The Centre for Applied Legal Research (CALR) is an independent research institute that empowers people, organizations and governments with sound and evidence-based legal and policy solutions and services that enhance development. CALR seeks to ensure that the law is utilized to respond to everyday societal challenges.

CALR offers legal expertise, resources, tools and technical support to governments, developmental partners, and civil society organizations. Its work links the law (as it is and as it ought to be) with developmental needs across the multiple sectors of a country’s economy. In this manner its inter-disciplinary work revolves around two thematic areas, namely:
(a) Law, Democracy and Governance
(b) Law, Economics and Science

The work involving law, democracy and governance seeks to promote a democratic dispensation embedded on the rule of law while the work involving law, economics and science seeks to promote socio-economic development in an environmentally sustainable manner.

Although CALR’s work has been mainly in Zimbabwe; it has gained significant experience in the southern, eastern and northern African sub-regions. Since its humble beginnings in 2010, CALR has worked with a variety of governments, developmental partners and civil society organizations in diverse sectors including: constitutionalism and rule of law; access to justice; promotion of human rights; public health; water and sanitation; agriculture; forestry; local government; electoral systems; and information and media.