The National Association of Community and Restorative Justice, held July 7-10, 2026 in New Orleans, Louisiana

NARF’s Indigenous Peacemaking Initiative (IPI) was represented recently at the bi-annual conference of the National Association of Community and Restorative Justice, held July 7-10, 2026 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Pictured above, at the conference’s main stage, are IPI Advisory Circle member Natasha Gourd and Staff Attorney Brett Lee Shelton, both of whom participated in the entire event.   Total attendance was approximately 1,700 people, largely comprised of people interested and active in community-based restorative justice programs across the United States (although several other American and European countries, as well as Aotearoa/New Zealand, were also represented).  Community-based restorative justice processes are widely acknowledged to be based on indigenous practices like peacemaking, so there are many good allies and other connections to be made at an even such as this, as well as plenty of sharing of ideas about techniques, processes, and facilitation approaches.

Attorney Shelton reported that he learned a lot about the effects of somatics and other nerve-brain responses to trauma and stress, as well as how to help relieve these same responses. All of this information will be helpful to peacemakers as they must help people in stressful situations work out solutions to problems brought to the peacemaking circle.   In addition to pursuing her own learning to augment her peacemaking practice and her role as consultant to Tribes developing peacemaking, Peacemaker Gourd provided a well-received workshop entitles Waowachin Kin Ihduwake: Indigenous Peacemaking Through a Dakota Lens in the morning on Wednesday July 8.