Downeast Restorative Justice is a worker self-directed non-profit organization. All employees share responsibility and play a role in governing the organization and stewarding its resources; all are Board members. All Board members make a commitment to the principles and organizational practices of worker self-direction, including democratic governance, shared leadership and consensus based decision making. Board members further make a commitment to fostering internally the same restorative principles of centering relationship and community building, inclusion, and authentic voice, that we hold in our training, facilitation and advocacy of Restorative Practices.
Our Mission
Downeast Restorative Justice believes in the power of social healing. We help to repair harmed relationships through equitable, non-adversarial, community-based, justice.
Mission Statement: Engaging in equitable community-based justice, Downeast Restorative Justice facilitates and promotes opportunities for community members to repair harmed relationships caused by wrongdoing and incarceration.
DRJ’s Community Impact
Since 2016:
- Has reached out to, and connected with schools in 4 districts. We’ve held trainings, workshops and in-class coaching. Our relationship with each school continues to strengthen as we support Restorative Practices through connection and community building;
- Each accepted harm repair or support referral encompasses multiple facilitated circles, spans a period of time from a month to a year and can directly affect upward of 8-15 participants per referral;
- 95% of juveniles participating in our Community Resolution Harm Repair process successfully completed the process. Many of the youths also participated in parallel Support Circle processes;
- Upward of 90% of those harmed were satisfied with the process and experience, and would recommend it to others;
- 1000+ volunteer hours serving the community.
History
From its start, Downeast Restorative Justice has been a community-led organization.
In 2015, in response to the lack of accountability, ownership, understanding or repair demonstrated over a local incident, some community members came together to discuss alternatives to the punitive responses offered at the time by the court and school.
The group solidified In what became known then as the Hancock County Community Reparations Boards (or HCCRB) and in 2017 partnered, as a working committee of the Restorative Justice Project Maine. RJP also served as fiscal sponsor permitting HCCRB to seek funding for Hancock County based programs.
With a working board and a largely volunteer based infrastructure, along with just one very part time employee, HCCRB grew steadily. In 2020 the name was changed to Downeast Restorative Justice.
In 2022, DRJ formed as a 501c3, and currently has a collaborative team of three employees.