Justice Collaboration 

Monthly Update 

17th Edition, March 2026

Welcome to the Justice Collaboration’s March update!

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 and 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 Publication: Supporting the cultural connections of children from culturally diverse backgrounds in out-of-home care: perspectives from Australian foster and kinship carers.

Collaboration member Professor Jioji Ravulo co-authored a recently published study examining cultural engagement for children from culturally diverse backgrounds in out-of-home care. 

The study explored the perspectives of Australian foster and kinship carers (n = 31) on the importance of cultural connection for children from culturally diverse backgrounds in care. Most recognized culture as crucial to child identity and wellbeing. However, the findings highlight the complexity of navigating cultural care, including differing opinions on who should lead cultural engagement, challenges in balancing the child’s cultural needs with existing family dynamics, and difficulties accessing accurate information and support from child protection agencies. Findings emphasize the need for training in cultural humility for carers, mechanisms for accurate cultural data gathering, and a collaborative approach to cultural care planning involving all stakeholders, including children and birth parents as key stakeholders and decision-makers.

The article, published in the Journal of Ethnic & Cultural Diversity in Social Work, can be accessed here. 

Professor Ravulo was a recent guest on Vice-Chancellor Mark Scott’s The Solutionists podcast. The episode, in which Professor Ravulo discusses the harms of youth detention, can be accessed here. 

Right Care, First Time, Where You Live 

The Brain and Mind Centre’s Right Care, First Time, Where You Live program is concluding after 5 years. Funded by the BHP Foundation, the program aimed to deliver a bold vision to get young people back to work, back to school, and thriving in their communities.

The project team worked with six communities to create decision support tools and health systems solutions that will empower communities to capitalise on the mental health of young people. This was achieved by building community capacity to leverage systems modelling and simulation to strengthen and coordinate the delivery of local mental health care in a responsive and dynamic way. Such a tool will then emphasise the social and economic drivers of mental health and well-being and will empower communities to make compelling investment cases to decision-makers for each site. 

The project team worked closely with young people with lived experience of mental illness, local community members and stakeholders via a series of workshops in each community. 

Watch the program overview video here. Specific examples of the project’s methodology and outputs can be found on the Nepean Blue Mountains Primary Health Network website. 

New Publication: Words Within Walls: A Scoping Review of Prison-Based Creative Writing

Justice Collaboration member Dr Jedidiah Evans recently co-authored a meta-review of prison-based creative writing programs. The authors found that despite numerous publications on these programs, there is a lack of summaries detailing the types of programs, providers, target audiences, and rigorous evaluation of the benefits.  

Nearly half of the studies examined did not provide demographic information about participants, and few included evaluations. Evaluations relied on self-reports, observations, and analysis of written works, with minimal use of surveys or interviews. The study highlights the need for more rigorous research to assess the effectiveness of creative writing programs, which have the potential to improve prisoners’ wellbeing during and after imprisonment. The authors concluded that research could demonstrate effectiveness, identify best practices, understand impact, improve programs and inform policy.

The article, published in the International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology can be accessed here. 

Dr Sacha Jamieson

Dr Sacha Jamieson is a qualitative researcher of health, carcerality, and the moral-political activity of professional work. Her work examines the intersections of structural oppression, institutional discourse and practices, ethics, and health equity. Using critical methodologies, her research aims to inform theory, policy and practice by examining the construction of health and social issues and centreing the experiences of service users. Dr Jamieson has practiced as a social worker in acute mental health services and as a researcher on projects focused on the health and social and emotional wellbeing of criminalised and incarcerated women.

Last year Dr Jamieson, Associate Professor Emma Tseris and Collaboration member Dr Lobna Yassine hosted a seminar series entitled "Australia’s disciplinary regimes: how carcerality is enacted and resisted in the ‘helping’ professions”. Speakers from across the human services presented on the topic, from schooling and education, the social work profession, child protection services, mental health and prisons.

Dr Jamieson recently published a chapter coauthored with Dr Yassine entitled "Punishment disguised as ‘help’: carcerality in the human services and the role of social work towards abolition”. The chapter, included within Abolition in Social Work and Human Services (edited by Ian Hyslop and Bob Pease) argues that if social work is to be anti-oppressive, then it must also be for abolition. Using examples from the authors' practice, this chapter aims to: (1) critique dominant discourses that perpetuate the carceral state; (2) recognise that the community is already engaged in abolition strategies, despite these strategies often being ignored; and (3) explore possibilities for social workers to dismantle carceral structures and build practices that shift power to communities.

The chapter, published by Bristol University Press, can be accessed here. 

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. 

Cracks in the ice

Created by the Matilda Centre, Cracks in the Ice is an online toolkit providing evidence-based and up-to-date information and resources about crystal methamphetamine ('ice') for the Australian community. 

The toolkit has resources designed for people who use ice, their families and friends, and healthcare workers. There are also resources specifically designed for use by parents and teachers of young people. 

Handbook for Aboriginal alcohol and drug work 

Created by University of Sydney academics, the Handbook for Aboriginal alcohol and drug work provides everyday practical information for working in the field of alcohol and other drugs (AOD), with a focus on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander clients. It is based on the clinical and cultural experiences of the authors who have worked in a range of settings from large urban environments through to small remote communities.

2026 Applied Research in Crime and Justice Conference 

Griffith Criminology Institute and NSW BOCSAR are hosting the 2026 Applied Research in Crime and Justice Conference (ARCJC), showcasing practical, policy-relevant research that bridges evidence to real-world criminal justice practice.

Join policymakers, academics, and stakeholders on 21-22 July 2026 at the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre for the theme Transforming Criminal Justice Systems: Bridging Research & Evidence-based Practice. Explore subthemes like: Evidence-based Policing, Indigenous Justice, Technology & Crime, Youth Justice and more.

Invited keynote speakers include: 

Professor Tom R. Tyler (Yale) 

Professor Susan Dennison (Transforming Corrections Centre)

Professor Kyllie Cripps (Monash Indigenous Studies)

Professor Stephane Shepherd (Deakin Forensic Psychology)

Professor Tamara Walsh (UQ Pro Bono Centre)

Dates: 21-22 July 2026

Location: Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre 

You can find out more about the conference here.

Sydney Policy Lab - 2026 Annual Public Lecture

The first 1,000 days of life shape everything that follows. Yet in Australia, one in six children are growing up in poverty and every hour another child enters out-of-home care. We continue to respond to crisis more than we prevent it.

At this year’s Sydney Policy Lab Annual Lecture, founder of the Brave foundation and SEED Futures Bernadette Black AM will reflect on what it takes to make prevention a national priority — and how Australia can better support children and families in the earliest years.

Drawing on the National Primary Preventive Framework and decades of lived and policy experience, Bernadette will explore how governments can invest earlier, align evidence with community insight, and build systems that back families before harm compounds.

Date: Thursday 19 March 2026 

Time: 6:30 - 7:30pm 

Location: The University of Sydney, The Great Hall, Quadrangle (A14)

You can find out more about the event and get your free ticket here. 

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