Deepening Your Impact: Join the Organizers for Health Justice Cohort

By Stephanie Aines 

Are you a health justice organizer leading a real campaign and looking to sharpen your craft and connect with a dedicated community? A new cohort program, led by Organizers for Health Justice, with decades of collective experience, is now accepting applications for its 2025-2026 session. This initiative was born from a recognition that many organizations and teams lack sufficient focus on mentorship and collective learning within the organizing space.

Who is this program for?

This program is designed for health justice organizers who are actively working on a campaign. Crucially, we are looking for individuals or teams who:

• Have a real campaign: This means you have a specific target, a team you’re working with, and are actively engaged in the work. Campaigns can be in early stages, and teams can be small, but it’s essential to be beyond just an idea.
• Possess some experience with Marshall Ganz’s People, Power, Change organizing framework: This program is not for beginners. We are seeking those who have already started their organizing journey and are ready to go deeper. This experience could be valuable for someone in the Leading Change Network (LCN), having taken a class (like those offered by LCN, Harvard, or Marshall’s in-person classes). The program is designed for people who are “hungry” and “ready” to delve into the craft. If you’re new to the framework, other excellent programs at LCN’s are better suited for initial learning.

What sets this program apart? The value and innovation! 

The innovation and core value of this program lie in its commitment to going deep into the five practices of the People, Power, Change framework: narrative, relationships, team, strategy, and action. While these are foundational, this cohort explores them with an advanced lens, pushing participants to innovate and be creative in their application.

This is a space where everyone acts as a teacher and a learner. Participants are encouraged to share their experiences and insights, fostering a rich environment for mutual growth and development. For example, last year, a participant shared their team’s unique charades-based accountability norms, highlighting both the importance and difficulty of establishing such practices. The program focuses on the craft of organizing, offering mentorship and community to those ready to refine their skills.

How the program works: Structure and commitment

The program runs for nine months, from September 2025 to May 2026.

Participants commit to two video calls per month, requiring cameras on, full presence, and readiness to engage. While emergencies are understood, consistent attendance is a key commitment.

The program structure includes:

• All-Join Calls: These are full cohort gatherings focused on a specific skill or practice from the relational organizing framework. Topics might range from narrative building to specific aspects of asking for commitments, including the emotional hurdles involved.
• Coaching Calls: These monthly sessions bring together two teams with one dedicated coach. This is a space for in-depth coaching on the month’s topic, as well as addressing any specific challenges arising in your organizing work.

Participation and cohort size

You can join the cohort as an individual or with up to five members of your leadership team. If you register as an individual and are part of a team, it’s fine if other teammates don’t join the cohort. Individuals who register alone will be paired with “buddies” or other teams during the course to ensure collaborative learning.

The program caps the cohort at 50 people. If interest exceeds this, the organizers will explore building additional capacity. Registration is currently handled through a one-to-one conversation with one of the program organizers.

The kickoff event for the next cohort is scheduled for September 20th, with registration closing on September 19th.

Join this unique opportunity to deepen your organizing skills, tackle complex health justice issues, and become part of a supportive community of practice!

If you’re interested in learning more and joining, reach out to Steph at seaines@gmail.com