"Establishing an ecological mechanism for the social reintegration of prisoners"
Photography essay
Nicu Ilfoveanu
2016

Kriminalomsorgen-Region Sør (Serviciile Penitenciare din Regiunea de Sud, Norvegia), Penitenciarul Tulcea şi consorţiul format din Asociaţia Ivan Patzaichin – Mila 23 şi Asociaţia Romano ButiQ, și finanțat prin Mecanismul Financiar Norvegian 2009 – 2014.

The project was funded under the RO23 Program - "Correctional sanctions, including non-custodial sanctions"

Inspired by the renowned Bastøy Prison in Norway, the project entitled “Establishing an ecological mechanism for the social reintegration of prisoners” was the starting point for the Romanian authorities to establish the first humane ecological prison. The Southern Region Correctional Services was the Norwegian partner in this project and provided Romanian prison authorities with advice and good practices on the establishment and management of ecological prisons.

Given the high unemployment rate of prisoners after release, caused by limited education and/or qualifications that prevent them from accessing employment and thus pose a high risk of recidivism, the National Penitentiary Administration promoted this project as a means of addressing this issue, offering training courses aimed at qualifying prisoners in traditional crafts and raising awareness about their situation, in order to increase their chances on the labor market after the end of their prison term. The project objective was fully achieved, consisting of strengthening the capacity of the penitentiary system to facilitate the reintegration process of ex-prisoners, by improving their skills through training in the field of ecological construction and traditional crafts, as well as by raising public awareness about the importance of society's involvement in ensuring the reintegration of ex-prisoners.

The project entitled "Establishing an ecological mechanism for the social reintegration of prisoners" was funded under the RO23 Program - "Correctional sanctions, including non-custodial sanctions" of the EEA & Norway Grants 2009-2014