In June, President Jeremy Travis of John Jay College of Criminal Justice, along with President Nick Turner of the Vera Institute of Justice, led a delegation from the U.S. to Germany as part of the International Sentencing and Corrections Exchange, a partnership between the John Jay College and the Vera Institute. The delegation—which included corrections officials, philanthropists, people who have been incarcerated, district attorneys, and other bipartisan thought leaders—toured prisons and met European experts in order to build a cross-cultural learning community. Throughout the week, participants shared insights on social media using #RethinkingPrisonsIntl, reporter Maurice Chammah’s blogged for The Marshall Project and VICE News and the Vera Institute highlighted the delegation’s experience on their  blog post. 

Click here for more information. 

Below are links to recent articles written by visiting delegates during the tour of German prisons: 

Privacy, weekend leave, keys...This is prison?

CBS 60 Minutes, 4/3/16

What We Learned From German Prisons  

The New York Times, 8/6/15

German Prisons Are Kinder, Gentler, and Safer Than the Ones in America By Maurice Chammah 
Vice 

Dispatches from Germany: A breath of fresh air by Ryan Shanahan 
Vera Institute of Justice 

How Germany Does Prison by Maurice Chammah 
The Marshall Project 

Treating Prisoners With Dignity Can Reduce Crime by Nicholas Turner and John Wetzel 
National Journal