Claire de Mézerville López is joined by co-host, Executive Director of IIRP Canada, Pat Lewis, for a special IIRP Canada series, highlighting the use of restorative practices and restorative justice across Canada. In this episode, they welcome seasoned youth care specialist Joe Blake to the Restorative Works! Podcast.

Joe joins us to discuss the representation of Indigenous youth in Canada's justice system and the cultural disconnect they often experience. He explains how restorative practices align closely with Indigenous ways of resolving conflict—centered on healing, empathy, and community. Through stories from his own practice, including a powerful anecdote involving two youth in a group home, Joe illustrates how even informal restorative conversations can defuse tension, foster understanding, and build authentic relationships.

Joe is a restorative practices instructor with IIRP Canada. He runs restorative justice training workshops and has been working in the field of Child and Youth Care for more than fifteen years. Joe has a Master of Arts in Child and Youth Care. The research focus for his Master of Arts thesis is on restorative practices with Indigenous youth within the youth criminal justice system. Joe’s key areas of interest in the field particularly lie in the youth criminal justice system, youth rights, restorative practices, social justice, Indigenous practices, and youth advocacy. He teaches these topics at several Toronto-based colleges, including Toronto Metropolitan University, Sheridan College, and Durham College. Joe serves in a variety of family counselling and court-ordered supervised access program positions. Joe identifies as Ojibwe, First Nations and is especially aware of the challenges that Indigenous and other marginalized youth face.

Tune in to learn more about how restorative justice offers a meaningful alternative to punitive systems by promoting accountability without shame, and how youth themselves begin to use these tools in their homes and schools.