Category Archives: Environmental Justice

Peer education created by and for incarcerated gardeners

By Carly Rose, SPP Curriculum Development Coordinator and Emerico, Gardening Curriculum Author

Gardeners tend to the soil in the gardens at Monroe Correctional Complex – Washington State Reformatory Unit. Incarcerated authors at MCC-WSRU are working with SPP to author chapters on Vermicomposting, Bokashi Composting, and Soil Science. Photo by Joslyn Rose Trivett.

For the past six months, gardeners at Stafford Creek Corrections Center and Monroe Correctional Complex – Washington State Reformatory Unit have been helping to build the new Gardening Curriculum. To develop course chapters, authors are combining expertise gained through personal experience with knowledge from scholarly research. Authors are working on a voluntary basis: they elect to share based on their desire to explore and describe a particular topic; some of the chapters currently in development include Vermicomposting & Bokashi Composting, Soil Science, the Soil Food Web, Planting and Harvesting Vegetables in Prison, Seed Saving, and Aquaponics.

Developing part of a curriculum while incarcerated requires some creativity. In order to submit materials, authors have provided handwritten work that is then typed and formatted by myself. One author types his work into JPay (social email) and mails it to a family member who mails it back, which gives him a pre-typed manuscript to submit. Most authors also provide their own illustrations and diagrams to be included in the chapter. Authors use a mixture of narrative from personal experience, tips on gardening that are specific to a prison environment, and college-level scholarly research to produce their work. They provide instruction that is created by and intended for incarcerated gardeners across the country. Authors and I send materials back and forth so they may provide feedback and edits on separate drafts of their work. One of the authors, Emerico, offered a personal narrative on his motivation to learn and write about his topic, Aquaponics. 

Introduction to Aquaponics by Emerico

I first became interested in aquaponics after reading a few articles and watching some educational television programs. I was working on the gardening crew at Stafford Creek and when the gardening classes started, I was thrilled to be included. Over time, I have learned every person—incarcerated or not—has a purpose in life. My purpose was building an aquaponics system with no budget. I had to lose my freedoms before I could find my purpose in life. This is where aquaponics all began for me. I had an idea, so I put it to paper and talked to the garden supervisor about the idea.

One of my first jobs on the garden crew was working with the hydroponics system. I found out that this type of system, which requires chemicals to grow plants and vegetables, is expensive and I believe far less healthy. My goal was to get away from using chemicals and go to more of a natural resource system. I thought about a way to build a small-scale aquaponics system that uses fish to feed the vegetables. After many attempts to get it approved, and with the help of the garden crew, we built a recycled materials aquaponics system. The first part of the vision of my idea came to life.

This is part of the aquaponics system built by Emerico, who is authoring a chapter on Aquaponics. He explained that he wants the chapter to be accessible to both incarcerated gardeners and low-income families outside of prison. Photo by Jacob Meyers.

There is a sense of satisfaction when growing your own vegetables whether for self/family or others. I believe also that gardening can relieve stress. This country is blessed; there should not be anyone going hungry. We see too much senseless hunger in our country and throughout the world. There must be a solution to this problem. How can we do this? By making people aware and teaching them that aquaponics is not only a healthier way to grow produce, but is also cheaper. Aquaponics saves money in the long run for people and their families, and is a fun way to bring families together in the garden.

As for me, it is all about giving back and helping those in the community and throughout society that are less fortunate. The purpose is to get a finer perception of aquaponics through research. Anyone can pretty much build a small-scale aquaponics system with a limited budget and few resources. I hope this brief overview has helped you. Above all else, have fun.

From his lab notebook, Emerico shows a diagram of the aquaponics system. Photo by Joslyn Rose Trivett.

Next Steps

The course is projected to pilot in winter of this year. The two teams of authors plan to be part of that process as well; they will be among the first to try out the new program. Their feedback during and after the trial run will help us further refine the course, and then be ready to share it statewide and beyond.

All of the authors have personal experience gardening in prison, working on projects such as this garden at Stafford Creek Corrections Center. This garden is tended by individuals serving a life sentence, and is known as the “lifer’s garden.” Photo by Ricky Osborne.

Welcoming New Roots of Success Instructors

Text and Photos by Bethany Shepler, Green Track Program Coordinator

During my time coordinating Roots of Success (Roots) we struggled to complete new instructor trainings, but in August that all changed. Washington Corrections Center (WCC) hosted a training at the end of August, Stafford Creek Corrections Center (SCCC) hosted a training in October, and Coyote Ridge Corrections Center (CRCC) just hosted a training. We’re so excited to welcome 12 new instructors into the Roots family!

Three instructors went through the training at WCC taught be Grady Mitchell. Mr. Mitchell is one of 5 Master Trainers in Washington State. Master Trainers are certified by the director and creator of Roots, Dr. Pinderhughes, to be able to train new instructors.

Five new instructors were trained at the SCCC Roots training led by Master Trainers Cyril Walrond and David Duhaime. The Roots liaison at SCCC, Kelly Peterson, added interviews to their instructor candidate selection process because they had close to 20 Roots graduates applying to be new instructors. I sat in on some of the interviews and candidates repeatedly cited the Roots community and the interactive and inclusive teaching styles of other instructors as their reasoning for wanting to become instructors. 

Four instructor candidates went through the training at CRCC led by Master Trainer Keith Parkins. They engaged in conversations about facilitating the course in a way that was accessible to students of every background and how to engage students in complex conversations like environmental issues and social equity. 

Thank you to DOC for making these trainings possible and thank you to Roots of Success for entrusting the training of new instructors in WA to our Master Trainers. And to all of the new Roots instructors, welcome!

Playing a small part for incarcerated men who “deserve no less”

Nancy DeWitt coordinates Sagebrush in Prisons programs in Idaho and Oregon. Often, she finds volunteers who can bring additional education and enrichment to the program. Recently, Nancy checked in with Marc Von Huene of Treasure Valley Beekeepers Association, to ask about his visit to the program at Snake River Correctional Institution. Here is his reply.

Hi Nancy:

Awfully good to hear from you!  And wow, you want me to just keep it down to a few sentences??!!  Tell you what.  I’ll just give you my thoughts and you can pick and choose what you want to include in your report.

Expert Beekeeper Marc Von Huene (left) works with incarcerated beekeeping students in the field. Photo by Nancy DeWitt.

As I had never worked with inmates before I had to overcome a lot of my preconceived ideas.  It’s a sad fact that many of us (my previous self included) envision inmates as those guys we see on Law and Order doing really bad things.  It leads many of us to believe that they deserve to be in prison, the longer the better.  But that’s so far from the truth that I’m ashamed to admit it.  These are people that lost their way for any number of reasons – bad influences, bad home life, questionable friends…….   And rehabilitation is absolutely the best option.  I’m glad I could play my small part.  I think giving these guys something to nurture and be proud of is a great way to bring out the caring people that are in each one of them.

 As an audience, they were fantastic.  I’ve never made presentations where the focus was as intense.  And I feel my short time with these guys is totally inadequate to turn them into good beekeepers.  The barriers are many – no direct communication, no internet access, limited equipment and supplies, limited time together.  But they try, and even though we’ve had some pretty big failures, we still learn together.

This next year I’ll get out earlier and work to spend more time with the new batch of inmates.  Hopefully the old hands will pass down their knowledge to the newcomers.

There was a lot of interest in my SRCI activities from officers in the Treasure Valley Bee Club, and the president of the Western Apicultural Society invited me to share my experience at their annual conference this last August.  The presentation went well, and was definitely a break from all the professors and specialists giving the majority of the presentations.  For most of them the presentation was a lot of data interspersed with stories.  For me, the presentation was a story interspersed with data.  It was the story about what I learned from working with the inmates and hopefully, what they learned from me.  The title of my presentation was “Beekeeping Behind Bars”, and I know I opened the eyes of a lot of participants.  Afterwards I had a lot of people come up to me and compliment me for the presentation and the work I was doing.  Several volunteered to come out with me the next time.  Yeah, it was good.

In closing I want to thank you for giving me this opportunity.  I really wish I was closer to the facility, but we’ll make it work.  The effort is definitely appreciated by the inmates and they deserve no less.

Hope this is enough for you.  Stay in touch and let me know if you need anything else.

Best,

Marc

Turtle Season is Here!

By Marisa Pushee, SPP Conservation Coordinator

South Puget Sound Wildlife Area in Lakewood, WA. Photo by Marisa Pushee.

It’s turtle trapping season for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW). When we arrived onsite at the South Puget Sound Wildlife Area, Wildlife Biologist Emily Butler was already hard at work and chest-deep in one of the three ponds at the wildlife area that western pond turtles (WPT) call home. Emily and two dedicated volunteers were diligently placing traps in turtle habitat.

Emily Butler, Assistant District Biologist, Wildlife Program with one of the traps she uses for western pond turtles. Photo by Marisa Pushee.

Along with trapping, WDFW also identifies turtle nests in the area. They establish a barrier to protect the site from predators. The barrier pictured below protects an active nest that currently houses WPT eggs. While the eggs will hatch in the fall, the turtles will not emerge until next spring, and it is crucial to protect them from predators until then.

Western Pond Turtle Nest. Photo by Marisa Pushee.

As a recent addition to the SPP team, I was excited to see the Western pond turtle habitat firsthand. I am taking over Jessica Brown’s position as Conservation Coordinator with Cedar Creek Corrections Center (CCCC) and Larch Corrections Center (LCC), and working closely with WDFW to help western pond turtles fight off shell disease. Critically endangered in the state of Washington, WPT are a crucial native species that have recently fallen victim to shell disease, which deteriorates their shells and shortens the turtles’ lifespans.

In the next week WDFW will locate and identify any turtles that show signs of shell disease. The turtles that they trap will be evaluated at Progressive Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) where veterinarians will determine which individuals require treatment. Those turtles will then be transferred to Cedar Creek Corrections Center (CCCC) where SPP Biological Science Technicians will care for and monitor them through their recovery, then releasing the turtles next spring.

Left to right: SPP Liasion Tyler Kennedy, SPP Conservation Coordinator Marisa Pushee, Technician Daniel Silva, Technician Lorenzo Stewart, Technician George Gonzales, Technician Darin Armstrong, SPP Conservation Coordinator Jessica Brown. Photo by Amanda Mintz.

It was a pleasure to see the South Puget Sound Wildlife Area firsthand and gain insight from Emily. With two new Biological Science Technicians also joining our team, we all look forward to meeting our new patients soon and helping them along to a speedy recovery. Stay tuned for updates on our turtles in the fall!

Western Pond Turtle. Photo by Keegan Curry.

 

Standing in the gap for each other: Environmental wisdom from Roots of Success

by Grady Mitchel and Anthony Powers, Roots of Success Instructors, Bethany Shepler, SPP Green Track Coordinator, and Joslyn Rose Trivett, SPP Education and Outreach Supervisor

Stafford Creek Corrections Center (SCCC)’s 19th and 20th graduating cohorts proudly show their certificates.

Roots of Success (Roots) is an environmental literacy curriculum taught in prisons throughout Washington State. Stafford Creek Corrections Center (SCCC) has championed the program for 5 years; in that time they have graduated more than 300 students in 20 cohorts. In March, we celebrated the two most recent cohorts of graduates.

David Duhaime and Grady Mitchell hold the graduation cake made by the SCCC inmate bakery.

The prison staff and administrators gave speeches highlighting the cooperation needed by everyone for the program to operate successfully. We heard from both past and current program sponsors (Liaisons). SCCC’s first Roots Liaison, Robert Aleksinski made the excellent point that “no matter what your political views are, this is a valuable program”—a fairly rare endorsement for an environmental program. The current Roots Liaison, Kelly Peterson, talked about how her initially negative impressions of Roots had changed since she started supporting the program; when she started working with the inmate instructors and students, she was impressed by their dedication to the program and quality of their work.

The graduating students go through a receiving line to receive congratulations and their certificates.

All five instructors shared wise words, stories, and anecdotes. All five instructors echoed the importance of collaboration among Department of Corrections (DOC) staff and administration, Roots instructors, and Roots students. For example, David Duhaime, instructor and Master Trainer, said, “all of the DOC people have been keeping this program strong.” He talked about the importance of each person involved—whether it be DOC staff, students, or instructors—bringing their own experiences and knowledge to the Roots program. He also highlighted how much students teach the instructors too: “we don’t just learn from these books; these books are real important, but what else happened is you guys came in and shared what you know.”

 

 

Instructor and Master Trainer David Duhaime talks to the graduating class about how the instructors learn from the students.

Here are longer excerpts from the speeches made by Roots Instructors Grady Mitchell and Anthony Powers.

Grady Mitchell: Standing in the gap

I recently spoke with a young man about standing up for those who need it. I reminded him of how much he appreciated it when someone else spoke up for him when he was confronted with a situation, and they didn’t just lay low and keep quiet. Some call this type of action as “standing in the gap” for someone. It is our desire to bring out “that voice” that is particular to each of us, in order for others to hear and understand that sustainability in this sense is all-inclusive. Now we see each other with respect, value, and appreciation for individuality.

Grady Mitchell, center, talks about the student whose certificate he’s holding.

What started as impatience for some, ended in tolerance of flaws, and discovery of each other’s value. While we may not ascribe to the mores of prison or commit acts of insensitivity, do we at times perpetuate it by standing aside and staying silent? Never underestimate the phenomenal impact we’ve had on each other and no matter what your philosophy in life, you will have to be open to new ideas when it comes to the environment.

As we learn the impact our actions have on this planet, it becomes imperative that speaking up and out is equal to survival. When I speak with my grandchildren and tell them I love them it’s my call to action to be sure that I try and assure the resources they have will sustain their survival and pray the knowledge I share with them will inspire efforts within them towards their children’s survival.

Unfortunately, “standing in the gap” is not always easy and can sometimes have consequences and the threat of reprisal can deter people—both confined and free—from being righteous or doing justice. Nevertheless, there is a psychological cost involved in following this philosophy because ultimately, lying low and keeping quiet can damage you mentally.

As I talk about standing in the gap, the “gap” creates the opportunity to become useful. That space from where we are to awareness and enlightenment, is where you can find the Roots of Success.

Anthony Powers: The common thread

I have heard a common question being asked. I have even heard this question from some of the people at the Evergreen State College. The question is, “How do we get people to care about climate change?” At first, I thought that I had a reasonable answer, which is that there are a wide variety of people, each with their own personalities, characteristics, political and religious beliefs, so it would probably serve us well to come up with a variety of approaches, targeted at each group, because different things are going to motivate different people.

Instructor Anthony Powers addresses the class about how to motivate people to act environmentally.

Last month I began to think of it in a different way. A way geared more towards the collective, because there is always a common thread, there is something that every human has in common. That is when I realized an error in our current messaging, our saying that we need to save the planet. The reality is that it is more personal than that, and we need to make the message more personal. The reality is that we do not need to save the planet; we need to save ourselves. The planet is going to be just fine. Whether or not it is able to sustain our lives is a whole other thing.

The onus is ours and we are not trying to save the planet, we are trying to save ourselves as a human race, both literally and financially. Because the earth can exist without us, but we cannot exist without earth.

A graduating student receives his certificate.

Master Trainer Cyril Walrond addresses the graduating class about the importance of working together to achieve goals.

New directions for SPP-Evergreen team

By SPP Co-Director Kelli Bush

Following six years of dedicated leadership from Dr. Carri LeRoy, Evergreen’s team for the Sustainability in Prisons Project (SPP) enters a new era. We are so pleased that Carri will continue to support and influence SPP as our Senior Science Advisor. SPP is also now a Public Service Center for The Evergreen State College, playing a greater role in Evergreen’s campus community and receiving increased recognition and support. Together we are continually improving and growing SPP, and we know there’s still so much more to do!

SPP partners from Evergreen and Washington State Department of Corrections have just completed updates to SPP’s mission and vision statements. The new text represents greater emphases on education and change, acknowledgement of current environmental and justice system challenges, values shared by SPP partners, and a more succinct, stand-alone mission statement.

Mission Statement: We empower sustainable change by bringing nature, science, and environmental education into prisons.

Vision: In response to the dual crises of ecological degradation and mass incarceration, we aim to reduce recidivism while improving human well-being and ecosystem health. SPP brings together incarcerated individuals, scientists, corrections staff, students, and program partners to promote education, conserve biodiversity, practice sustainability, and help build healthy communities. Together, we reduce the environmental, economic, and human costs of prisons.

Butterfly technician Kristina Faires receives a certificate for her academic and technical accomplishments in the program; program coordinator Seth Dorman poses with her to recognize her achievements. Photo by Keegan Curry.

Going forward, our top priority is identifying mechanisms to award college credit to incarcerated participants in SPP certificate programs. Education is the most effective way to reduce recidivism. These certificate programs serve as high quality apprenticeships where participants receive extensive training, education, and experience addressing complex conservation issues, delivering environmental education, or participating in our workshop series. Recently, Dr. Carri LeRoy provided valuable review that informed significant improvements to SPP certifications. We are so grateful she plans to continue providing certification oversight to ensure program quality and consistency. SPP’s certificate recipients are clearly worthy of academic recognition; they demonstrate advanced environmental knowledge and application on a daily basis.

Our programs are unconventional, and retrofitting accreditation to existing practices is a challenge, but this long-time effort seems to be gaining momentum. Acknowledging SPP certificate completion with college credit could serve to complement post-secondary education with allied prison education programs and/or inspire continued education post-release.

As always, thanks for your partnership and support of SPP. We’re so pleased to be offering these programs with you!

Coyote Ridge Corrections Center looks gray, but it’s the “greenest” prison in the nation!

Text and photos by Bethany Shepler, SPP Green Track Coordinator

At first glance, Coyote Ridge Corrections Center (CRCC) does not look very green, but superficial looks can be deceiving; it’s sustainable programming and practices are the most impressive of any correctional facility. CRCC’s main campus is LEED Gold certified, the first prison in the world to hold this accomplishment! (Check out this article about CRCC’s sustainable standard.)

At first glance Coyote Ridge looks very gray. This was especially true when I visited in overcast, rainy weather.

I visited the prison in late November, and had the chance to tour the programs and meet with partners. The sustainable practices of the facility were highly impressive, but even more impressive were the staff who work there and the inmates who have dedicated their lives to learning, education, and environmental activism. I met with the instructors for Roots of Success and we talked about the program, the facility’s annual Environmental Awareness Day, and the many hopes they have for advancing sustainability programming at Coyote Ridge.

I am continually impressed by the people I get to work with, and the inmates and liaisons at Coyote Ridge are exemplary program representatives. I asked what could be done to improve their program and the inmates unanimously agreed “more books and readings about the environment, the sciences, sustainability, environmental activism, and any other subject along those lines.” They want to learn as much as they can and are utilizing every resource they have access to.

Coyote Ridge has developed a “Sustainability Passport” to track and recognize participation. As incarcerated individuals complete a program, they get a stamp on their “passport.” A regular offering is the prison’s Sustainability Lecture Series, similar to the Environmental Workshop Series at two prisons west of the Cascades. They bring in outside experts to deliver lectures and seminars on environmental issues and sustainability. Guests have come from organizations like the Department of Ecology, the local beekeeping association, and experts on the Hanford Site.

This is Bentley. He is a handsome, energetic, lab mix puppy that was brought to the prison with the rest of his litter to be raised and trained by inmate dog handlers. He and his litter-mates have already been adopted, and some by staff members at the prison. Many staff members adopt shelter dogs that the inmates train because they get to know and love the dogs during their time at the facility.

Coyote Ridge hosts a beautiful, thriving dog program. Incarcerated individuals have played a greater leadership role in this program compared to other prison pet programs we know. The dogs that come to the facility are from Benton Franklin Humane Society and Adam County Pet Rescue. They come to the prison because the local shelter doesn’t have the space or time to care for the dogs; because it’s a pregnant dog that can receive inmate handlers’ attention 24 hours a day; or because the animal has been abused and needs extra-gentle care and attention to learn to trust people again. The dogs work with a variety of trainers while they’re at the facility so that they learn to listen and be comfortable around different people.

This is Shannon Meyer. He is one of the inmate dog handlers at CRCC and this was the current dog he’s working with, Rocky. When Rocky came to the prison he wouldn’t let anyone touch him and would get aggressive easily. Mr. Meyer has been working with Rocky for several weeks to get him to trust people and is pleased with his progress. Rocky’s red bandanna signals that he may not respond well to being pet or held by anyone other than his handler, but he happily let me pet him – proof of his progress.

The handlers at CRCC look like they love what they do and see the value in their work with the dogs. One of the handlers, Mr. Meyer, had this to say: “When I got here (in prison) it was just about doing my time, but now, with my dog, everything is about taking care of him and my life is about him.”

I also met these 8-day old puppies who were born in the prison. Their mother came to prison pregnant and gave birth to her puppies in the handler’s cell. Her handler, Mr. Archibald, will care for her and her puppies until they are ready and able to be adopted.

On all fronts, I was impressed by the greenness of programming and attitudes at the prison. Keep up the excellent work, Coyote Ridge!

CRCC during the summer. The picture is looking at some of the units and the courtyard with a rock garden in the center. The gardens at CRCC all feature native plants and rock designs. Photo by Ricky Osborne.

 

Reducing Recidivism, Part 2: Barriers Beyond Bars

By SPP Conservation Nursery Coordinator Jacob Meyers

Last week, I published Reducing Recidivism, Part 1: Why Forgiveness is Key. I chronicled the minor hurdle of putting pen to paper and writing a blog, and how this led to some deeper insight into the challenges of combating recidivism. What follows are more or less my original thoughts on recidivism after attending a summit to address this glaring issue:

On September 21st, five Evergreen students piled into a Prius and slowly started making their way through the traffic on I-5. Normally they would be working in various prisons on various programs, but today they were on their way to Seattle for a shared activity.

Along with two others who would join them at the Jackson Federal Building, this group of individuals work for Sustainability in Prisons Project (SPP). They were in Seattle to attend a summit on recidivism. Breaking the Chain: Addressing Recidivism was an event sponsored by the Seattle Federal Executive Board to bring together providers, federal, state, and local agencies working in the reentry field.

The first speaker was the Vice Chair of the Seattle Federal Executive Board, Pritz Navaratnasingam. After some thanks and a short welcome, the second keynote speaker was introduced: Steve Sinclair. Sinclair, Secretary of the Washington State Department of Corrections, also serves as Co-Director of SPP. According to him, 31.4% of offenders released in 2013 were readmitted within 3 years. Individuals releasing after their 1st incarceration recidivate at half the rate compared to those releasing after multiple prison terms. Too many people are returning to prison, and the more times a person is in prison, the more likely they are to keep coming back.

Steve Sinclair addressing the summit on September 21, 2017. Photo taken from the Washington State Department of Corrections Facebook Page.

Looking at the national picture, the numbers become even more startling. A study by the National Institute of Justice tracked the release of 404,638 individuals from 30 states found the following:

  • Within three years of release, about two-thirds (67.8 percent) of released prisoners were rearrested.
  • Within five years of release, about three-quarters (76.6 percent) of released prisoners were rearrested.
  • Of those prisoners who were rearrested, more than half (56.7 percent) were arrested by the end of the first year.

Additionally, about half (49.7%) of prisoners released violated parole or probation or were arrested for a new offense that led to imprisonment within 3 years of release.

If you’re like me, you might be shaking your head, left wondering how these numbers can be true. Fortunately, the Community Services Panel at the Recidivism Summit helped to shed some light on the difficulties one faces upon re-entry. One major factor is mental health. Out of 3.5 million people currently on parole, half of them have substance abuse problems or a mental health diagnosis according to the panel. To compound the problem, oftentimes men and women are not given enough medication upon release – frequently only having a few days or a week supply of potentially critical medication. Transportation can also be a problem. 30 days of bus passes can fly by very quickly when meeting regularly with parole officers, trying to find a job, healthcare, or acquire identification.

One of the biggest obstacles of all can be the stigma surrounding incarceration. Many employers simply won’t hire previously-incarcerated individuals, and many landlords won’t offer housing to people with criminal records. The stigma of incarceration by itself can probably go a long ways to explaining why some people resort back to their old ways of crime and drug use. Mr. Sinclair summed it up succinctly, “It’s not what you do in prison, but how you transition out of prison.”

Finally, during the Employment Panel, John Page offered this insight:

“You can’t have conversations about employment or re-entry without having conversations about race and education.”

Page, a community facilitator at the Fair Work Center (a non-profit dedicated to helping workers achieve fair employment), has over 20 years of experience working on issues of race and social justice, stressed that education is a major factor in determining who ends up in prison in the first place. Unfortunately, U.S. public schools have been failing minority students for quite sometime. And recent research shows that in many school districts, the gap between white students and their black peers is significant (Reardon et al., 2017). In Seattle Public Schools, black students test more than 3-and-a-half grade levels behind white students (Seattle Times).

With all of these challenges, it becomes a little more apparent as to why recidivism rates are so high. Upon leaving Breaking the Chain: Addressing Recidivism, I was left with several thoughts circulating through my head:

  1. As a society, we’re still not doing enough to mitigate recidivism.
  2. There is a critical window upon initial release from incarceration, a short time in which most people “make it or break it”.
  3. With more than 50 organizations and well over 100 individuals attending, Breaking the Chain: Addressing Recidivism was inspirational mainly in showing that there are countless individuals working tirelessly to reshape how we as a society think about incarnation and re-entry.
  4. The work we do at SPP is extremely important in not only providing technical skills and job experience before release, but also by imparting the value of education, curiosity, and critical thinking.

It’s a daunting situation, but it’s a challenge that must be met. Thankfully, I have great company and inspiring allies. I am sticking with it.

On December 13th, 2017, Conservation Nursery technicians at Stafford Creek Corrections Center and I are preparing 70 some trays for sowing. Photo Credit: Bethany Shepler

Technicians Shabazz Malekk, Terral Lewis, Aaron Bander, Bui Hung (left to right) and I are discussing our sowing plan for the day on December 13th, 2017. Photo Credit: Bethany Shepler

Shabazz Malekk, Aaron Bander, and I are determining the number of seeds to sow in each plug on December 13, 2017. Photo Credit: Bethany Shepler

SPP Graduate Research Assistants outside of the Jackson Federal Building in Seattle, WA on September 21, 2017. From left to right: Amanda Mintz, Keegan Curry, Bethany Shepler, Sadie Gilliom, Jessica Brown, Alexandra James, and Jacob Meyers.

SPP’s new Mission Statement

by Kelli Bush, SPP Director for Evergreen

An incarcerated man waves to visitors across the Diversity Garden at Airway Heights Corrections Center. Photo by Ricky Osborne.

During breeding season, a technician weighs an adult Taylor’s checkerspot butterfly. The highly collaborative program is hosted by Mission Creek Corrections Center. Photo by Keegan Curry.

We are so pleased! SPP partners from Evergreen and Washington State Department of Corrections have completed updates to SPP’s mission and vision statements. The new text represents greater emphases on education and change, acknowledgement of current environmental and justice system challenges, values shared by SPP partners, and a more succinct, stand-alone mission statement.

 

Mission: We empower sustainable change by bringing nature, science, and environmental education into prisons.

 

Roots of Success instructors and graduates pose for a class photo at a graduation ceremony. Photo by DOC staff.

Vision: In response to the dual crises of ecological degradation and mass incarceration, we aim to reduce recidivism while improving human well-being and ecosystem health. SPP brings together incarcerated individuals, scientists, corrections staff, students, and program partners to promote education, conserve biodiversity, practice sustainability, and help build healthy communities. Together, we reduce the environmental, economic, and human costs of prisons.

 

We will update our website to reflect these changes in the near future.

Reducing Recidivism, Part 1: Why Forgiveness is Key

by SPP Conservation Nursery Coordinator Jacob Meyers

Jackson Federal Building ballroom. Photo taken from Washington Department of Corrections Facebook Page.

Many months ago, I attended eye-opening summit on recidivism. At the time, I was inspired. I was inspired by my coworkers, whom I was just getting to know and learning how much we had in common. I was inspired by all of the individuals from many different communities and counties, countless organizations and government agencies, and all working in some shape or capacity to reduce recidivism. And I was inspired by a formally incarcerated individual, Tarra Simmons, who had recently learned she was not going to be allowed to take the BAR despite graduating with honors from Seattle University’s law school, but was determined to continue fighting for that right. (She would subsequently get that right a few months later in November, 2017)

As a part of being a program coordinator for SPP, we are asked to write a few blogs every year. Writing about the summit, I thought, was the perfect opportunity. So I did. It took me a while, but I came up with a draft and shared it with my supervisor. He gave me some feedback.

At SPP’s Climate Symposium on October 18, 2017, I am facilitating a workshop with inmates at Stafford Creek Corrections Center. My original blog still a work in process… Photo credit: Ricky Osborne

I never followed up to make the corrections or move the process forward. I kept putting it off and prioritizing other things. Before I knew it, it was January and I was meeting with my supervisor to review how I am doing in the position. The blog came up, and I couldn’t deny I had dropped the proverbial ball. I felt bad about it, like I was a somewhat of failure. Pretty much every one of my coworkers had written a blog in that time. A few wrote multiple!

However, to my supervisor’s credit, he didn’t overly lambast me or make me feel worse. He acknowledged that I had dropped the ball, and I could tell he was disappointed. But, he told me, “Well, we’re here now. What are you going to do about it? How are you going to move forward?”

Since then, a few things came in focus for me. This journey—while humbling—pales in comparison to the journeys and hardships our post-release incarcerated population must traverse. Additionally, redemption of any kind must involve some type of forgiveness. Usually when we make a mistake it costs other people something and we must ask forgiveness from them. Yet, often even more challenging, we must forgive ourselves to be able to move forward. My supervisor forgave my shortcoming and in turn afforded me redemption through a second chance and new strategy to get this blog done. In turn, I was able to put my own insecurities aside – my feelings of failure and inadequacy – and find the modicum of courage to get this done.

Overall, when reflecting on my time at SPP, the recidivism summit back in September, and the minor challenges of writing this blog, I know we as a society must do better to truly forgive our incarcerated population. To forgive their transgressions and shortcomings and allow them the possibility of redemption. I know it may seem silly to compare writing a blog to a criminal offense. But if I can attach so much worth and self-value to something so small (as many of us do), imagine the emotional and psychological journey incarcerated people might go through during their stay in prison and upon reentry?

Very methodically compacting soil during a day of sowing on December 13th, 2017. Photo Credit: Bethany Shepler

On December 13th, 2017, Aaron Bander (left) and I are discussing how the sowing process is going or possibly upcoming college football games. Photo Credit: Bethany Shepler

Next week, I will post my original reflections on the recidivism summit.