#Restorative Justice

From Quiet Witness to Repairing What’s Broken

Even as we build, language keeps the work honest. In 'An Atlas of the Difficult World' (1991), Rich maps grief and endurance, insisting that naming complexity is itself a form of care. Stories align coalitions, set criteria for success, and remind us who must not be left behind. Thus, we return to the beginning: silence ends in truth-telling, protest insists on change, and repair commits to making that change livable. Through this continuous loop, action matures into a culture of mending rather than a moment of noise. [...]

Fierce Gentleness: Daily Mercy That Transforms Systems

Laboratory evidence suggests compassion can be trained like a skill. Helen Weng et al., Psychological Science (2013), found that brief compassion training increased altruistic behavior toward strangers. Olga Klimecki and Tania Singer (2014) showed that compassion (distinct from empathic distress) boosts positive affect and resilience, enabling care without burnout. Barbara Fredrickson’s broaden-and-build theory (2001) further argues that positive emotions widen perception and resourcefulness—key ingredients for wise, nonreactive action. If compassion is trainable, then mercy can be routinized beyond individuals. That realization invites a shift from personal virtue to structural design. [...]