Mary Triny Zea, Panama, is an independent investigative journalist with more than 15 years of experience, specializing in stories on the economy, environment, and the misuse of public funds.
Her work has been recognized with the Gabriel García Márquez Foundation (Gabo Foundation) award, as well as by the Inter-American Press Association (SIP) and twice by the Latin American Conference of Investigative Journalism of the Press and Society Institute (Ipys). In Panama she has been awarded the national press award eight times, including the distinction of the Grand National Prize for Journalism.
Zea worked on ICIJ's Bribery Division investigation, in which she revealed illegal payments by the construction company Odebrecht in Panama. She also collaborated on the Pandora Papers.
In Panama, one of her investigations revealed the irregular structures that politicians use to exploit public funds through donations and labor or service contracts, as well as manipulation of funds destined for sports.
She has also uncovered the use of the free Panamanian registration of vessels as a flag of convenience for illegal fishing internationally, and the environmental damage as well as the questionable state supervision of the largest mining project in Panama.
In addition to being an ICIJ member, Zea is also part of the Oxford Climate Journalism Network and of Connectas, the journalistic platform for the Americas.
Zea talks about her dogged journalism that resulted in protests and investigations in this month's ‘Meet the Investigators' podcast.
