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May 2025 / II

 
A Look Back at the 13th International Seminar in Athens 

A heartfelt εὐχαριστῶ, thank you, to all the people who took part at the 13th International Seminar that concluded last Saturday in Athens - with participants coming not only from across Europe, but also from Canada, the US, and Thailand! 
There was a large number of participants and volunteers that supported us from Greece, a country where the international community of the EFRJ had never organised an event before. We hope that we were able to plant roots in Greece and we are happy to have seen such strong local engagement!
Over three plenaries and eight workshops, we explored the intersections of children on the move and restorative justice, addressing issues such as trauma, displacement, protection and inclusion, through concrete practices, case studies, and interdisciplinary dialogue.
Beyond the sessions, we shared pleasant moments during the social dinner and coffee breaks, made even more special thanks to Myrtillo Café, a social cooperative where 90% of employees belong to vulnerable groups. To close the event, some participants joined the Invisible Tour through Athens, led by a guide with lived experience of homelessness and organised by Shedia. This eye-opening walk offered a powerful glimpse into the city's solidarity networks.
Thank you all for making this event such a rich, human and unforgettable experience!

 
A Look to the Future...EFRJ Conference 2026: Location Announced! 

We’re excited to announce that our 13th International Conference will be held from the 11th to the 13th of June 2026 in Poznań, Poland. We will be hosted by the Faculty of Psychology and Law at the Poznań campus of the SWPS University, in partnership with the university and the European Mediation Institute. 
A warm thank you to Marceli Kwaśniewski and Aleksandra Dopierała, whose commitment to restorative justice and to the EFRJ community is driving the local organisation.
Situated between Warsaw and Berlin, Poznań is one of Poland’s oldest cities, known for its historical significance and vibrant cultural life. With strong local support from public services, schools, and civil society, Poznań is set to become the beating heart of restorative justice in 2026.

Don’t miss the chance to register for the CJPE Summer Course!

There are still some places available to register for the 7th CJPE Summer Course - the deadline is the 16th of June! This course will take place from the 1st to the 4th of July 2025 in Barcelona. One of the three workshops will focus on restorative communication skills, and will be led by senior victim-offender mediator Daniela Arieti. Participants will also have the opportunity to attend two other workshops and plenary sessions with leading experts, offering plenty of opportunities for learning, exchange and networking. This year’s overall theme is: "How to Promote Change: Strengthening the Professional Role within Restorative Justice, Probation Services, and Prisons". It’s a chance to reflect on current challenges and discover promising practices from across Europe. Read the course booklet for the details of the programme, and have a look to the dedicated webpage to find all the information that you need. Don't miss it!

 
Call for Nominations: Restorative Justice Article Prize

Check the open call for nominations for the prize recognising outstanding international journal articles on restorative justice. Eligible articles must be peer-reviewed, written in English, and published (in print or online first) between the 1st of January 2024 and the 1st of May 2025.
Deadline for submissions: 4 July 2025. The winner will be announced at the European Society of Criminology conference. To nominate an article, please send it by email to both:
Estelle Zinsstag: estelle.zinsstag@kuleuven.be
Kerry Wood: kerry.clamp@nottingham.ac.uk
A scientific committee will review all submissions and select the article that demonstrates the most originality, academic rigour, and methodological soundness in the field of restorative justice. This is a great opportunity to highlight and support high-quality research in the field!

Summer School Countdown

Only a few weeks left to the 10th edition of the EFRJ Summer School: «Restorative Justice Responses to Harm in Institutions», taking place from the 16th to the 20th of June 2025 in San Sebastián / Donostia (Basque Country, Spain).
This year’s edition focuses on how restorative justice can address harm within organisations and institutions. The training will be led by Tim Chapman and Raul Calvo, with both English and Spanish speaking groups working in parallel and coming together in joint sessions (with interpretation provided).
The English-speaking group is full, but there are still a few spots left in the Spanish-speaking one! Don’t miss your chance to register - you can still grab one of the last places available.

 
REstART 2025: Submit Your Proposal

The 2025 REstART Festival will be held in Leuven from the 6th to the 9th of December! Focusing on the powerful link between art, justice, and healing, the festival highlights how creative expression can offer fresh perspectives on harm, accountability, and restoration. REstART will bring together artists, justice professionals, and communities to inspire new ways of thinking about justice through the arts.
Do you have something to contribute? Check out our call! We warmly invite artists, creatives, and facilitators to submit proposals for participatory workshops, performances, interactive installations, and visual or film projects centred on themes of justice, harm, repair, and dialogue. Only a few days left to submit your proposal: the call closes on the 1st of June. 

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Call for Short Films on Restorative Justice

The Leuven International Short Film Festival launched a call for submissions including restorative justice as part of the festival’s non-competitive thematic programme! The deadline for entries is the 15th of August.
Leuven International Short Film Festival is the yearly place to be in December for film lovers and professionals in Belgium and abroad.
Selected films will be screened during the REstART Festival in Leuven, taking place from the 6th to 9th December 2025.

Find Out More
 
ReTrust Book: Call for Chapter Contributions 

The editors of the forthcoming volume "Corruption, Social Trust and Restorative Justice" led by Daniela Gaddi, invite scholars and experts to contribute with a chapter to the upcoming book. This volume aims at exploring the multifaceted relationship between corruption, social trust, and restorative justice across various societal contexts and domains, focusing on but not limited to European countries. Each chapter, written in English, should be between 6000-8000 words and must be original, not previously published. Authors are encouraged to provide empirical data, case studies, and theoretical discussions relevant to
the themes of the book. Proposal deadline: 1st of October 2025
For further information, please contact: daniela.gaddi@uab.cat

Call for Action Grants Supporting Transnational Projects in e-Justice, Victims’ Rights and Procedural Rights

The European Commission has launched a call for proposals that aims to facilitate effective and non-discriminatory access to justice for all, and effective redress, including by electronic means (e-Justice), by promoting efficient civil, and criminal procedures, and by promoting and supporting the rights of all victims of crime as well as the procedural rights of suspects and accused persons in criminal proceedings.
This biennial call for proposals, under the Access to justice specific objective, covers two priorities:
E-justice priority & Victims’ rights and procedural rights priority
For more information, please consult the webpage dedicated. 

 
Restorative Justice Netherlands - Annual Café 2025

This year, Restorative Justice Netherlands organises its upcoming Restorative Café at the Bibliotheek Utrecht, on June 25th, from 9:30 am to 1:00 pm. The chosen theme for this year's edition is transitional justice: discussions will explore the shift from transitional to transformative justice, the experiences of victims of the Chilean dictatorship, and the ongoing and future implications of the war in Ukraine. For further information and to register, please contact: restorative.city.utrecht@gmail.com.

Moment of Inspiration

In the latest episode of her podcast, our member Idil Elveris speaks with Griet Defruyt and Wim Huyzentruyt about their work in a Belgian asylum centre, where they apply restorative justice values to address conflict, not only among residents, but throughout the wider community. Griet and Wim share real-life examples of how dialogue, accountability and trust can be fostered, even in complex and challenging environments.
Griet also spoke at our recent seminar in Athens, where she contributed to the third plenary. 
Have you missed the chance to join us in Athens? This is a great opportunity to learn more about the topics discussed there - or, if you were there, to get to know the background of this initiative.

Listen to the episode here
 

In our newsflashes we share the most interesting and relevant updated about our work and collect information from our members and other individuals and/or organisations working in related fields. Information includes news, local activities, international events, publications, inspiring talks or projects, and much more, taking place in Europe and beyond. Please contact us if you have any comments or any news you would like us to share in our future editions. You can enjoy the previous editions of the EFRJ Newsflashes here. Feel free to forward them to friends or colleagues and invite them to sign up on the EFRJ website!

European Forum for Restorative Justice vzw
Herbert Hooverplein 10, Leuven 3000, BE
RPR Leuven
Company number: 0474 656 137
euforumrj.org

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