Transforming Justice Australia is a survivor-oriented, community-based restorative justice service for people harmed by sexual abuse, those responsible, their families and community.  

Our restorative practices are survivor-oriented, trauma-informed and we place value on voice, dignity, accountability, safety and hope.  

We offer services in the community, and in some instances, alongside other legal responses. 

We acknowledge and pay respects to the traditional owners on the land we work and live the Gadigal, Darug, Gundungurra, Wiradjuri and Woiwurrung. This land was stolen and was never ceded and always was, always will be Aboriginal land.  

Jane is living in Aotearoa New Zealand. She strives to live and work in a way that honours the Treaty of Waitangi and the obligations for white settlers, she recognises that rangatiratanga (sovereignty) was never ceded, that the impact of colonisation is ongoing and that colonising practices continue.  

Commitment to working alongside Aboriginal communities and organisations 

We recognise the wisdom, strength, resilience and expertise in First Nations communities. We recognise the practices and community knowledge that have kept communities, this land and it’s creatures, connected and thriving for tens of thousands of years. We recognise the impact of colonisation and commit to seeking to rebalance power, opportunity and justice, through our advocacy and other opportunities.

We recognize the need to be guided by Aboriginal voices in our work and we seek advice from our First Nations advisors, Aboriginal controlled organizations and community members to continually improve our approaches and deepen our understanding, especially when working with First Nations communities.  

We commit to always seeking permission to work on country, to work with Aboriginal organisations and communities only when invited, and to follow the lead of our First Nations brothers, sisters and elders.

 

Recent media and webinars

  • ANU Survivor Symposium on Restorative Justice for Sexual Assault, 27 August 2021

    The Australia National University convened a Symposium on Survivor Initiated-Restorative Justice as a Pathway to Justice for Sexual Assault. The aim of the Symposium was to highlight the role that restorative justice can play in addressing the needs of survivors of sexual assault in the ACT. Sexual violence in Australia is endemic and broad scale cultural change is urgently required. The Symposium sought to identify what restorative pathways are currently open to survivors, and what other ones could be developed, and how.

    Click here to view the recording including Thea Deakin-Greenwood from Transforming Justice Australasia speaking on a panel with other restorative advocates.

  • Victorian Law week webinar: Open Circle in conversation with Transforming Justice Australia

    The criminal justice system’s response to sexual harm fails most victim/survivors. Reports of victim/survivors’ experiences in workplaces, homes and in public indicate that a single, criminal justice response to this pervasive behaviour will not meet many victim/survivors concepts of justice. We need a range of responses to address the justice gap experienced by victim/survivors of sexual harm.

    Restorative justice can offer processes that meet the unmet justice needs of victim/survivors in ways that don’t perpetuate further harm. In this discussion, practitioners and experts from the Centre for Innovative Justice’s restorative justice arm, Open Circle, along with experts from Transforming Justice Australia and accountability specialists will explore the challenges, opportunities and necessary safeguards in approaching this work.
    Click here to view the recording.

  • Women's Legal NSW Achieving Accountability

    Transforming Justice Australia’s primary objective is to advance survivor-oriented, restorative justice responses to sexual and family violence. Transforming Justice Australia is a unique restorative justice program in Australia that focuses on, and is guided by, the needs and perspectives of survivors of sexual and family violence. The project combines research and practice to develop initiatives to advance and promote restorative justice practices in NSW for adults, children and young people harmed by sexual violence. The project’s vision is to provide access to alternative and innovative approaches to addressing the harm of sexual and family violence. While survivor oriented it also supports and advocates for community support and evidence based practices for people responsible for harm.

    In this seminar we will explore the research and illustrate restorative methods in practise, with some case studies. We will look at the question of accountability, and the ways in which non-custodial and non-punitive responses could bring compassionate and lasting behavioural change, where accountability and forgiveness are at the fore.

“Trauma leads to fragmented and fractured identities that in turn contribute to the
escalation of violence between people. The future feels meaningless, and people articulate their felt sense of powerlessness and lack of life purpose in violent acts on themselves and others. Relationships are destroyed and communities fragment. These problems cascade down the generations, growing more complex over time.”
Aunty Judy Atkinson