Julie Joy Oliveira Finds Her Purpose in Service to Global Justice

From the moment Julie Joy Oliveira stepped foot on Pepperdine’s Malibu campus, she knew she had found a community rooted in kindness, faith, and shared purpose. A first-generation Brazilian-American, she grew up immersed in church life in the Bay Area. Yet in school, she felt her faith could only be a small part of her identity rather than the center of her life and calling. At Pepperdine she discovered a place where faith wasn’t just welcomed—it was integral to every part of campus life.

That realization came early when she discovered Pepperdine online and was introduced to the concept of servant-leadership that confirmed her desire to attend the University. “I didn’t know you could be a servant and also a high-level leader who does their best work because of their faith,” she says. That sentiment resonated deeply with Oliveira, whose family often repeated the idea, deeply rooted in scripture, that “We are saved to do good.”

Last year, as a sophomore, Oliveira participated in Pepperdine’s Sudreau Uganda Rwanda Justice (SURJ) program led by the Sudreau Global Justice Institute at Pepperdine’s Caruso School of Law. SURJ, a program uniquely designed for Pepperdine’s undergraduate students, begins in Rwanda, where, for one week, participants meet genocide survivors and explore the country’s legacy of restorative justice. Then, in Uganda, undergraduate and law students partner with Ugandan judges and legal advocates to lead a prison plea‑bargaining project in Kampala’s Luzira Prison. There, students work with clients who have waited for their trial for extended periods of time—sometimes years—without legal counsel.

Despite her initial doubts, Oliveira was encouraged by faculty and financial assistance to ultimately serve as an RA for the program, where she helped peers navigate the emotional and spiritual complexities of the trip as they worked in overcrowded prisons on high-stakes justice cases.

“For the first time, I saw a connectedness between justice, love, reconciliation, and forgiveness that solidified why I want to become a lawyer,” she says. “It’s why I want to pursue justice in some way.

Oliveira experienced one of the most profound moments during a Q & A with Rwanda's Supreme Court justice, in which he explained East Africa’s legal tradition of relationship-based justice described as “law rooted in love.”

“Hearing him explain that justice is reconciliation between victim and offender and presenting the idea that pursuing law should come from the heart gave me clarity and courage in my calling,” Oliveira says. “I thought, ‘This is the heart of Pepperdine. This is why we're here in East Africa.’”

Her experiences in Uganda also deepened her respect for the justice leaders who exhibited “godly humility” in the face of extraordinary responsibility. She was impressed by how law students and judges approached even the most difficult cases without judgment. “I may not agree, but I’m here to help,” she remembers thinking, which became a mantra that reminded her that real justice is grounded in empathy and service.

Now majoring in political science with a faith and vocation minor and serving as co-president of Pepperdine’s dance ministry, Jesus Moves, Oliveira embodies the integration of art, service, and justice. Her time in East Africa reshaped her view of law—not as a competitive arena, but as disciplined teamwork informed by character, compassion, and calling.

As she looks toward law school, she does so with the deep conviction that she is compelled by something greater than just ambition.

“When you hear about law school, you think of cutthroat competition,” Oliveira says. “I want to be an excellent lawyer, but I also want to be on a good team. The SURJ program made me realize that the power behind what we were doing and what we hope to do in the future comes from God. It comes from a higher calling, from a higher power. It's not only because we feel like we are capable. It’s because we are called.”