Democratic Republic of Congo
In the Democratic Republic of Congo, AJWS helps the country’s most vulnerable people recover from decades of violence, insecurity and genocide, and protect the land that so many depend on for survival. Our grantees are…
Kenya
In Kenya, AJWS defends communities' access to land, water and other natural resources that are being exploited by irresponsible development projects. AJWS grantees also work to end violence and discrimination against — and create opportunities…
Liberia
In Liberia, AJWS focuses on securing communities' access to land and other natural resources that they depend on for survival, and ending discrimination and violence against women and LGBTQI+ people. AJWS grantees also continue to…
Senegal
In Senegal, AJWS plays a key role in supporting grassroots organizations working to achieve a just and equitable peace in the Casamance region of Senegal, where over 35 years of violent conflict has brought terror…
South Sudan
In South Sudan, AJWS supports communities affected by drought, malnutrition and violent conflict. We also work with local grassroots organizations to provide psychosocial support for refugees and encourage peacebuilding across the region.
Uganda
In Uganda, AJWS focuses on ending discrimination and violence against women, girls and LGBTQI+ people, and defending communities' access to land, water and natural resources that are being exploited by oil drilling projects.
Bangladesh
In 2017, the Burmese military began a genocidal campaign against the Rohingya people, an ethnic minority from Western Burma. Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya people fled across the border to refugee camps in Bangladesh. AJWS…
Burma
In Burma, AJWS supports grassroots organizations fighting for democracy, free speech and civil rights and against the ongoing violent assault on multiple ethnic minorities, including the Burmese military’s genocidal campaign against the Rohingya people. We…
Cambodia
In Cambodia, AJWS focuses on two critical human rights issues: protecting peoples’ civil and political rights, and defending rural communities’ rights to land, water and other natural resources that they depend on for survival.
India
In India, AJWS focuses on three critical issues: ending the practice of child marriage, advancing the rights of women, girls and LGBTQI+ people, and increasing access to food, land, water and other natural resources that…
Indonesia
In Indonesia, AJWS supports grassroots organizations fighting for the rights of communities displaced by the dual tsunamis and resulting earthquake of 2018 — communities that, in the wake of these disasters, have been ignored by…
Nepal
On April 25, 2015, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck Nepal—followed by innumerable aftershocks and a second powerful 7.3 magnitude quake two weeks later. The disaster killed more than 8,500 people; injured and displaced tens of…
Sri Lanka
In Sri Lanka, AJWS focuses on advancing civil and political rights, and increasing access to land, water and other natural resources that vulnerable communities depend on for survival.
Thailand
In Thailand, AJWS focuses on ending human rights violations against LGBTQI+ people, and defending the land, water and natural resources critical for the survival of Thailand’s rural and Indigenous people.
Dominican Republic
In the Dominican Republic, AJWS focuses on advancing the civil and political rights of those most affected by racism, including Haitian migrants and Dominicans of Haitian descent, who are discriminated against because of their skin…
El Salvador
In El Salvador, AJWS focuses on ending human rights violations against women and LGBTQI+ people, and protecting the land and water that is critical for the survival of farmers, Indigenous people, youth, women and communities…
Guatemala
In Guatemala, AJWS focuses on ending violence and discrimination against women, youth and Indigenous people, and protecting the land and natural resources that farmers need to survive. AJWS grantees also protect human rights defenders seen…
Haiti
In Haiti, AJWS focuses on promoting human rights and protecting Haitian land from damaging development projects as the country recovers from the devastating earthquake in 2010 and decades of coups, dictatorships, occupations and invasions. Despite…
Mexico
In Mexico, AJWS grantee organizations support the fight for justice and truth waged by groups of families of people “disappeared” during the country’s ongoing armed conflict. They also defend vulnerable Mexican communities from damaging development…
Nicaragua
In Nicaragua, AJWS is committed to supporting the rights of oppressed people, including women, LGBTQI+ people and Indigenous communities. AJWS grantees advocate for their human rights and organize social movements in order to create a…
United States
In the United States, AJWS advocates for U.S. policies that provide international aid to and support the human rights of communities we serve around the world — from pushing to strike down the discriminatory ‘Global…
AJWS Responds to the COVID-19 Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic is causing loss of life and livelihood in every country AJWS serves, exacerbating inequalities that long pre-dated the crisis, including government-sanctioned hate against ethnic, religious and sexual minorities. Battling the pandemic and associated human rights abuses is the greatest challenge AJWS has faced in our 35-year history. Our grantees are courageously working to defend their communities around the world, ensuring that vulnerable people have access to the information and resources they need to protect themselves and survive the pandemic — all while defending their human rights, which are being trampled all too often.
With Your Help, AJWS’s Grantees Change the World
Together, We Save Lives
Organizations supported by AJWS act quickly and decisively during natural disasters and humanitarian crises, saving countless lives. From the Darfur and Rohingya genocides, to the AIDS and Ebola crises, to tsunamis in Indonesia and earthquakes in Haiti, AJWS grantees have aided remote, vulnerable and marginalized communities often abandoned by other aid efforts, helping people survive, rebuild and live with dignity.
Together, We Change Laws
AJWS grantee organizations go to court, persuading justices to strike down unjust and discriminatory laws and policies. They also press legislators to enact hundreds of new laws, and often help draft them. Our grantees have played critical roles in overturning anti-homosexuality laws in Uganda and India, passing legislation banning toxic metal mining in El Salvador, and much more. These legal decisions and new laws protect the human rights, health and livelihoods of millions of people.
Together, We Fight for Vulnerable Communities
Organizations that AJWS supports ensure that some of the most vulnerable and oppressed people on earth have a say in shaping their own futures. AJWS grantees draw their strength from the guidance of local leaders, who fight so that their own communities can claim their human rights and control their own lives. Whether securing land for rural Guatemalan families forced out of their homes, or shifting social norms so Indian girls can choose education instead of early marriage, our grantees listen to their communities and fight for what they need to thrive.
Together, We Strengthen Social Movements
AJWS grantees understand that lasting social change comes when their voices rise together so they can no longer be ignored. With AJWS’s support, our grantees work together and within their communities to build and strengthen powerful social movements demanding human rights for the most vulnerable people. They have been at the center of grassroots movements for women’s rights in India and LGBTQI+ rights in Thailand, protecting the environment from irresponsible development in Kenya and many more.
We measure progress to improve future outcomes
AJWS vigorously monitors and evaluates our grantees’ progress, based on short- and long-term goals, so that both we and they can learn what improves the lives of the vulnerable people and communities they serve.
We collectivize our grantees’ learnings to strengthen global impact
AJWS vigorously monitors and evaluates our grantees’ progress, based on short- and long-term goals, so that both we and they can learn what improves the lives of the vulnerable people and communities they serve.