From 2015 to 2020, I attended a dozen or so conferences around trauma-informed schools and restorative justice all over the United States. I was shocked, if not confused, how the trauma-informed schools conferences had no sessions on restorative justice except the one I was presenting; and the restorative justice conferences had few sessions, if any,...
continue readingPeople could be forgiven for thinking this was a bizarre social experiment - inmates convicted of violent crimes mingling with a group of victims of violent crime. Even though the concept has had incredible results across 35 countries, people still find it hard to comprehend the Sycamore Tree Project. And it took a long time...
continue readingThe survey (PISA 2015, vol.3)reported that students who feel they are accepted and liked by the rest of the group and feel connected to others and part of a school community are more likely to perform better academically and are motivated to learn . Eric David Harris and Dylan Bennet Klebold were both seniors in high school...
continue readingDavid Yusem's insights for this blog are drawn from Nils Christie, Norwegian Sociologist and Criminologist January 1977 article, Conflicts as Property, published in the British Journal of Criminology. Many folks in the field of conflict resolution and restorative justice refer to this article as influential to their understanding of a possible alternative to the criminal justice system that moves...
continue readingIt is not the absence of violence but restoring right relationships that brings about an end to a specific conflict. Forty years ago, I engaged in dialogues addressing the violence that was being perpetrated around me and my family in Belfast in Northern Ireland. I had no training or knowledge of Restorative Practice, but I...
continue reading“Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I’ll meet you there.” Rumi Although in conflict situations there is sometimes an obvious person who has caused harm and a person who has been harmed, such as in criminal matters, this distinction is not always as obvious in workplace disputes. I frequently conduct workplace...
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‘Best Practice in Restorative Justice – Transformational Change’ 16 – 19 October 2007 Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia This conference was considered an outstanding success by conference participants and provided a wonderful opportunity for those involved to share best practice in the field across schools, prisons, policing, communities, workplaces and within justice. Many of the Keynote...
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Vancouver at sunset ‘Widening Our Lens – Connecting Our Practice’ 31 May – 3 June 2009 Coast Plaza Hotel, Downtown Vancouver Canada, BC. Despite a major pandemic of Swine Flu and the Global Economic Crisis, the 2nd International Conference in partnership with the Centre for Restorative Justice, Simon Fraser University went ahead and was an...
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In partnership with Restorative Justice Aotearoa (RJA) “Whanaungatanga: building relationships through restorative practices” 23-27 November 2011 Amora Hotel Wellington, New Zealand In conjunction with the 5th national conference of Restorative Justice Aotearoa, RPI’s third international conference attracted over 350 delegates from around the world who gathered to learn, share ideas, and support the ever-growing community of restorative...
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RPI partners with the Victorian Association for Restorative Justice (VARJ) and the Neighbourhood Justice Center (NJC) “Broadening Restorative Perspectives; An International Conference” 17-20 June 2013 In Melbourne Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground Fairer rules, processes and outcomes are changing the way people experience justice. But how well are these programs known and understood? How can stories...
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