LEF Announces $1.5 Million in Third Round of Grants

The Legal Empowerment Fund (LEF), a program of the Fund for Global Human Rights, announced today that it has selected 42 grassroots groups in 24 countries to receive a total of $1.5 million in flexible, two-year grants. The full list of organizations is available below (two grantees have been omitted from the list due to the sensitive nature of their work). 

This is the third cohort of grantees since the LEF’s creation in 2021. The first cohort, announced in July 2022, and second cohort, announced in March 2023, include 90 additional organizations using legal empowerment strategies to help their communities know, use, and shape the law. 

Read on to learn more about the LEF and to meet a few of the newest grantees.

By the Numbers

Like the first two cohorts, these grantees were selected through an extensive and participatory process that began with an open call for proposals in 2021. The LEF’s grants selection committee reviewed nearly 5,000 proposals from 153 countries to select activists and organizations that are best placed to create meaningful, long-lasting change in their communities. 

For this cohort of grantees, the LEF looked primarily to Asia, Africa, and the Americas. Almost all—94 percent—of the new grantees come from one of those three regions. Though their work touches on a range of critical human rights challenges, nearly half of these new grantees work on issues related to environmental justice, Indigenous peoples’ rights, women’s rights, and minority rights. And—perhaps most excitingly—nearly three-quarters of these groups were formed in the last 20 years. They represent a new generation of activists that will continue to improve and transform our world. 

The common thread that unites all LEF grantees, beyond their deep commitment to justice and human rights, is their use of key legal empowerment strategies to help their communities. These include direct legal aid and representation, public education, and policy advocacy. Around the world, more than 5 billion people lack meaningful access to justice. The LEF was created in 2021 as the first grantmaking initiative solely dedicated to supporting the grassroots legal empowerment movement. Since then, the LEF has distributed over $5 million in grants. 

Colectivo CASA
Bolivia 

In Bolivia, home to the world’s largest lithium reserves, the mining industry has devastated the country’s environment and harmed local communities. Colectivo CASA supports local activists—especially Indigenous- and women-led groups—that confront this destruction through the perspective of political ecology. By building a strong, cohesive social movement of human rights and environmental defenders, they are on the front lines of the fight for climate justice.

colectivocasa.org.bo/

LION
Indonesia

Labor abuses are rife in the garment factories, textile mills, and petroleum plants of Indonesia. LION was formed in 2010 by a group of passionate labor activists with an inspiring vision for better workplace health and safety. They partner with labor unions and workers to improve conditions in industries at high risk for occupational hazards. Through workplace training, advocacy, and public education campaigns, LION strives for a future where all Indonesians can work safely without fear of injury or illness. 

lionindonesia.org/

Streetlawyer Assocation
Hungary 

The lawyers, paralegals, and academics that make up Hungary’s Streetlawyer Association all believe one thing: that the law should not only be available to those who can afford to hire a lawyer. They offer low-threshold legal aid services on a pro bono basis for anyone who needs it. Every Friday, they hold a free legal aid clinic in a public square in Budapest. And during the COVID-19 pandemic, they had four volunteer lawyers working in weekly shifts to offer remote legal aid over email or phone. 

www.utcajogasz.hu/

WAVE
Gambia 

The Women’s Association for Victims’ Empowerment was founded in 2019 by a group of seven women activists—four of whom had been direct victims of human rights violations. After decades under the dictatorial rule of strongman Yahya Jammeh, WAVE focuses on gender equality, women’s empowerment, and justice for victims of violence and abuse. Their network of members documents human rights violations, provides support for victims, and works to realize the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals in Gambia. 

www.wave-gambia.org/ 

List of LEF Grantees

Listed alphabetically by country
Two organizations are not listed due to the sensitive nature of their work.