Launching May 2026: The Grassroots Justice Network Academy
Everyone should have a say in the rules, or laws, that affect our lives. When we understand the laws, we can use them to protect what matters most: our land, our communities, and our democracy. Everyday, grassroots justice defenders around the world are helping ordinary people use their power to stand up against injustice. When we know the law, we can use it. When we use the law, we can shape it. This approach is called legal empowerment.
Exceptional times demand bold answers. That is why we are launching The Grassroots Justice Network Academy, a world-class institute and learning community. Launching on May 14, 2026, the Academy builds on the long-standing expertise of Grassroots Justice Network members around the world.
Apply for the Academy’s first offering.
Learn to build power and stand up against injustice when you join the Leadership Program. This is a free, three-month program to help you master core legal empowerment strategies, with a blend of live sessions, working groups, hands-on workshops, and resources you can access 24/7. Applications will open on March 23, 2026.
Here’s what you can expect from the Leadership Program:
- Master core legal empowerment strategies through live sessions and asynchronous materials
- Participate in expert-led workshops to build the specific skills your organization or community needs
- Develop a practical work plan to address your justice challenge and share it with a trusted cohort of practitioners for feedback and refinement
- Connect with fellow practitioners in the Grassroots Justice Network, the world’s largest community of justice defenders
- Access curated resources that strengthen your knowledge of legal empowerment or hone advanced skills, available on a range of issue areas
Details:
- The program is 100% free to apply and participate
- Participants who complete the full program will be eligible to apply for a limited number of $10,000 USD action grants.
- The program is offered in both English and Spanish
- The expected time commitment is 2-4 hours per week, for 3 months
Who can apply?
- Grassroots justice practitioners
- Community paralegals
- Organizers
- Unions, NGO, collectives and organizations—individual or team applications welcome
- Anyone looking for practical tools to address injustice and build a fairer, more sustainable world
Join the Network and be the first to know when enrollment opens.
While participation is limited, there will be more ways to engage later this year.
We all face challenges in our pursuit of justice. We don’t have to overcome obstacles alone.
Through the Grassroots Justice Network, members come together to learn from one another. We share best practices and find solutions through peer exchanges, online courses, research projects, and more. Our work, individually and collectively, is more effective, efficient, and sustainable because of it.
Virtual Opportunities
Our free online courses and webinars deepen members’ knowledge of legal empowerment. Current and recent offerings explore methods for financing and protecting justice defenders, training community paralegals, and building community power, among other themes.
Peer Exchange
Learning exchanges and leadership courses connect members who are facing similar challenges or justice issues. The participants explore common obstacles, share ideas and experiences, and devise practical, creative solutions together.
Learning Agenda
The Learning Agenda brings people together to address key knowledge gaps in the legal empowerment field. Through comparative and collective learning efforts, our members generate insights on how to advance systems change, build community power, and fight repression.
Resource Library
The Grassroots Justice Network hosts the largest online library of legal empowerment resources. Thanks to contributions by members, you will find over 3,000 practical guides, research findings, toolkits, and more, all covering an array of justice topics.
Impact
81.5% of our annual survey respondents reported gaining new knowledge and understanding of the legal empowerment field.
76% of our annual survey respondents reported that their organizations reached and/or impacted a greater number of people as a result of engaging with the network.
77% respondents reported that their organizations more deeply and profoundly impacted the lives of people and communities they serve as a result of engaging with the network.