Date
Dec 01 - Dec 06, 2025
Session no.
S907-01
Location

Schloss Leopoldskron, Salzburg, Austria

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Peace & Justice

Advancing Youth Safety and Justice: Transformative Policies, Community Solutions, and Accountable Practices

Progress has been made in many parts of the world, including in the United States, to improve safety for, and to reduce violence against and by, adolescents and young adults.  Nevertheless, the interlinked challenges of post-pandemic mental health difficulties, education and social development losses, racial and ethnic injustice, climate change, migration, the rise of autocratic governance, rapidly-advancing technologies, and the potential for greater levels of un- or under-employment are having profound effects on the outlook for youth populations.  Taking into account the best available research, innovations, and case studies that highlight global best practices, might youth safety and justice systems need to be rethought and reconceived?

Since January 2020, this initiative has established a strong foundation for sustained cross-national collaboration that can have a direct impact on youth justice and safety systems.  In the lead-up to and at this session, existing working groups will continue their engagement through identifying gaps not yet addressed – and strategies to fill them; plan for dissemination of findings to ensure insights reach key decision-makers, policy influencers, practitioners, and researchers; and systematize the innovations, strategies, policy recommendations, and emerging insights to ensure documentation for effective future research and implementation.

 

 

Date
Dec 01 - Dec 06, 2025
Session no.
S907-01
Location

Schloss Leopoldskron, Salzburg, Austria

Share

Additional Info

The 2025 session will build on the thematic pillars explored in 2024, while advancing new insights generated by the focus groups.  Key issues will include:

  1. Toolkits for addressing youth violence in a broad range of political and jurisdictional contexts
  2. The transformation of legal systems and the implementation of alternative options for youth in conflict with the law
  3. Leveraging artificial intelligence and virtual reality to improve youth justice systems, build empathy, and increase community safety
  4. The impact of emerging technologies and social media on youth development and their transition to adulthood
  5. Youth involvement in gangs and organized crime, and routes to healthy reintegration into society

The December 2025 session aims to:

  • Elevate and disseminate the most promising ideas, frameworks, and innovations developed by the five focus groups;
  • Strengthen cross-national learning by examining how similar challenges are playing out — and being addressed — across diverse jurisdictions;
  • Identify critical gaps not yet addressed, and develop new strategies to meet them;
  • Build a shared agenda for change, focused on influencing decision-makers, shifting public narratives, and promoting systemic transformation at scale.

The December 2025 session will follow a dynamic, participatory format designed to foster learning, co-creation, and strategic alignment. Key elements will include:

  • Presentations from focus groups showcasing their strategies, tools, and recommendations
  • Case study labs featuring promising practices and reforms from multiple jurisdictions
  • Peer learning and cross-group knowledge exchange
  • Collective planning for dissemination, advocacy, and policy influence
  • Informal networking and generational dialogue across fields and geographies

The 2025 session will primarily bring together returning Fellows from the December 2024 session, who have been actively engaged over the past year in developing and advancing reform strategies through five dedicated focus groups. Their continued involvement ensures continuity, deepened collaboration, and a shared foundation for collective action.

Additional participants will be drawn from the broader network, specifically from Fellows who have participated in previous sessions in this initiative and have remained actively involved in related initiatives. These individuals bring complementary experience and insight that will help strengthen the group’s capacity to refine, test, and scale the solutions emerging from the focus group work.

Where necessary and depending on the gaps identified during the co-design of the agenda, new participants may be invited to contribute critical perspectives, fill sectoral or regional gaps, or bring in specific expertise or lived experience essential to advancing the conversation.

Session Fellows

Maia Chochua
Board Member; Justice and Good Governance Adviser, European Forum for Restorative Justice; DAI, Georgia
Daniel Coulomb
Director of Education and Social Programs, BBVA Foundation, Mexico
Andre Davis
U.S. Circuit Judge (ret.), United States Court of Appeals, USA
Gwen Dereymaeker
Director, Violence Prevention Unit, Western Cape Government, South Africa
Mariama Diallo
Coordinator, Child Friendly Justice European Network, Belgium / France
Michelle Diaz
Executive Director, Canary Impact, USA
Peter Dixon
Associate Professor of Practice, Columbia University, USA
Nontsikelelo Dlulani
Head of Organizing in the Western Cape, Equal Education, South Africa
Teresita Escotto-Quesada
International Consultant, Mexico
Jocelyn Fontaine
Executive Director, Black & Brown Collective for Community Solutions to Gun Violence, USA
Cedric Foussard
Co-Founder, International Centre for Justice Alliance, Switzerland / France
Laurie Garduque
Retired Director, Criminal Justice Program, MacArthur Foundation, / independent consultant, United States of America
Michal Gilad
Executive Director & Co-Founder, The Multidisciplinary Center of Childhood, Public Policy, & Sustainable Society, USA / Israel
Marc Gwamaka
Engagement and Outreach Coordinator, Aegis Trust, Rwanda
Joelle Benitha Habiyambere
Youth Programs, Lead, Aegis Trust, Rwanda
Bami Jolaoso
Senior Practice Officer, Centre for Justice Innovation, UK
Samuel Karuita
Team Manager, Village Impact, Kenya
Laura Knight
Toolkit Lead, Youth Endowment Fund, United Kingdom
Samuel Kobia
Chairman, National Cohesion and Integration Commission, Kenya
Marsha Levick
Chief Legal Officer, Juvenile Law Center, USA
Leroy Logan
Chair, Transition to Adulthood (T2A), Reallity Security Solutions, UK
Nessa Lynch
Legal Academic, University College Cork, Ireland
Khuzaimah Maranda
Executive Director, Thuma Ko Kapagingud Service Organization Inc., Philippines
Eduardo Melo
Judge, São Paulo State Judicial School/AIMJF, Brazil
Alaa Mufleh
Regional Advisor, International Development Research Center, Jordan
Haydar Muntadhar
Countering Violent Extremism Expert, UK
Huma Nasir
Lawyer and Kofi Annan Changemaker, Kofi Annan Foundation, India
Carmen Perez
President & CEO, The Gathering for Justice, USA
Mariana Pérez Cruz
Children's Rights Expert and International Consultant, International Center for Justice Alliance, Netherlands / Mexico
Silvia Randazzo
Independent Expert on Child Justice, Belgium / Italy
Josh Rovner
Director of Youth Justice, The Sentencing Project, USA
Arissa Roy
Founder/Executive Director, Project Power Global, Canada
Devon Simmons
Co-Founder & Associate Director of the Paralegal Pathways Initiative, Columbia Law School, USA
Katindi Sivi
Founder and Executive Director, LongView Futures Foundation, Kenya
Hannah Smithson
Derby Stfort
Captain, New York Police Department, USA
Soren Tsui
Strategic Advisor, Washington State Office of Firearm Safety & Violence Prevention, USA
Angela Vigil
Partner and Executive Director, Global Pro Bono, Baker McKenzie, United States of America
Rosette Sifa Vuninga
Postdoctoral Researcher, University of Cape Town, South Africa / Democratic Republic of Congo
Huw Williams
Professor of Clinical Neuropsychology, University of Exeter, UK
Adriana Wodrazka Espinoza
Youth Advocate, United States of America
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