GreenLight Fund Invests $1M to launch a Peace Academy in Oakland

Nationally recognized organization Urban Peace Institute to launch Peace Academy in partnership with the City’s Department of Violence Prevention

OAKLAND, CA – October 15, 2025 – Nonprofit funder GreenLight Fund San Francisco Bay Area today announced a $1M multi-year investment to bring Urban Peace Institute (UPI) to Oakland, where the organization will establish a Peace Academy to train and support the city’s frontline community violence intervention workforce. To accelerate recent progress in public safety and deepen local capacity, UPI will partner with local community-based organizations and the Department of Violence Prevention (DVP) to equip violence interrupters with the tools and knowledge needed to cultivate lasting community safety. Program development begins immediately, and the first training cohorts will launch in 2027.

Violent crime in Oakland fell 29% in the first half of 2025 compared to 2024, following a 34% decrease the previous year. City leaders credit this progress to coordinated, community-based strategies, stricter enforcement, and the reimplementation of the Ceasefire program. The new Peace Academy will build upon this momentum by providing Oakland’s frontline violence interruption workforce with standardized, trauma-informed training and cross-organizational strategies, strengthening their ability to de-escalate conflicts, prevent retaliatory violence, and continue the downward trend in violent crime.

GreenLight Fund’s community-driven model brings residents, nonprofits, philanthropy, and government together to identify local social service gaps and opportunities. Violence prevention emerged as a top priority in Oakland, and after fully vetting evidence-based solutions from across the country, UPI was selected as the proven, scalable model best positioned to complement and strengthen local efforts.

“When we listened to Oakland residents and community leaders, we heard two truths loud and clear: this city has made real progress in reducing violence, and sustaining that progress will require continued investment in the people doing the hard work on the ground,” said Kate Schwass, executive director of GreenLight Fund Bay Area. “That’s why we’re so proud to bring Urban Peace Institute’s Peace Academy here to support the frontline workforce keeping our communities safe. Our hope is that this investment will build on Oakland’s momentum today and also ensure that safety and opportunity grow together for years to come.”

Since its founding in Los Angeles in 2006, UPI has helped cities across the country design and strengthen community-led safety strategies. They deliver 140 hours of structured, trauma-informed instruction for frontline violence intervention workers, including outreach specialists, mediators, and street-based crisis responders. Participants meet twice a week for full-day sessions over 14 weeks, complete homework and tests, and are evaluated through a rigorous screening process before admission and graduation. The result is a professionalized, highly skilled workforce equipped to de-escalate conflict, disrupt cycles of retaliation, and build trust with community members.

In Los Angeles, UPI has trained more than 5,700 violence intervention workers and driven significant reductions in violence. In 2024, the city saw a 45% decrease in gang-related homicides compared to the previous year and a 56% decrease since 2022. In neighborhoods with active interventionists, the number of victims shot in gang-related conflicts dropped by 48% compared to 2023. Their efforts have saved the city an estimated $51 million annually in avoided violence-related costs.

Fernando Rejón, executive director of UPI, said, “Urban Peace Institute is honored to partner with Oakland’s Office of Violence Prevention, local community intervention leaders, and GreenLight Fund to launch the new Peace Academy. For nearly two decades, UPI has worked to strengthen the expertise of intervention workers who prevent violence before it starts—drawing on their lived experience and deep understanding of the neighborhoods they serve to create public safety. We’re proud to bring our national training and systems-building experience to advance Oakland’s vision for safety. GreenLight Fund’s generous support and shared commitment to community-led safety make this partnership possible. Together, we’re redefining what safety means—grounded in care, built through collaboration, and led by community.”

“Oakland has seen real progress on reducing homicides and shootings, and there’s still more work to be done. Our approach combines enforcement and accountability with prevention and intervention,” said Mayor Barbara Lee. “The Department of Violence Prevention identifies individuals at highest risk of gun violence and connects them with alternatives and support services. GreenLight Fund’s investment in our violence intervention workforce strengthens this approach and reinforces our commitment to a safe, thriving Oakland.”

“The field of community violence intervention is emerging and evolving, and the Department of Violence Prevention is committed to supporting and strengthening the organizations saving lives and building peace,” said Dr. Holly Joshi, chief of the DVP. “Direct practice staff with lived experience are the center of community violence intervention work and deserve access to training opportunities that contribute to their health and professional development, highlight best and promising practices, and keep Oakland on the cutting edge of violence prevention and intervention.”

“With the support of GreenLight Fund Bay Area, we will work in partnership with Urban Peace Institute to create Oakland’s first certification fellowship for community violence intervention workers. The Oakland Peace Academy will ensure a sustainable, well-trained ecosystem of community violence intervention staff capable of preventing and intervening in violence and serving Oakland’s most vulnerable populations. We are grateful to GreenLight for supporting this incredible opportunity to work with Urban Peace Institute, an organization known widely in the field as experts, and look forward to building together.”

Drawing on lessons from Los Angeles and other cities like Chicago and Baltimore, UPI’s Peace Academy will launch their first training cohort in 2027. Running biannually, they expect to train approximately 100 frontline practitioners in Oakland through four cohorts between 2027 and 2029, creating an ongoing pipeline of highly trained violence interruption practitioners.

GreenLight’s investment provides critical startup capital and on-the-ground strategic support. Additional funding will come from Measure NN resources managed by the DVP.

Other organizations GreenLight Fund Bay Area has invested in bringing to the Bay include Food Connect, Everyone On, ParentChild+, uAspire, Blueprint Math Fellows, Springboard Collaborative, and Genesys Works.