Justice Collaboration 

Monthly Update 

16th Edition, February 2026

Welcome to our first newsletter of 2026!

The University of Sydney's Justice Collaboration aims to improve justice outcomes and to ultimately prevent crime.

The University of Sydney has numerous strengths in this area and has a track record of work across disciplines, faculties and research centres directly and indirectly relevant to justice systems and people in conflict with the law. 

In this edition we showcase recent publications, new projects, our affiliates, some helpful resources and upcoming events!

The University of Sydney’s central campus sits on the lands of the Gadigal people of the Eora nation and has campuses as well as teaching and research facilities situated on the ancestral lands of the Wangal, Deerubbin, Tharawal, Ngunnawal, Wiradjuri, Gamilaroi, Bundjulong, Wiljali and Gereng Gureng peoples. We pay our respects to elders, past, present, and emerging who have cared and continue to care for Country.

New Book: Youth Diversion - Exploring Criminal Justice Perspectives through an Australian Case Study 

Sydney University’s Dr Estrella Pearce has published Exploring Criminal Justice Perspectives through An Australian Case Study.

Using New South Wales as a case example, this book engages with central themes of discretionary decision-making processes regarding youth diversion away from court and the broader political and policy constraints that impact implementation to full potential.

Drawing on mixed quantitative and qualitative data, including interviews with experienced police officers, magistrates and youth justice personnel, this study examines discretionary decision-making processes under the Young Offenders Act 1997 (NSW). While focusing on the Australian experience, the shared colonisation history with other Commonwealth countries such as New Zealand, Canada, and the United Kingdom allow for the insights to be globally applicable. Readers will gain insights into implementing diversionary justice, understand theoretical frameworks shaping contemporary youth justice.

An Open Access version of the book is available here. A hardback version can be purchased here.

Justice System Experience of Domestic and Family Violence (DFV) Victim-Survivors

A new project funded by the NSW Department of Communities and Justice and led by the University of Sydney aims to understand how domestic and family violence victim-survivors experience the justice system in New South Wales, especially following recent changes to the law criminalising coercive control.

The project will engage with adult DFV victim-survivors and justice system professionals to learn about people’s experiences at different stages of the criminal justice process — from first contact with police, through court, and through support services connected to justice agencies. By listening to people and their insights, the project will help identify what is working well, what needs to improve and where there are opportunities to better support victim-survivors, especially Aboriginal people, people with disability, older people, LGBTQIA+ communities, people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, and people living in regional and remote areas.

More information on the project is available here. Key justice professionals with significant experience in working in DFV issues in NSW and those who work with victim-survivors can obtain more information about the project and how to participate by contacting Project Officer, Elise Testa at elise.testa@sydney.edu.au.

New Book: Careers in Criminology and Criminal Justice in Australia 

Justice Collaboration Director Associate Professor Garner Clancey has published Careers in Criminology and Criminal Justice in Australia.

This book maps out careers open to a criminology graduate. It provides an overview of the many potential roles, broken down by government agency and employer. This illuminates the types of skills and knowledge required for diverse roles, which will help criminology students (and those in related disciplines) to make the most of their time at university and to prepare for future work.

The book, supported by the University of Sydney Careers Centre, is available for free here.

Dr Marlee Bower 

Dr Marlee Bower is a Senior Research Fellow at the Matilda Centre who is interested in the broader social determinants of mental health, particularly in understanding loneliness and isolation amongst marginalised individuals and how this relates to the built environment.

Dr Bower is the Academic Lead of The Mentally Healthy Futures Project, a five-year project (2023-2027) aimed at building partnerships and providing holistic, evidence-based policy recommendations to improve the mental health of Australians now and into the future. She is also the Academic Lead of Australia's Mental Health Think Tank.

Prior to joining the Matilda Centre, Dr Bower worked in government research and strategy in prison and homelessness settings. Dr Bower recently co-authored an article examining the prevalence and impact of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and hazardous alcohol use on criminogenic needs and reoffending outcomes among incarcerated adults in NSW. The authors found that hazardous alcohol use, but not PTSD, was associated with greater odds of, and a shorter time to, violent reoffending. Both PTSD and hazardous alcohol use were independently associated with higher criminogenic needs. The article, published in Advances in Dual Diagnosis, is freely accessible here.

Introducing the Centre for Crime and Youth Justice Research 

Last year we announced an affiliation between the University of Sydney’s Justice Collaboration and Manchester Metropolitan University’s Centre for Youth Studies. The Manchester Centre for Youth Studies is now the Centre for Crime and Youth Research (CCYJR).

CCYJR is dedicated to improving outcomes for children and young people in contact with the criminal justice system. Their research explores the lives, voices, and experiences of children and young people across diverse contexts. They work collaboratively with communities, practitioners, and policymakers to generate insights that inform practice and shape fairer, more effective responses to the challenges young people face. Their projects span youth justice, education, health, social care, and community settings. These are all grounded in a commitment to co-production, inclusivity, and social change. Through innovative, interdisciplinary research, they aim to influence policy, challenge inequality, and amplify the perspectives of young people.

We are currently conducting a review of resources created by the University of Sydney that may be useful when working with young people. 

Over the next few newsletters we will highlight some great resources created across the University. These resources cover a broad range of areas including alcohol and other drug use, mental health, communication and parenting. We hope these resources will assist those working with young people at risk of engaging in criminal activity. 

Health4Life

Created by the Matilda Centre, Health4Life is the first eHealth education program to concurrently target the “Big 6” health behaviours to prevent chronic disease risk and improve mental health and wellbeing among adolescents. These behaviours include physical activity, healthy eating, limiting sedentary recreational screen time, getting the right amount of sleep, and avoiding alcohol use and smoking.

Research has found that students who complete the Health4Life lessons have greater knowledge about risky health behaviours (up to 2 years later), improved health behavioural intentions, and improved mental health outcomes in the short-term.

Open Language  

Created by Sydney Institute for Community Languages Education, Open Language is a web portal collating teaching resources in a range languages including Arabic, Assyrian, Chinese, Greek, Hindi, Japanese, Korean, Persian, Punjabi, Tamil, Turkish and Vietnamese. 

Worksheets and lesson plans are available for beginner, intermediate and advanced speakers. 

AIC 2026 Conference: Transnational serious & organised crime

The Australian Institute of Criminology will be hosting the AIC 2026 Conference on 17-18 March 2026. The theme of this year’s conference will be Transnational Serious and Organised Crime (TSOC) and the aim of the event is to present the latest research on TSOC and how this can be applied to policy and practice.

Keynote speakers include:

Professor Edward Kleemans (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam) who will be speaking on the criminal careers of organised crime offenders.

Professor Ella Cockbain (University College London) who will be speaking on human trafficking and exploitation.

You can find out more about the conference and purchase tickets here.

Solution Focused Justice - A Cross Jurisdictional Symposium

The Bugmy Bar Book, the NSW Bar Association, Te Kura Kaiwhakawā (New Zealand Institute of Judicial Studies) and the University of Technology, Sydney, will host a symposium on solution focused courts. The event is supported by the NSW Judicial Commission and the Australasian Institute of Judicial Administration.

The symposium will be an opportunity to showcase the way in which solution focused justice is operating in Australia and New Zealand, highlight examples of best practice and foster connections between judicial officers, legal professionals, academics, students, and community organisations committed to trauma-informed, culturally safe and solution focused justice.

In-person tickets have sold out but online tickets are still available for both days. 

Dates: Friday 20 February & Saturday 21 February 2026

Location: Online 

You can find out more about the symposium and register your attendance here. 

Copyright © 2026

The University of Sydney 

Please add justice.law@sydney.edu.au to your address book or senders safe list to make sure you continue to see our emails in the future.

Cricos Code 00026A  TEQSA PRV12057
Disclaimer | Privacy statement |