Resolution Online

I was delighted to host fellow restorative practitioners from South Korea as they undertook a UK Learning Tour. Working closely with the Korea Peacebuilding Institute (KOPI) we welcomed 28 restorative practitioners, researchers and academics to the UK in Mid-January. The purpose of the tour was to better understand how we have developed restorative practice across a range of sectors. To this end, we visited a range of organisations from across the UK including those working within criminal justice, education and health settings. There was also a keen interest to learn about how the UK are progressing with developing a restorative city model of practice. Over a 10-day period we visited 15 organisations and hosted two knowledge exchange seminars. We travelled a total of 1438 miles visiting Bristol, Coventry, Nottingham, Wakefield, Liverpool, Belfast and London.

Environmental crimes could be considered to be "victimless" but is this really the case? The harm caused often affects many people and the communities in which they live and work. Given that the harm caused by environmental "crimes" is often irreparable and, because there is often no identifiable victim, the justice system traditionally relies on punitive measures to hold those causing harm to account, however, it could be argued that this is not the most effective way of repairing the harm caused.

A new evaluation of restorative practices in US schools has found restorative practice to have several positive effects, including a reduction in suspension rates and an improvement in overall school climates.

Researchers from RAND Corporation evaluated outcomes for students, teachers and schools at 44 schools in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Half of these schools had adopted a two-year restorative programme, the other half had not.

This blog is the third of the RJC’s blog series highlighting how restorative practice connects with some of the big themes of the day. In this blog, Yutaka Osakabe, a PhD researcher at the University of Aberdeen, reflects on the long-disputed role of religion in restorative justice from his fieldwork.