A Common Pot: Stories for Grassroots Justice

Grassroots Justice Network
  • 5.0 (4)
  • DOCUMENTARY

“A Common Pot,” is a podcast where we explore lessons and recipes for grassroots justice and systems change from around the world. When we look at the grassroots justice movement, we see innovative recipes for systems change; we see organizations around the world that are pushing boundaries and finding ways to build community power despite growing authoritarianism. The work of grassroots justice advocates is driven by one core idea– that people should have a say in shaping the decisions that affect their lives. Community participation is a key ingredient for social justice. In this podcast series, we hear real stories of how grassroots justice advocates strengthen participation of communities in decision-making. We learn their step-by-step strategies, and follow them on a journey to understand what works and what doesn’t.

Episodes

  1. Vagabonds in Power feat. CHREAA and SALC

    06/08/2025

    Vagabonds in Power feat. CHREAA and SALC

    On March 27, 2018, in an area of Malawi called Kasungo District, three men were arrested in a police sweep. The men demanded to know why they were being arrested, but got no response. The next morning, they were brought to court, where they were charged and convicted with the offense of being a rogue and vagabond. In this episode, our final episode of the season, we’re going to the streets of Malawi, where some communities face police brutality on a daily basis. We follow two grassroots justice organizations- Center for Human Rights Education, Advice and Assistance (CHREAA), and Southern Africa Litigation Centre (SALC). These organizations are building community power among the most marginalized to not only put an end to police abuse, but to transform the relationship between the police and citizens into one that’s grounded in dignity and respect.

    37 min
  2. What Lies Beneath feat. FIMA

    03/31/2025

    What Lies Beneath feat. FIMA

    In 2020, a community activist by the name of Leticia Caro approached FIMA, a grassroots justice organization in Chile. Leticia, a member of the indigenous Kawesqar community in the Magallanes region, was worried about the environmental impact of companies that were moving into the fjords of the Kawésqar National Reserve. In this episode, we’re going to take a dive into what lies beneath these fjords and their icy waters: Chile’s salmon farming industry. We’ll follow the story of FIMA and the community-led resistance that is defending the sea from this destructive industry. And we’ll find out what can happen when an indigenous community, grounded in deep traditions of communing with the natural world, combines the power of law and the power of organizing, to protect their sacred waters. Special thanks to Macarena Martinic, Gabriela Simonetti Grez and FIMA. This episode was produced by Jackie Sofia and Poorvi Chitalkar. A Common Pot: Stories and Recipes for Grassroots Justice is a production of Namati and the Grassroots Justice Network. Support for “A Common Pot” is provided by IDRC Canada. Follow the Grassroots Justice Network on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @grassrootsjn, and share your thoughts with us by emailing community@namati.org.

    35 min
  3. From Regime to Rendang feat. YLBHI

    01/06/2025

    From Regime to Rendang feat. YLBHI

    In 2000, a group of farmers from an Indonesian mountain village were in the middle of protesting to regain rights to their ancestral land, when they were taken into custody. They were charged as criminals of the state, not knowing if or when they would be released to continue their struggle… In this episode, we follow the story of the farmers of Bandungan and the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI). We learn how a small rural farming community whose land had been seized by a military dictatorship in the 1960s organized themselves, and built unshakable community power to help fuel Indonesia's pro-democracy movement. And we begin to wonder if community power can rise up and take hold after years of suffocation by authoritarian rule. Special thanks to Pratiwi Febry, Rakhma Mary Herwati and YLBHI- the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation. This episode was produced by Jackie Sofia and Poorvi Chitalkar. A Common Pot: Stories and Recipes for Grassroots Justice is a production of Namati and the Grassroots Justice Network. Support for “A Common Pot” is provided by IDRC Canada. Follow the Grassroots Justice Network on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @grassrootsjn, and share your thoughts with us by emailing community@namati.org.

    40 min
  4. Leave No One Behind feat. AMT

    12/09/2024

    Leave No One Behind feat. AMT

    Change is inevitable. However, who gets to experience change when poverty is the accepted status quo? How can the tides of change move in favor of the poor? And what keeps everything from going back to the way things were before?  In Nairobi’s informal settlement of Mukuru, Jane Weru and Patrick Njoroge of Akiba Mashinani Trust must find answers to these questions while working alongside a community of 300,000 people living in poverty, without access to basic services and teetering on the brink of eviction.  Special thanks to Jane Weru, Patrick Njoroge and AMT- Akiba Mashinani Trust in Nairobi, Kenya.  Support for “A Common Pot” is provided by IDRC Canada.  Follow the Grassroots Justice Network on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @grassrootsjn, and share your thoughts with us by emailing community@namati.org.

    41 min
  5. The Dance feat. ACIJ

    12/04/2024

    The Dance feat. ACIJ

    How does a community preserve its right to determine its own destiny? Especially when decisions are being made without their input? In our first episode, we begin a journey to answer this question. We start in Argentina, where informal settlement communities are claiming a seat at the table to shape decisions that will protect their homes and neighborhoods from environmental pollution. Along the way, we discover the delicate dance that a grassroots justice organization gets involved in, and what it takes to keep going in spite of the odds. Special thanks to Catalina Marino and ACIJ - the Civil Association for Equality and Justice in Argentina. This episode was produced by Jackie Sofia and Poorvi Chitalkar. A Common Pot: Stories and Recipes for Grassroots Justice is a production of Namati and the Grassroots Justice Network. Support for “A Common Pot” is provided by IDRC Canada. Follow the Grassroots Justice Network on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @grassrootsjn, and share your thoughts with us by emailing community@namati.org.

    34 min
  6. Trailer: A Common Pot

    TRAILER

    Trailer: A Common Pot

    “A Common Pot,” is a podcast where we explore stories and recipes for grassroots justice and systems change from around the world. When we look at the grassroots justice movement, we see innovative recipes for systems change; we see organizations around the world that are pushing boundaries and finding ways to build community power despite growing authoritarianism.  The work of grassroots justice advocates is driven by one core idea– that people should have a say in shaping the decisions that affect their lives. Community participation is a key ingredient for social justice. In this podcast series, we hear real stories of how grassroots justice advocates strengthen participation of communities in decision-making. We learn their step-by-step strategies, and follow them on a journey to understand what works and what doesn’t. Host: Poorvi Chitalkar Managing Producer: Jackie Sofia

    4 min

Trailer

5
out of 5
4 Ratings

About

“A Common Pot,” is a podcast where we explore lessons and recipes for grassroots justice and systems change from around the world. When we look at the grassroots justice movement, we see innovative recipes for systems change; we see organizations around the world that are pushing boundaries and finding ways to build community power despite growing authoritarianism. The work of grassroots justice advocates is driven by one core idea– that people should have a say in shaping the decisions that affect their lives. Community participation is a key ingredient for social justice. In this podcast series, we hear real stories of how grassroots justice advocates strengthen participation of communities in decision-making. We learn their step-by-step strategies, and follow them on a journey to understand what works and what doesn’t.

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