Grassroots Justice Network 
Legal empowerment offers something rare and beautiful: a strategy for pursuing justice that is working.
This process of equipping people to understand, use, and shape the law is not easy. We encounter corruption and steep power imbalances every day. Many paralegals face threats of retaliation. But despite these challenges, we are seeing real progress against injustice in every country where we work. And the Grassroots Justice Network is the strongest it’s been.
How We Create Impact
In the Countries Where We Work Directly
Through the Grassroots Justice Network
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Our First Decade at a Glance
Read about some of our major achievements over the past 10 years, and hear directly from a few of the inspiring people leading the movement for grassroots justice.
Our Direct Country Impact
Throughout 2021, Namati and our partners in six countries supported affected communities to remedy injustices and bring about changes to entire systems.
25,000+
People supported to know, use, and shape the law
300,000+
PEOPLE WHO BENEFITTED DIRECTLY FROM REMEDIES SECURED
MILLIONS
PEOPLE POSITIVELY AFFECTED BY CHANGES TO LAWS AND SYSTEMS
Citizenship Justice in Kenya
In 2021, members of historically marginalized groups navigated a complex and discriminatory national identity system with the support of paralegals. While the process is ongoing for most, nearly 800 people secured their IDs, enabling them and their families to access essential services and take part in society.
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Health Justice in Mozambique
In 2021, thousands of people worked to resolve breakdowns in healthcare delivery with the support of paralegals. Together, they improved life saving services for entire communities.
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Land & Environmental Justice in Myanmar
In 2021, small-hold farmers and rural communities worked to secure the return of seized lands and address environmental violations with the support of paralegals. Despite challenges brought on by the February coup, they achieved remedies that directly improved the livelihoods and wellbeing of over 1,500 people.
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Land & Environmental Justice in Kenya
In 2021, 15 rural communities began the process of applying for the legal title to their lands with the support of paralegals. By the end of the year, a dozen had developed by-laws and set up inclusive land management committees and one was granted its title deed.
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Land & Environmental Justice in Sierra Leone
In 2021, rural communities worked to protect their lands and negotiate fair deals with investors with the support of paralegals. While the process is ongoing for most, one community successfully re-negotiated a lease, directly improving the livelihoods and wellbeing of over a thousand people.
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Land & Environmental Justice in the USA
In 2021, environmental justice organizers worked with their communities to address environmental violations by private and public projects. Together, they achieved remedies that directly improved the health, wellbeing, and livelihoods of thousands of people.
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Environmental Justice in India
In 2021, field researchers studied affected communities working to address instances of environmental non-compliance by industrial activities. These communities achieved remedies that directly improved the livelihoods and wellbeing of thousands of people.
Learn MoreOur Network Impact
The Grassroots Justice Network is the world’s largest community of grassroots justice defenders. By the end of 2021, over 11,000 individuals in 170 countries, representing over 2,800 civil society organizations, had joined the network.
What Network Members Are Saying
The [learning exchange] was absolutely amazing. It helped me develop new ways of thinking of my work and challenges. It has connected me to many new people and networks who can benefit my work. I learned a lot about best practices and got new ideas from fellow participants.
Liesl Muller, Lawyers for Human Rights, South Africa
Citizenship Learning Exchange participant
As an organization, one of our challenges coming to the exchange program was how to build our legal support system. The program gave me a fresh perspective on how to handle the issues when I return back to the organization. [And] the financial sustainability session was amazing.
Bassey Bassey Ita, GREENCODE, Nigeria
Environmental Justice Learning Exchange participant
Getting all of these people together opens lots of ways forward…you don’t just see a textbook that tells you how it should be done. You hear from somebody telling you about the challenges they face and how they’ve gone about addressing them.
Hadeel Abdel Aziz, Justice Center for Legal Aid, Jordan
Middle East Regional Meeting on Legal Empowerment participant
This week has been confirming and empowering! I have never been more proud to be in the trenches doing the work of empowering people to reach their highest potential. They why is easy, but the legal empowerment course definitely provided the how!
Jhody Polk, Jailhouse Lawyer Initiative, USA
Legal Empowerment Leadership Course participant
Stories of Legal Empowerment
Hassan’s Journey to Becoming a Citizenship Rights Advocate
HIGHLIGHT: Hassan, a Nubian youth living in Kibra, narrates the challenges he went through in his quest to get a Kenyan national identity card (ID) and how Nubian Rights Forum, a Namati partner, helped him finally get an ID. His struggles, shared by thousands of other members of the same community, made him see the...
Read MoreRhonda Hamilton: Fighting so that Children in her Community can “Live to be Grandparents”
Read MoreRecognition
Schwab Foundation's Social Entrepreneurs of the Year
The Schwab Foundation named Vivek Maru, Namati’s co-founder and CEO, and Sonkita Conteh, Namati’s Sierra Leone director, two of its Social Entrepreneurs of the Year for 2017.
Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship
The Skoll Foundation honored Namati and the Legal Empowerment Network with their award for social entrepreneurship in 2016.
American Bar Association's Legal Rebel
The American Bar Association named Namati's founder and CEO, Vivek Maru, as one its 'Legal Rebels' in 2015.
Ashoka Fellowship
Ashoka selected Vivek Maru, Namati's founder and CEO, as one of its fellows in 2014, stating "This is the best law-for-all program we’ve seen. It is brilliant. Very likely to spread broadly."
UKAid / DFID
The UK's Department for International Development gave Namati a rare A+ rating in their review of our work.
