alex levin from channel seventeen here to promote a really interesting new award on the horizon in the realm of restorative justice having to do with a nominee right here in our own midst here in vermont mr herb sink in saying welcome to channel seventeen studios  what's what's going on in the world the probation and parole what's new is that we were named a finalist national finalists in a award program put on by a company by the name of c five from california and  i just learned about a week and a half ago that we were one of the five finalists around the united states and this is specifically focusing in on the reparative probation program which led to all sorts of restored of justice initiatives that are now existant not just at probation but mostly at the community justice centers across from mine so that's what this is all about and statewide restored of justice programs are almost non existent around the united states we were the first one to do that and we may still be the only one that's done that statewide how do we get the ball rolling with that we did market analysis people's feelings views on things ordinary people in the communities as well as stakeholders back in the early ninety's indicated to us that victims felt that they were not paid enough attention to and that communities didn't feel like offenders were making amends directly to the community either so we built the reparative probation program and several other restored of justice initiatives and now other ones have also been incorporated since that interesting so as opposed to a traditional approach to criminal justice where you could send somebody to incarceration or you could let them out on a probation or you could offer some kind of third option this gives a panoply of options that is more individually suited to the charges at play here exactly and again it's very unusual in some states for somebody to get a probation case and to deal with that case  with several other trained volunteers from the community so in vermont and across from reparative probation means that people that are placed on probation that the judge so decides it needs to go to a panel of community members and with the victim very importantly sitting across the table from them and then they can all decide collaboratively how that offender needs to make amends to both the victim and also the broader community so we're really taking this out of the courthouse and it sounds like it really takes a village in this sense exactly you put it in a nutshell ok so you're up for this award and it sounds like you're doing some pretty good work out there and it deserves recognition how can along with that and they will will see a page that comes up with five possible choices ok of people and places to vote now you were you were careful to remind me or selfless guy her so even though it does say her sink ins and here you are careful to correctly that this actually is not your specific nomination this is really for as on the model of restored of justice it takes a village and indeed it's taken an entire bunch of people that wouldn't fit in the studio right now in order to get this go absolutely exactly so i am representing all the folks that have gone before that have helped put this reparative probation program together which is then lead to the community justice centers around vermont and all of those volunteers and other staff members some of whom are department of corrections employees and some of whom are hired through grants et and are actually not department employees but consultants or what have you a lot a lot of people at a lot a lot of talents right that's right so i'm each one of these programs has somebody associated with that had worked on it and helped to initiate it and develop it and i was the one that was you're the guy going find herb sink ins ins name at c five dot com catalyst for change and vote for him for the important work that he's done in the realm of restored of justice specifically here in the state of vermont making sure that community based restored of justice is helping to create restorative justice work for the victims restored of justice work for the people up on charges and restorative justice work for the community as a whole well put thanks very much for having me and congratulations on your nomination louise over a little over a month we're up against ohio  two programs from kansas and one from las vegas nevada and we have the smallest population but i know how vermonters are and we can win this