Who We Are

Relationships First Newfoundland and Labrador (RFNL) is a provincial Restorative Justice organization housed in Memorial University’s Faculty of Education. We aim to provide support, resources, research, and recommendations for the sustainability of the holistic integration of Restorative Justice in Newfoundland and Labrador. We are able to do this important work with generous support from our partners who provide financial and in-kind support. Please see https://www.rfnl.org/connecting/our-partners for a complete list of RFNL’s partners.

We believe that Restorative Justice is a way of being and define it as the framework upon which communities nurture the capacity of people to engage with one another and their environment in a manner that supports and respects the inherent dignity and worth of all. We are led by the interconnection of four equally significant intentions:

• Embodying respect, dignity, and mutual concern

• Creating just and equitable environments

• Nurturing healthy relationships

• Repairing harm and transforming conflict

RFNL is an organization that has been supported throughout the years with generous funding from a variety of sources. Currently, we are working with our funders to create opportunities for members of a variety of communities to learn about and through Restorative Justice in project-specific contexts. Most recently, RFNL has received funding from the Kim Cole Memorial Fund, the Catherine Donnelly Foundation, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and the Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Justice. With this funding we are able to employ two full-time positions: Restorative Justice in Education (RJE) Coordinator, sarah mcdonald, and Restorative Justice in Community/Justice (RJC/J) Coordinator, Margaret Cranford.

In their capacities as RJE Coordinator and RJC/J Coordinator sarah and Margaret will be involved in various projects which aim to foster relational ways of being in Newfoundland and Labrador. This will include connecting with organizations/groups that already prioritize relationships to learn from and with them. The RFNL team will also work with organizations who wish to begin their relational learning journey by providing customized support based on identified needs in these specific communities.

sarah will focus on the Restorative Justice needs of educators and learners in all learning environments in Newfoundland and Labrador (NLESD, CSFP, First Nation Schools (Innu and Mi’kmaq), Inuit Schools, private schools, alternative education facilities, NLTA, etc.).

Margaret will work with individuals and organizations currently engaged in Restorative Justice in order to deepen RFNL’s understanding of what is currently occurring in the Newfoundland and Labrador Community and Justice settings. Margaret will create spaces and opportunities where governing officials, community and judicial directors, their associated entities, and relevant leaders come together to advance policies, procedures, and program development with a Restorative Justice lens.

Both sarah and Margaret will develop innovative professional learning prototypes and digital and print resources to promote a deeper understanding of relational ways of being, knowing, and doing. RFNL will work to spread awareness and messaging which highlights and encourages relational ways of being and knowing through professional learning opportunities, facilitated circle experiences/meetings, presentations, social media, videos, art, print resources, etc.