A restorative practices perspective : governance and authority

Restorative practices, including both responsive restorative justice and proactive preventative strategies, represent a paradigm shift in governance and how leaders use their authority - doing with rather than to or for. Growing evidence from schools, business, criminal justice, treatment programs, special education, social care and other settings has demonstrated the efficacy of giving stakeholders more voice, more choice and more responsibility. Restorative practices, the focus of an emerging social science, provide a "crucial vehicle of empowerment"at a time when "the lived experience of modern democracy is alienation" and the role of family and community has been usurped by business and government.