Restorative practices?

The IIRP defines restorative practices (RP) as a set of practices.  Above is a link to the article “Defining Restorative” by Ted Wachtel, the founder of the IIRP. In this article, you can read about the continuum of restorative practices (RP), which ranges from affective statements (“I feel x when y”) to restorative justice conferences. “Fair process” is described as a way of making decisions in which everyone involved feels heard and understands the reasons behind the decision. The academic field of RP involves the foundational hypothesis that people are happier and healthier when those in authority do things “with” them rather than “to” them or “for” them. This is covered in “Defining Restorative,” but I like the article by Dorothy Vaandering about “A Window on Relationships” that applies this “with” theory to everyday interactions with people (attached to the right/below). This is the idea behind “with balance.” My coaching sessions are a practice with you and with balance, a space where you and I can meet. I bring my balance practice and my love of listening into my sessions to work with those who are seeking change.

The IIRP describes a RP continuum, which includes 1:1 conversations, affect psychology, community building circles, and restorative justice conferences. Through life experience, I learned that some people and communities practice RP naturally. People who openly discuss their feelings, address conflict calmly and directly, and value living in community have an experiential knowledge of RP.

I use the phrase RP to refer to a set of ideals that go beyond specific practices. This is what makes balance a constant practice. If one does not work on balance everyday, they will fall over. RP is a foundation to the balance practice. It is about centering relationships above all else (using affective language). It is about transparency (using fair process). It is about empowering communities to resolve conflict on their own, with the assistance of others (RJ conferencing). RP, to me, embodies the concepts of equity, people over profit, and human rights. RP is about repairing harm, including widespread harm, like genocide, slavery, and colonization. Unfortunately, I don’t have the power to repair widespread harm, but balance recognizes that generational trauma affects everyone in different ways, and I hope that through my accessibility efforts and empowering practices, you and I can work on breaking some of those generational curses we inherited.