11 Ways to Commit to Restorative Justice Practices

When relationships don’t  matter, we are more inclined to do bad things.  There has been a lot of media in my neck of the woods this fall, around broken relationships, and doing bad things.

I think there is no time like this time, to focus more on our relationships to each other, as a measure of justice.  After all, we are all connected.  Restorative justice is about restoring broken relationships.  Restorative practice is the heartbeat of restorative justice.

Restorative practices are collaborative practices.

Help take restorative justice practices viral.

I’ve been thinking about the many ways that restorative practices permeate my world.  There could be so much more of this, though.  Here’s 11 ways we can commit to, and nurture, a restorative practices mindset:

  1. socialize it; make it the centrepiece of a movie, cyber bullying discussion at Cyberweek 2012, build an event around it in your community
  2. educate young people with it; Roots of Empathy , Dianne Gosse’s Restitution model , remembering the long tail of conflict prevention
  3. advocate for it; on Twitter, Internet Civility manifesto, in your neighbourhood.
  4. normalize it; in schools, in business, volunteer, educate your parents about it!
  5. refer to it; from court, for university students
  6. women know it!; involve more women
  7. corporatize it; corporate circles, bully boxes, mediation
  8. revolutionize public service with it; UK examples in the Guardian, BC Government sponsored online anti-bullying tool, fund it.
  9. repair a broken neighbourhood with it; youthful resolve in the south side of Chicago
  10. forgive the unforgivable with it; Katy Hutchison’s story
  11. reconcile a nation with it; Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada

Feel free to make it 12.  I know you can!  Leave a comment.

Photo credit: YWCA Madison

Speak Your Mind

*