JRI, a provider of trauma-informed care to children and families in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut, has partnered with the Global Trauma Project (GTP), a Kenya-based NGO dedicated to reducing the impacts of trauma and stress in low-resource communities.

GTP’s reach currently extends to support communities throughout Eastern Africa by training local government, community, and religious leaders to serve as supports for those impacted by violence and abuse, war and conflict, and natural disasters.  Using a trauma-informed framework known as Trauma Informed Community Empowerment (TICE), GTP works to energize individuals and strengthen communities.

“As partnering organizations, we are really stronger than the sum of our parts,” said Kari Beserra, executive vice president of JRI.  “JRI and GTP both serve individuals who have experienced trauma, even though the root of that trauma may be different.  We strive to make a greater impact on communities and ultimately on pushing social justice forward in Eastern Africa and the U.S.”

As social justice organizations, JRI and GTP share a mutual vision in supporting marginalized communities.  Their mission-driven partnership seeks to promote bi-directional learning among the organizations and bring new opportunities into unreached, low-resource communities both in Africa, the U.S., and around the globe.

“We hope and expect that each agency will acquire new skills and perspective from the other,” said Ilya Yacevich, the founder and executive director of GTP, who was previously on staff at the Trauma Center at JRI.  “We believe that with our partnership, there will be just as much that JRI can learn from the deep, evidence-based work happening in Africa, as we can learn from work happening in the U.S.  This partnership is about creating impacts that make us all stronger and healthier and sharing of best practice for trauma, abuse, and violence across the globe. ”

The partnership will enable the two organizations to share resources and exchange staff, as well as pursue grant opportunities together.

About JRI

JRI works in partnership with individuals, families, communities, and government to pursue the social justice inherent in opening doors to opportunity and independence.

About GTP

GTP works to reduce the detrimental impacts of trauma and stress so that individuals, families and communities can reach their full potential.  GTP provides capacity-building support to both organizations and community-based workers, ensuring change happens on both systemic and local levels.