Mediation & Restorative Justice

Restorative justice is founded on the idea that when harm occurs — whether personal, social, or environmental — the goal should not only be to punish, but to repair the harm, rebuild trust, and restore balance.

This philosophy aligns deeply with Indian cultural and spiritual traditions of “Nyaya” and “Dharma” — justice rooted in moral consciousness, empathy, and collective well-being.

The Walking Monk Foundation integrates this timeless wisdom with modern conflict-resolution methods, making justice more humane, inclusive, and transformative.

The Philosophy of Restorative Justice

This philosophy aligns deeply with Indian cultural and spiritual traditions of “Nyaya” and “Dharma” — justice rooted in moral consciousness, empathy, and collective well-being.

The Walking Monk Foundation integrates this timeless wisdom with modern conflict-resolution methods, making justice more humane, inclusive, and transformative.

Mediation as a Path to Peaceful Resolution

Mediation allows individuals and communities to resolve disputes through dialogue instead of litigation.
It is faster, less adversarial, and often more just — especially for people from weaker or marginalized backgrounds who cannot afford prolonged legal battles.

Mediation allows individuals and communities to resolve disputes through dialogue instead of litigation. It is faster, less adversarial, and often more just — especially for people from weaker or marginalized backgrounds who cannot afford prolonged legal battles.
Facilitate community-level mediations in civil, family, and property disputes.
Offer pre-litigation mediation support to reduce court burdens.
Promote reconciliation and mutual understanding in cases involving emotional or social harm.

Each mediation is guided by trained mediators, counsellors, and legal experts, ensuring that outcomes are fair, voluntary, and rooted in empathy.

Restorative Justice for Communities in Conflict

Beyond individual disputes, we address collective and community-level conflicts — arising from issues like land, caste, religion, or environmental harm.
Our approach emphasizes:

Restorative dialogue between conflicting groups to rebuild trust.
Truth-sharing circles where all voices — especially victims — are heard with respect.
Community-based reparations or collective restitution where possible.
Facilitation of peace agreements anchored in fairness and mutual dignity.

This process helps transform cycles of resentment into relationships of cooperation and coexistence.

Restorative Justice in the Criminal Context

In certain cases, punitive justice alone cannot achieve healing.
We advocate for integrating restorative practices within the criminal justice system, especially in cases involving juveniles, minor offenses, and community disputes.

Our focus includes:

Victim-offender mediation programmes, ensuring acknowledgment and accountability.
Rehabilitation and reintegration of offenders through counselling and skill-building.
Restorative circles in correctional institutions to promote empathy and reform.
Legal advocacy for expanding restorative justice principles within Indian criminal law and correctional policy.

By blending accountability with compassion, we promote a justice system that heals rather than hardens.

Family and Domestic Dispute Mediation

Family conflicts, if left unresolved, often cause deep emotional and social harm.
The Foundation’s Family Mediation Services help couples and families resolve issues with dignity, privacy, and understanding. We provide:

These interventions aim to preserve relationships where possible, and where not, to ensure peaceful closure and mutual respect.

Training and Capacity Building in Mediation

Training and Capacity Building in Mediation

Law students and young advocates in mediation ethics and restorative justice theory.
Community leaders, panchayat members, and social workers to act as local mediators.
Police and administrative officers on non-violent conflict management.
Teachers and counsellors for addressing disputes in educational environments.

We aim to create a national network of trained mediators committed to promoting peace and justice at every level of society.

Policy Advocacy and Legal Reform for Restorative Systems

We advocate for the recognition and integration of Restorative Justice mechanisms within India’s legal and judicial structures.
Our policy work includes:

Research on restorative practices in traditional Indian justice systems.
Recommendations to law commissions and ministries for legal recognition of mediation.
Engagement with judicial academies to promote restorative training for judges and magistrates.
Collaboration with international restorative justice networks to bring global best practices to India.

Our long-term goal is to make Restorative Justice a pillar of modern Indian jurisprudence.

Community Peacebuilding and Social Healing

Lasting peace cannot be legislated — it must be built through dialogue, empathy, and shared responsibility.
We conduct Community Peace Circles that bring together citizens, religious and civic leaders, youth, and women’s groups to discuss local issues, build understanding, and create shared commitments to harmony.

Our peacebuilding model transforms ordinary citizens into agents of reconciliation and healing.

Our Impact Vision

We envision an India where:

Disputes are resolved through dialogue, not domination.
Justice restores relationships rather than destroying them.
Communities choose forgiveness over revenge, reconciliation over division
Every citizen understands that peace is not the absence of conflict, but the presence of understanding.

Through Mediation and Restorative Justice, the Walking Monk Foundation walks the sacred path between law and love, proving that justice can be both strong and kind — just as Baba Preetam Shah envisioned.