Partnerships and Project Criteria

The Justice Initiative plans and undertakes projects in consultation with Soros foundations and related entities. As an operational program, the Justice Initiative partners with other institutions in all aspects of project development, including conceptualization, design, execution, and evaluation. Responding to needs and opportunities where it is engaged, the Justice Initiative draws on its comparative experience to assist local, national, and regional advocates in promoting reform.

Projects are selected on the basis of the following criteria:

Does the project offer an opportunity to introduce international norms into the practice of particular countries or regions? Is there a good prospect of generating tangible results within a reasonable time period? Is the proposed activity something that other donors/implementers are not doing so that the Justice Initiative’s intervention will have a distinct “add-on” value?

Is the Justice Initiative empowering an existing group or creating a local capacity that will carry on after assistance ends? Will the project have ripple effects in other countries and does it build in efforts to learn from and disseminate its results?

Is there local enthusiasm from project partners—national governments, NGOs, intergovernmental bodies, and/or Soros foundations—to insure the success and continuation of the project? Compared to other feasible projects, is this of priority level concern? Is it being conducted in the most useful place?

Is the strategy outlined for obtaining results—through litigation, public education, training, monitoring, or advocacy—the most effective one to accomplish the desired results?