Truth Be Told: Reflections From Whistleblowers

This program, originally developed for college and graduate school audiences, features Government Accountability Project experts introducing the concept of whistleblowing and then facilitating conversations with whistleblowers who reflect on their experiences in deciding to report misconduct. Some whistleblowers share stories of suffering shocking forms of reprisal; some share stories of how their disclosures catalyzed change; all share how the experience of putting ethics into practice promotes the public interest. This program is ongoing and can be tailored for a wide range of audiences.

Expert Presentations

Government Accountability Project staff frequently give lectures and speak on conference panels as whistleblower experts to a wide range of audiences, including students, journalists, lawyers, activists, business leaders, ethics and compliance officers, accountants, academics, and others. Topics include:

• The Role of Whistleblowing in Promoting Democracy & Accountability
• How Whistleblowers Have Changed the World
• The Business Case for Supporting Whistleblowers
• Best Practices for Creating a “Speak-Up” Culture
• An Introduction to Whistleblowing: Mythbusting

We also speak on the role whistleblowers play in specific issue areas, such as food safety, worker rights, fraud, scientific integrity, environmental protection, and national security. We gladly tailor our presentations to the needs and interests of each audience to share relevant expertise, best practices, and inspiration.

Trainings for Federal Congressional & Agency Staff

After years of working with Congress and various government agencies to develop laws and regulations that enhance whistleblower protection, we are uniquely positioned to educate congressional staff and agency employees about whistleblower rights. We have provided trainings to groups such as the Justice Department Office of Civil Rights, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, the House Whistleblower Caucus, minority staff for the House Intergovernmental Relations Committee, and minority staff for the House Energy and Commerce committee.

Trainings for Public Interest Organizations

Non-profit advocacy organizations are often some of the first to receive reports of government waste, ethics violations, environmental dangers, or other illegal practices from whistleblowers. We share our expertise with these organizations to ensure they properly handle disclosures so the information makes a difference without putting employee sources at risk. We have worked with: Open the Government, Public Citizen, Project on Government Oversight, the Union of Concerned Scientists, Open Gov Hub, Human Rights Watch, Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, Low Wage Workers Legal Network, Immigration Legal Resource Center, and American Immigration Lawyers Association.

Trainings for Journalists

Government Accountability Project offers trainings to journalists because understanding the complex legal landscape of whistleblower protection keeps stories from inadvertently harming whistleblowers. We work with journalists to ensure that the disclosures our clients make are leveraged to affect change without exposing them to undue risk. The two main barriers whistleblowers face are fear of reprisal and concern that their disclosure won’t make a difference. When journalists protect the whistleblowers they work with they simultaneously decrease fear and increase the impact of disclosures. Trainings with Government Accountability Project support better source protection, bolster the continued free flow of information, and benefit whistleblowers and journalists both now and in the future.

International Trainings

As experts who have developed and enforced dozens of whistleblower protection laws and leveraged whistleblowers’ disclosures to address malfeasance both domestically and internationally, Government Accountability Project staff are in frequent demand to share their expertise with the international community. We regularly offer trainings on best practices in working with whistleblowers, necessary elements of effective whistleblower protection legislation, and how governments and NGOs can work with whistleblowers to combat corruption. From speaking at international conferences to consulting governments and NGOs, Government Accountability Project is committed to sharing our expertise to promote expanded whistleblower protection around the globe.