Trespass

As 2025 comes to a close, our team at The Trespass Project finds itself grounded in gratitude and optimism for what we know is next.

This past year, The Trespass Project continued doing what we always have: take the voices of children seriously — especially as our systems do not. We deepened our work by documenting the legal conditions children face, expanded our reach across classrooms and courtrooms, and continued to build tools that translate legal concepts into something young people can actually reach out and touch.

None of this happened by accident. It happened because of sustained care, trust, and community. It happened because of you.

We are entering the new year with an even clearer sense of who we are and what this moment requires of us. Children across the country — across the globe — continue to encounter systems that exercise power without accountability or pause. We’ve learned, again and again, that the biggest gaps in youth justice stem not only from the lack of awareness, but also from the lack of access and follow-through. They live in the distance between what the law promises and what young people actually experience when they meet power up close — in their schools, in a courtroom, in a detention facility, or inside a family system where the rules change depending on who is watching. Our role has become increasingly precise: to serve as recordkeepers of this age, to place legal protection and artillery directly into the hands of young people, and to intervene with integrity.

As part of closing this year and preparing to release our newest, incredible initiatives into the world in 2026, The Trespass Project is opening a focused period of year-end giving. While our respective communities have entered the season of generosity, The Trespass Project has been thinking about what it truly means to give, and we are reminded now that the most meaningful offerings are those extended to the people the world too easily forgets. Our focus turns to system-impacted children.

From now through December 31, 2025, The Trespass Project will direct a portion of all donations made during this period toward supporting incarcerated youth in juvenile facilities. These contributions help us provide resources and moments of dignity and possibility for young people navigating confinement during a time meant for connection and joy.

Support this effort by visiting www.trespassproject.com/donate.
Donations to The Trespass Project are tax-deductible as allowed by law. We operate under the fiscal sponsorship of The Steen Foundation, a U.S. tax-exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3).

This moment is also an invitation:

An invitation to those who have walked with us thus far — and those newly finding their way here — to join our growing community of recurring donors who understand that meaningful change is built steadily, not only in urgent reaction. Sustained work requires sustained stewardship, and we step into 2026 committed to both.

We close this year proud of what has been built, clear about what lies ahead, and deeply grateful for those who choose to carry this work forward with us.


Cayden Brown
Executive Director, The Trespass Project
December 17, 2025.