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Womens Justice Initiative Inc
New York, NY · EIN 300681223 · Form 990 · FY2024 · NTEE B90 · Education · Medium ($1M-$10M) · womens-justice.org
revenue
$1.5M
expenses
$1.2M
net assets
$2.3M
employees
3
program ratio
79%
mission · from form 990

The Womens Justice Initiative improves the lives of indigenous Guatemalan women and girls through education, access to legal services, and gender-based violence prevention.

profile · synthesized from sources

The Womens Justice Initiative improves the lives of indigenous Guatemalan women and girls through education, legal services, and gender-based violence prevention. The organization trains local women as community advocates and provides legal representation and rights education. It operates primarily in rural Guatemala, focusing on empowering marginalized populations through grassroots leadership and legal empowerment.

irs program accomplishments · form 990 part iii · fy2024

What they reported doing

  1. #1 primary $235K
    Community Advocates Program - trains women to be leaders, womens rights educators, and peer mentors. Advocates assist WJI with workshop facilitation, participant recruitment, and home visits to women in need of legal aid. In 2024, WJI has trained 82 Community Advocates.
  2. #2 $235K
    Womens Rights Education Program - provides indigenous Guatemalan women with educational workshops on womens rights and legal literacy. During the past fiscal year, over 907 women graduated from the rights education course and 166 community leaders were trained.
named programs · 3 · from sources

What they call their work

Adolescent Girls Program
Equips adolescent girls with skills and knowledge to delay marriage and achieve life goals, including leadership and gender-based violence prevention education.
Community Advocates Program
Trains indigenous women to be leaders, rights educators, and peer mentors who assist with workshop facilitation, participant recruitment, and home visits for women needing legal aid.
Women's Rights Education Program
Provides educational workshops on women's rights and legal literacy for indigenous Guatemalan women, promoting legal awareness and empowerment.
activities · 9 groups

What they do

  • Women's Empowerment and Leadership Development 2 activities
    • Community Advocates Program
      Trains indigenous women as Community Advocates through a two-year leadership program focused on human rights, violence prevention, and peer mentorship. Since inception, over 250 women have been trained, with 292 currently in training or active roles, providing long-term support in their communities.
    • Women's Rights Education Program
      Delivers a three-month legal literacy and empowerment course to indigenous women covering domestic violence, sexual and reproductive rights, and property rights. Since inception, over 7,150 women have graduated, with 100% reporting increased personal agency and 98% rejecting spousal abuse as justified.
  • Food Distribution and Hunger Relief 1 activity
    • Emergency and pandemic response services
      Provided emergency food supplies to over 12,825 individuals and distributed over 5,200 masks during the pandemic; launched a domestic violence hotline delivering remote legal and psychological services to 375 women.
  • Girls' Mentorship and Leadership Development 1 activity
    • Girls Empowerment, Rights, and Leadership Program
      Implements a holistic program for adolescent girls focused on delaying marriage, achieving life goals, and leadership development. Since 2016, over 2,041 girls have participated, with 85% of graduates remaining unmarried post-program.
  • Pro Bono Legal Representation and Support 1 activity
    • Legal representation and legal services for indigenous women and girls
      Provides free legal services to indigenous women in rural Guatemala, including court representation, assistance securing child support and protection orders, and legal aid in cases of gender-based violence. Since 2011, supported over 9,300 legal cases and provided services to over 4,600 women, including 1,771 legal services in a single year to survivors of gender-based violence.
  • Integrated Community-Led Development Programs 1 activity
    • Program expansion and community outreach
      Expanded operations into new communities in the Maya Kaqchikel region and other areas of Guatemala, reaching over 50,000 individuals directly through programs between 2012 and 2022, with ongoing expansion into 24 new communities.
  • Domestic Violence Survivor Support Services 1 activity
    • Psychological counseling and trauma-informed support
      Provides integrated psychological services to survivors of gender-based violence through trauma-informed care, including remote counseling via hotline. Served over 3,600 survivors and launched a 24/7 hotline during the pandemic to deliver remote legal and psychological services.
  • Nonprofit Capacity Building Services 1 activity
    • Staff leadership and professional development
      Provides professional development and leadership training to staff, including a two-year leadership course and yearlong coaching program, resulting in staff promotions and organizational capacity growth.
  • Volunteer and Professional Training Programs 1 activity
    • Training for public and community service providers
      Trains police, government actors, community leaders, and public institution staff to improve institutional responses to gender-based violence and child marriage. Trained over 3,000 individuals across Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico, with 202 trained in one year alone.
  • Uncategorized 2 activities
    • Advocacy and legal precedent litigation
      Engages in strategic legal advocacy, including representation in precedent-setting cases such as securing an 11-year prison sentence and reparations for a child sexual assault survivor in 2022.
    • Curriculum adaptation and program development
      Adapts educational curricula based on participant feedback, including integrating comprehensive sexual and reproductive health education into the Adolescent Girls Program and providing technical assistance to other organizations to replicate the model.
financials · form 990 · fy2024
revenue
Total revenue$1.54M
Contributions & grants$1.45M94%
Program service revenue$00%
Investment income$94K6%
Other revenue$0
expenses
Total expenses$1.18M
Program expenses79%
Admin / overhead11%
Fundraising10%
Salaries & benefits$730K
Grants paid out$0
Largest expense lineCompensation
balance sheet
Total assets$2.44M
Cash$1.68M
Investments$676K
Liabilities$149K
Net assets$2.29M
Liquid reserves24.0 mo
5 years on record · 2020–2024 · YoY revenue +15.1%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2024

Who runs it

board members · 9
  • Abigail Winkel — Director
  • Eric Knight — Director
  • Gabriela Roca — Director
  • Katie Newman — Director
  • Lidia Oxi — Director
  • Sergio Melgar — Director
  • Sonia Dominguez — Director
  • Tess Hellgren — Director
  • Will Durbin — Director
relationships · 30

Who they work with

  • Avon Funder — Awarded a grant to WJI through its Promise to End Violence Against Women and Girls Campaign.
  • Community Advocates Network Network — Network of graduated Community Advocates who continue promoting violence prevention and leadership in their communities.
  • Creamos Partner — Collaborated with WJI to integrate legal empowerment and gender-based violence response into its programming through co-developed training and referral protocols.
  • Dining for Women Funder — Provided a grant supporting work with elected leaders on Community Action Plans to prevent violence against women and girls.
  • District Attorney David Rosales López Government — Collaborates with WJI in San Juan Comalapa to strengthen referral pathways and institutional responses for survivors of violence.
  • Florinda Partner — WJI Community Advocate sharing personal impact story
  • Girls Not Brides Partner — Partnered with WJI to strengthen the Adolescent Girls Program.
  • Girls Not Brides Partner — WJI team engaged with Girls Not Brides at a conference in Cartagena, Colombia.
  • Global Fund for Children Partner — Partnered with WJI to strengthen the Adolescent Girls Program.
  • Hivos International Funder — Provided a grant supporting work with elected leaders on Community Action Plans to prevent violence against women and girls.
  • Luis von Ahn Foundation Funder — Awarded a grant to WJI.
  • Namati Legal Empowerment Network Network — WJI is featured in a publication by the Namati Legal Empowerment Network, highlighting its community legal advocacy work.
  • Namati’s Grassroots Justice Network Partner — WJI team members collaborated with and participated in forums with Namati’s Grassroots Justice Network.
  • Rainforest Alliance Partner — Partnering with WJI and USAID on a regional initiative.
  • Tinker Foundation Funder — Provided a grant enabling expansion to 12 new communities in San Juan Comalapa.
  • Together Women Rise Funder — Awarded a grant to WJI to empower girls in rural Guatemala.
  • UN Trust Fund to End Violence Against Women Partner — WJI team members participated in events alongside the UN Trust Fund to End Violence Against Women.
  • USAID Funder — Funds the Women’s Economic Empowerment in Mesoamerica Initiative, which supports WJI’s regional expansion.
  • USAID Government — Funded the Women’s Economic Empowerment Initiative, under which WJI provides technical assistance in Central America.
  • USAID Partner — Collaborates with WJI on the Women’s Economic Empowerment Initiative in Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico.
  • USAID Partner — Partnering with WJI and Rainforest Alliance on a regional initiative.
  • United Nations Democracy Fund Funder — Awarded a two-year grant to support replication of WJI’s programming in a second municipality.
  • United Nations Trust Fund to End Violence Against Women Partner — Partnered to expand WJI's programs into 24 new communities in Guatemala.
  • United Nations Trust Fund to End Violence against Women Funder — Awarded WJI a three-year grant enabling expansion to 18 new communities and institutional training initiatives.
  • United States Agency for International Development Government — Funds the Women’s Economic Empowerment Initiative, through which WJI provides technical assistance in Central America.
  • WJI Partners Partner — Collaborates with partners to support its programs, though specific partner organizations are not named.
  • WomenStrong International Funder — Supported the pilot of the Adolescent Boys Program and expanded awareness workshops and legal services.
  • WomenStrong International Partner — WJI team participated in WomenStrong International events.
  • Womens Justice Initiative Inc Partner — Organization seeking partners to collaborate on increasing impact.
  • local organizations Partner — Partnered with local organizations to develop and broadcast radio programs on COVID-19 and violence prevention.
strategies · 4

How they approach the work

Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.

  • Community Advocate Leadership Pipeline
    methodology: peer-advocacy-leadership-pipeline
    By training local women as Community Advocates through multi-year leadership development, the organization creates sustainable, community-led change because peer mentorship and local leadership increase trust, cultural relevance, and long-term engagement in preventing gender-based violence and child marriage.
  • Culturally Grounded and Locally Led Programming
    methodology: culturally_relevant_programming
    By delivering programs in indigenous languages and incorporating local knowledge and practices, the organization increases effectiveness and sustainability because culturally relevant, community-based approaches reduce barriers and increase ownership and trust in interventions.
  • Holistic, Community-Based Norm Change
    methodology: multi-level_community_intervention
    By engaging adolescent girls, families, and community leaders in coordinated action planning and education, the organization prevents child marriage and shifts gender norms because multi-level interventions address social drivers of violence and build collective accountability for change.
  • Legal Empowerment with Rights Education and Services
    methodology: legal_empowerment
    By combining rights-based education with free legal services and mobile outreach in local languages, the organization increases access to justice for indigenous women and girls because integrated legal and educational support enables women to understand, claim, and defend their rights effectively within their communities.