*Please note that the conference programme is subject to change. This may include speaker cancellations and last-minute speaker confirmations. If you are a speaker and cannot find your presentation listed, kindly check your email for any communications from us or contact us directly for assistance.
Programme Committee
Meet our Programme Committee, who continue their dedication to assembling a diverse line-up of presentations and speakers worldwide. ICPA extends heartfelt gratitude to Luke Grant, Natalie Boal, Marayca Lopez, Bernie Warner, Mariana Martin and Leann K. Bertsch.
Luke Grant (Chair)
Luke Grant joined Corrective Services NSW in January 1991, progressing through senior operational roles in prisoner education, programs, and classification. He was appointed to the role of Assistant Commissioner Inmate Management in 2000, with primary responsibility for prisoner rehabilitation in NSW, and became Assistant Commissioner Corrections Strategy and Policy in December 2012 and Deputy Commissioner in 2020. In his current role Luke has oversight of all correctional policy and strategy for NSW, rehabilitation, correctional research, staff development, culture and wellbeing, media, digital technology and prisoner classification. Luke has provided expert testimony before numerous parliamentary inquiries at the state and federal levels and represented Australia in international forums as an expert on countering violent extremism and the human rights of prisoners. He championed partnerships and research collaborations between the corrections industry and universities for the last two decades and has co-authored more than 45 articles in peer-reviewed journals.
Natalie Boal
Natalie Boal is the Executive Director of the International Corrections and Prisons Association (ICPA). She is committed to advancing humane and effective correctional practices with the ultimate goal of fostering safer communities worldwide. In this role, she supports ICPA members in their efforts to modernise corrections through evidence-based and research-informed approaches.
An accomplished leader, Natalie brings extensive experience delivering complex, high-level projects for government, particularly in the human services sector. She has a proven record of leading teams, driving organisational change, and implementing major reform initiatives.
Prior to joining ICPA, Natalie headed the Strategic Policy, Projects and Partnerships Unit within the South Australian Department for Correctional Services, where she oversaw significant strategic and operational reforms across the state’s prison system. She holds postgraduate qualifications in business (government) and project management and is recognised as an expert in program and project management methodologies.
Marayca Lopez
Dr. Lopez is an expert consultant of distinguished ability and accomplishment in the field of correctional systems and prison reform with an extensive education and international background in the fields of criminal justice, criminology, and justice architecture. Having exclusively dedicated her academic and professional careers to the justice sector, Marayca possesses a keen understanding of the overall criminal justice system and, more specifically, of correctional systems for both justice-involved youth and adults.
Marayca’s body of work is international in scope. She has participated in a wide array of criminal justice reform projects and prison studies both in the USA, where she currently resides, and abroad (e.g. Australia, Canada, Europe, Central and South America), resulting in worldwide expertise and a deep understanding of correctional best practices, prison operations, and innovative models for offender management and intervention. Marayca’s years of academic pursuit and practical application in the field of corrections have helped to nurture and refine her research and analytical skills, which are critical for criminal justice strategic planning. As an authority on criminal justice matters and prisons operations, Marayca has been working with architectural firms for the last 20 years, helping to plan and program correctional facilities that are holistic in their approach, preserve human rights, promote healing, rehabilitation and treatment, are trauma-informed, and focused on restorative practices, evidence-based programs and innovative service delivery models for positive behavioral change and successful re-entry.
Dr. Lopez's areas of expertise include the development of system-wide needs assessments; policy and criminal justice data analysis; inmate population forecasting; deflection, diversion and alternatives to incarceration programs; organizational/cultural assessments; existing buildings functional and operational assessments; correctional facilities programming and master planning, transition, and activation services. She is an active member of the International Corrections and Prison’s Association’s (ICPA) Planning and Design Committee and has an on-going collaboration with the Correctional Association of New York (Women in Prison Project), the United Nations Friends of Corrections, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and Penal Reform International (PRI) on issues related to the humanization of prisons, monitoring of incarceration practices and improvement of detention conditions She is a frequent speaker and/or lecturer in a variety of academic, professional, and international forums. For the last 5 years she has been part of AIA Academy of Architecture for Justice’s Leadership Group.
Bernie Warner
Mr. Warner is a highly experienced professional with over 45 years of expertise in both juvenile and adult corrections. From 2011 to 2015, he served as the secretary of the Washington State Department of Corrections, responsible for the supervision and care of over 35,000 incarcerated individuals. From 2005-2010, he led historic reforms in the California Department of Juvenile Justice. Currently, Mr. Warner provides consultation to correctional organizations assist in the development of evidence based programs and improve conditions of confinement. Throughout his career, he has been a strong advocate for system reform, working on initiatives such as fair sanctions, reduced segregation, gender-responsive practices, and gang interventions. With a Bachelor of Science degree in Administration of Justice and executive management programs from prestigious institutions, Mr. Warner has also made significant contributions globally through his involvement as a former ICPA Board member and current program committee member and served as a US Department of State delegate in the 2015 Mandela rules negotiations in South Africa and Vienna. With Mr. Warner's dedication to correctional reform, he is a highly respected and influential figure in the field, driving positive change in the pursuit of safer and more rehabilitative environments.
Mariana Martin
Deputy Commissioner-General Mariana Martin, head of Namibia's Rehabilitation and Reintegration Sub-department within the Correctional Service, leads nationwide efforts in offender rehabilitation and reintegration, with her current roles including overseeing the implementation of the Correctional Service’s Offender Risk Management Correctional Strategy. With over 15 years of experience in corrections, she has held pivotal roles such as Programme Officer, Deputy Commissioner for Community Corrections, and Commissioner for Rehabilitation. Her contributions include developing a new Community Supervision framework for Namibia. Additionally, under her leadership, the scope of the Namibian Correctional Service's involvement in administering Community Service Orders expanded significantly.
Holding a master’s degree in clinical psychology, she has also lectured at the University of Namibia and Namibia University of Science and Technology in the fields of Psychology and Correctional Management, respectively. Furthermore, she has written a number of works on the rehabilitation and reintegration of offenders in Namibia.
Leann Bertsch
Ms. Bertsch has almost 30 years of experience in the criminal justice field and has worked in both juvenile and adult corrections. As Senior Vice President, Corrections, Ms. Bertsch has direct oversight of all MTC corrections operation and management contracts. Ms. Bertsch was the Director of the North Dakota Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (ND DOCR) for 15 years before joining MTC. As Director of the ND DOCR, she was responsible for all state prisons, parole and probation supervision, community corrections, oversight and regulation of county jails, and the Division of Juvenile Services. As Director, Ms. Bertsch worked to reform the North Dakota corrections system from one that was focused on punishment, monitoring and compliance to a system that focused on repairing the harm crime causes for individuals, families and communities. Ms. Bertsch started her career in criminal justice as a state court prosecutor where she prosecuted major crimes and worked in juvenile justice. While in that role, Bertsch served on the Governor’s task force for violent and dangerous offenders.
Ms. Bertsch started her career in state government as the Commissioner of Labor and Human Rights where she oversaw the agency responsible for enforcing employment rights, fair housing, the North Dakota Human Rights Act as well as wage and hour claims.
Ms. Bertsch served over twenty-one years in the North Dakota National Guard, where she served as a Judge Advocate General (JAG). As a JAG officer, Ms. Bertsch provided legal assistance to soldiers and airman and prosecuted and defended cases brought under the Uniform Code of Military Justice.
Ms. Bertsch is a past board member of the Board of International Corrections and Prison Association, she serves as a Senior Fellow for the the Prison Fellowship Warden Exchange, and is past President of the Association of Women Executives in Corrections. Ms. Bertsch served as the President of the Association of State Correctional Administrators from 2014 through 2018. Ms. Bertsch was awarded the Tom Clements Award for Innovation in Corrections by her peers in 2016. Ms. Bertsch earned her Bachelor of Science in 1988 from North Dakota State University with a major in Psychology, and minors in Sociology and Political Science. Ms. Bertsch earned her Juris Doctorate from the University of North Dakota School of Law in 1991.
