This paper connects two (seemingly) parallel discourses in the field of educational leadership: the discourse on adaptive leadership or 'adaptivity', which has been appropriated into the field of education, and social justice educational leadership. Without overlooking the real differences between them, the paper identifies four principles central to both discourses. Both leadership types are claimed to be "disruptive, dilemmatic, collaborative, and contextual-emergent." A model for connecting the two discourses around these four shared principles is presented. Some key concerns regarding the likelihood of connecting the two discourses will be addressed, particularly by discussing the compatibility of 'effectiveness' to 'social justice'. The paper concludes with a discussion of 'communities of practice', as an example of an adaptive-social justice organizational structure that realizes the above four shared principles.