Guardian Project

Guardian Project Guardian is a 501(c)3 non-profit offering FREE youth Jiu Jitsu scholarships around the world.

Guardian Project is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization providing free youth Jiu Jitsu scholarships for underprivileged youth across the globe. Through our partnership model with existing reputable academies, we are able to streamline donations past overhead costs of running an academy and directly support our youth. It’s crucial for low-income kids & teens to have equal access to after-school pro

grams, and martial arts is our vehicle for driving the next generation upwards. Students who receive a guardian BJJ scholarship are indistinguishable from their paying friends and receive the same youth membership as everyone else. In addition to learning self-defense, guardian students are instantly connected with positive adult role models & a supportive peer group.

06/18/2026

Potential is everywhere. Opportunity isn’t.

In 2015, we started with a simple belief: every child deserves a mentor, a community, and the chance to discover what they’re capable of.

Today, 36 academies across the world are helping more than 1,000 youth train at no cost. But we’re just getting started.

Our goal is to support 10,000 youth over the next five years.

Every kid deserves this opportunity.

To every coach, donor, partner, and supporter who helped make this possible, thank you.

Jon, leader of , shares how jiu jitsu can be a powerful tool to help shed limiting beliefs and show kids that with effo...
06/17/2026

Jon, leader of , shares how jiu jitsu can be a powerful tool to help shed limiting beliefs and show kids that with effort, they too can build the life they want.

We have a special story coming soon about Quan, one of the youth training out of Ho Chi Minh City, who has overcome incredible obstacles.

06/13/2026

Guardian Ethiopia leader Leyk Birhanu shares how the program began, and the vision he had for what it could become.

This video was filmed more than a year and a half ago. Since then, that vision has become real.

Guardian Ethiopia has a class specifically for over 30 younger kids facing homelessness, giving them a safe place to train, learn, and get away from the streets for a few hours.

06/13/2026

Salvatore Sanguinetti, leader of Guardian Peru HQ, shares one of the most important lessons he teaches the kids.

In one moment, one bad decision, one fight, one reaction, you can lose everything you’ve worked for.

Jiu jitsu gives these kids the confidence to defend themselves, but also the discipline to walk away when trouble is not worth the cost.

Extra ab training session with the youth before dinner is served at We’re midway through building out the new academy, ...
06/12/2026

Extra ab training session with the youth before dinner is served at

We’re midway through building out the new academy, our Uganda HQ. Since starting, we have rebuilt the entire academy from the ground up and added a kitchen, showers, toilets, sinks with running water, sleeping quarters for coaches, and soon, a learning center.

It’s exciting to see this community continue to grow and blossom and what may come as more and more kids step on the mats for their first time.

We’ll also be sharing a major update this week: the next Guardian academy we’ll be building from the ground up in Africa.

06/11/2026

Want to help more youth around the world access jiu jitsu?

Whether you want to support in a small but meaningful way, host a fundraiser, visit one of our academies, or help build the next Guardian school with us, there are many ways to get involved.

Send us a message at [email protected]

06/08/2026

The gift of training, mentorship, and burritos is what is offering youth across the city at

visits student Irwin at his home and shares advice about second place. Since his visit with Craig has built a new sta...
06/05/2026

visits student Irwin at his home and shares advice about second place.

Since his visit with Craig has built a new state of the art academy for Guardian Peru supporting kids across Mancora to train free and be part of a team.

06/04/2026

shares how being offered a training scholarship as a teen changed the course of his life.

Today, we have kids around the world being given that same opportunity. Most will never become professional fighters, but many will go on to become coaches, mentors, leaders, and successful adults in their own journeys.

06/04/2026

When you understand story, you begin to understand why he built from the ground up to serve his community and provide free jiu-jitsu and meals to kids across the city.

Follow their page, stop by if you’re ever in Baltimore, and support the work they’re doing. Every child deserves access to mentors, community, and a place where they can believe in themselves.

Address

3007 Sacramento Street
Oakland, CA
94702

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