED: la otra cara del negocio agroexportador, by Salud con Lupa of Peru.
The IAPA Excellence in Journalism Awards recognize work by media outlets and journalists from Latin America, North America, the Caribbean and Europe. A jury made up of members of the organization’s Awards Committee selects the winners and honorable mentions.
The award ceremony will take place in October 2026 during the IAPA’s 82nd General Assembly in Bogotá, Colombia.
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