Arab Refugee Emergency Fund, 2 Plaza St, San Francisco, CA 94116, US

HistoryWe began in 2002 as Girls Justice Initiative (GJI), a United Way of the Bay Area (UWBA) project created to address the issue of young women's representation in the juvenile justice system. GJI quickly detected gaps in services in San Francisco. These gaps contributed to young women's cycles of incarceration and made it difficult for them to make meaningful change in their lives. GJI worked to connect girls with the appropriate services, strengthen the capacity of those services, and document each youth's progress. GJI's success in providing gender-responsive intervention services for young women led to an understanding that boys also have gender-specific issues that need addressing. In 2007, the organization was renamed the Youth Justice Institute (YJI) to reflect the broader scope of our work. We wanted to build on the success of analyzing the individual challenges and strengths of each youth and make the juvenile justice system more responsive to their needs.SpecialtiesMentoring, mental health, and advocacy services for youth in the juvenile justice and foster care systems; consulting services for systems and service providers, including trainings, speaking engagements, and technical assistance services.

The Annual Arab Cultural Festival

Bay Planning Coalition

Arab Film and Media Institute

Laguna Honda Community Trails